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• Consumers across five European countries perceive sustainability labels as helpful. • Across five European countries, preferences for product attributes were similar. • Meat and dairy consumers value animal welfare information more than environmental sustainability. Food production systems, especially meat and dairy supply chains, contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. An important question emerges as to whether consumers care about environmental sustainability when buying food products, as this can determine their consumption practices. Further, if sustainability labels are available, identifying information that is relevant to consumers is important. This research therefore aimed to identify the attributes that are most important for consumers when buying meat or dairy products and the perceived helpfulness of sustainability labels for meat and dairy products and important label properties. An online survey was conducted in five European countries (i.e. Czechia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK). Consumers valued similar attributes when buying meat and dairy products across all countries. Freshness , quality/taste and animal welfare emerged as the most important attributes, while environmental attributes such as food miles , carbon footprint , and organic production were the least important. Sustainability labels for meat and dairy products were perceived as helpful. Regression analysis identified similar patterns within all five countries regarding the predictors of the perceived helpfulness of sustainability labels. Attitudes towards sustainable food consumption , environmental attitudes , and food production and policies emerged as significant positive predictors in most models. Most importantly, information regarding animal welfare , food safety , and health and nutrition was perceived as being more important than environmental sustainability. This suggests that food choice decisions are unlikely to be made based on the environmental sustainability of a food product's production alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen (N) pollution has mostly been controlled using command-and-control instruments. However, nitrogen surplus permits (NSPs), which are tradeable, can be more cost-efficient in addressing the problem. To model this instrument, we calculated the individual marginal abatement cost curve for a sample of about 3,400 Swiss farms using farm-optimization models implemented in the agent-based agricultural sector model SWISSland. We also used SWISSland to analyze the effects of two NSP distribution systems (grandfathering and land-based allocation) on different farm types. The results showed that different farm types range in their abatement costs to reduce N surplus from an average of −0.04 CHF kg−1 N on arable farms to 51.06 CHF kg−1 N on special crop farms. We also found that N surpluses hardly explain the level of abatement costs. The biggest differences in effects of the distribution scheme were found in intensive livestock farm types such as pig or poultry farms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to propose an improved methodology to determine a viable farm size for potential emerging farmers as land reform beneficiaries. Land reform in South Africa has been criticised because of poor implementation and slow pace, accompanied by poor productivity in redistributed land. To explain this, it has been suggested that commercial farms are too large for emerging farmers who have little or no experience in commercial farming. Thus, there have been calls for measures to make subdivision of land easier and cheaper. To this end, cross–sectional survey data from 833 potential emerging farmers in three rural provinces are analysed to determine a viable income for emerging farm households as a basis for calculating a viable farm size, using the income aspiration literature, farm household economics theory as a point of departure. Off–farm income, farm income and aspirational income are included in the calculation. The viable income was matched to the existing commercial farm enterprise gross margins per hectare obtained from the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy, which are then used as the basis for suggesting "viable farm sizes" for different emerging farm households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study estimates the causal effects of EU Rural Development funds for micro-enterprises and tourism activities on the number of newly established enterprises in the treated rural communities of Romania (programme period 2007–2013). Using a combined database from several sources at the local administrative unit (LAU2) level, both the average treatment effects and average treatment intensity effects are analysed based on Propensity score matching and Dose response treatment models. Controlled variables include institutional factors, and urban–rural as well as farm–non-farm spill-over effects. The analysis showed that on average funds did not contribute to the creation of new enterprises in Romanian rural communities in the period 2009–2014. By matching for covariates no differences were found between supported and unsupported communities regarding new enterprise creation. However, evidence was found that the higher the treatment intensity, the higher the number of newly established enterprises. Furthermore, the results showed that funds higher than €50 per inhabitant significantly contributed to the creation of new enterprises in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Meat commitment is a negative and significant predictor for the importance of animal welfare. • Committed meat eaters are less likely to endorse universalistic values (i.e. animal welfare). • Animal welfare remains important when it is in direct conflict with three different policy goals. • Animal welfare appeals directly to personal values. • Agricultural policy needs to evolve together with personal values. Animal welfare is one of the key agricultural policy goals and is considered extremely important by consumers. With the increasing urgency for a sustainable and healthy dietary shift, it could be one of the key motivators for behaviour change. Therefore, we investigate how consumers perceive the importance of animal welfare not only as an agricultural policy goal but also in comparison to conflicting goals, such as domestic food production, farmers' income, and consumer prices. We investigate how the weighing of animal welfare as an agricultural policy goal is related to individual behaviour (i.e. meat consumption), values and attitudes, such as meat commitment, the perceptions of farmers and the Ecological Welfare scale (which includes animal welfare and environment protection). Thus, we conducted an online survey in October 2022, recruiting a sample of 1542 participants (51.5% women) in equal parts from the German-, French-, and Italian-speaking parts of Switzerland. Participants were asked to evaluate the importance of increased animal welfare in three situations with the following conflicting policy goals: (1) increasing domestic food production, (2) reducing consumer food prices, and (3) increasing farm incomes. Regression analysis revealed that the influential predictors in all three models were similar. Being a woman, politically left leaning, and less committed to meat eating, having a more negative perception of farmers, and assigning more importance to ethical food consumption increased the probability of putting more weight on animal welfare in all three goal conflicts described above. The finding that participants who were more committed to meat eating tended to assign less importance to animal welfare when weighing the three conflicting agricultural policy goals is well-aligned with the current literature. Implications for agricultural policy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct payments represent a large share of Swiss farmers' total household income but compliance with related requirements often entails a high administrative burden. This causes individuals to experience policy implementation as onerous. Based on a framework for administrative burden in citizen-state interactions, we test whether farmers' individual knowledge, psychological costs and compliance costs help to explain their perception of administrative burden related to direct payments. We refine this framework by testing different specifications of interrelations between psychological costs and perceived administrative burden based on findings from policy feedback theory and education research. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is applied to data collected from a representative sample of 808 Swiss farmers by postal questionnaire in 2019. We find that compliance costs and psychological costs contribute significantly to the perceived administrative burden. In contrast, farmers' knowledge level contributes to this perception not directly but indirectly, with higher knowledge reducing psychological costs. Our results support policy feedback theory, in that a high level of administrative burden increases psychological costs. Furthermore, well-educated and well-informed farmers show a more positive attitude toward agricultural policy and thus perceive administrative tasks as less onerous. Policy-makers should invest in the reduction of administrative requirements to reduce compliance costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmers' subjectively perceived that administrative transaction costs are of high importance for the uptake of agri-environmental programs with direct effects on the effectiveness and efficiency of these programs and the well-being of farmers. This paper empirically estimates private administrative transaction costs resulting from an uptake of the newly introduced grassland-based milk and meat program in Switzerland, based on farmers' perceived administrative workload. Using ordered logit models, we analyze how the administrative tasks and farm and farmer characteristics influence the perceived administrative workload. We find that the time spent on monitoring or inspection tasks has no effect. In contrast, an outsourcing of program-related administrative tasks significantly reduces the perceived administrative workload. We also find that a better understanding of agricultural policy regulations significantly reduces the farmers' perceived administrative workload. We recommend that public administration improve the communication of agricultural policy regulations, rather than investing in the simplification of administrative forms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the abolition of the milk quota in 2008, farmers in Switzerland strongly increased the use of concentrate feed in milk production. Against this background, the Swiss government introduced the voluntary grassland‐based milk and meat (GMF) programme in 2014, which combines economic incentives with feeding restrictions to reduce the reliance on concentrate feed and increase the use of grass feed. We analyse the economic and ecological impacts of the GMF programme at the farm and at the sector level in the short‐ and long‐run. We use a difference‐in‐differences approach (ex‐post) and an agent‐based simulation model SWISSland (ex‐ante) to construct counterfactual states to evaluate the programme's impacts. We find that the GMF programme reduces the use of concentrate feed and increases the use of grass feed in Swiss milk production. Whereas the programme has a positive effect on economic indicators such as the farm income, we find no effect on ecological indicators such as the N surplus. Our analysis suggests that feeding restrictions on concentrate feed are not enough to achieve a reduction in the N surplus. Additional feeding restrictions on grassland are necessary. Furthermore, the GMF programme has a dampening effect on sectoral milk supply, and leads to a higher milk price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grassland-based feeding systems have the potential to reduce N input in agriculture through lower use of concentrates. Switzerland has recently introduced a new voluntary grassland-based milk and meat programme that restricts the concentrate and maize use in milk production systems. We analysed the on-farm compliance costs and the N surplus reduction potential for a sample of 2004 mixed dairy farms using farm-optimisation models implemented in the agent-based agricultural sector model SWISSland. Based on the simulation results, we used regression analysis to identify driving forces for the level of compliance costs and the reduction in N surplus of farms which allowed to investigate the effectiveness and the efficiency of the programme for the whole farm population. Our results imply that a payment for reducing the on-farm consumption of concentrate and maize feed does not substantially reduce N surpluses in Swiss agriculture. The heterogeneity of farms results in a distribution of compliance costs with a large group of farms having no or minimal costs. With the current payment of 200 CHF per hectare, reductions of 10.7 and 26.3 tonnes of N can be achieved at high costs of 57 and 161 CHF per kg N in the lowland and mountain region respectively. Results also imply that specialisation represented by a high proportion of milk production, high levels of milk yields per cow as well as high milk prices increases the on-farm compliance costs of the programme. In contrast, diversification strategies that focus on intensive milk production in combination with additional low N fed livestock to optimise the use of grass at farm level reduces the compliance costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of a stepwise investigation of the quantity and quality of food losses along the Swiss potato supply chain. Quantitative data were collected from field trials, from structured interviews with wholesalers, processors and retailers, and from consumer surveys in combination with a 30-day diary study. The “Swiss trade customs for potatoes” pose the basis for the qualitative evaluation of losses. The influences of technological, institutional (business and economy; legislation and policy), and social drivers on the generation of fresh potato and processed potato products losses were assessed. Losses due to quality standards driven by food safety and consumer preferences for certain aesthetic standards have been evaluated too. Across the entire potato value chain, approximately 53–55% of the initial fresh potato production and 41–46% of the initial processing potato production are finally lost. Losses between organic and non-organic supply chains differ from 2% to 5%. From the total initial fresh potato production, 15–24% gets lost during agricultural production, a further 12–24% at wholesalers, 1–3% at retailers, and 15% at private households. In comparison, 5–11% of the initial production gets lost at wholesalers, a further 14–15% during processing, 0% at retailers, and 2% at private households. Losses during agricultural production do not vary much (13–25%) between fresh and processing potatoes. Approximately half of total potato losses occur because potatoes do not meet quality standards. 25–34% of these quality-driven losses are caused by food safety reasons, and the remainder are caused by consumer preferences or suitability for storage. In total, social drivers (e.g., consumer preferences, behavior, or socio-demographical factors) are responsible for two-thirds to three-fourths of all fresh potato losses and 40–45% of all processing potato losses. Technological drivers cause circa one-third of the total processing potato losses. The majority of the rejected potatoes are used as animal feed (67–90%) in Switzerland. Approximately 30% of all fresh potato losses are disposed while just 4–5% of all processing potato losses are thrown away. The interviewed experts stated that lower quality specifications might cause lower loss rates at the first stages of the supply chain but higher ones at the later stages due to worse storage or processing abilities of potatoes with defects, which also might affect proper tubers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Result- and multi-actor-oriented agri-environmental payment schemes are considered more cost-effective than action-oriented schemes in providing environmental public goods. This study analysed socio-economic determinants influencing the implementation of three types of agri-environmental scheme: action-, result- and multi-actor-oriented payment schemes. We relied on farm-level data from 2015 to 2017 retrieved from the Swiss Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) and individually linked with Swiss agricultural census data. The census data provided detailed information on the proportions of action-, result- and multi-actor-oriented ecological focus areas (EFAs) implemented on each FADN farm. We found evidence that farmers' knowledge and competences are more important for result- and multi-actor-oriented EFAs than for action-oriented schemes: farms managed by young full-time farmers with higher levels of education have significantly higher proportions of result-oriented EFAs. In addition, farmers with higher levels of education who manage larger farms have significantly higher proportions of multi-actor-oriented EFAs. Furthermore, institutional factors such as cantonal authorities strongly influenced the proportions of result- and multi-actor-oriented EFAs. In contrast, the implementation of action-oriented EFAs was strongly driven by farm type. We observed higher proportions of action-oriented EFAs for farm types where implementation led to little change in farming practices (for instance, extensive ruminant farms). This adverse selection behaviour resulting from low compliance costs was not observed for result- or multi-actor-oriented EFAs. • We empirically investigated socio-economic determinants influencing proportions of ecological focus areas (EFAs). • Determinants for proportions of action-oriented EFAs were compared with those for result- and multi-actor-oriented EFAs. • Farms managed by young full-time farmers with higher education levels tend to have significantly higher result-oriented EFAs. • High production intensity negatively affects the proportions of action-, result- and multi-actor-oriented EFAs. • Institutional factors play a crucial role in fostering the provision of environmental public goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Swiss popular initiative reflecting large public concerns about the negative environmental impacts of agricultural production launched a proposal to rigorously tighten environmental cross-compliance standards. The so-called drinking water initiative (DWI) proposes restricting direct payments to farms that (1) preserve biodiversity, (2) do not use any pesticides, (3) adapt their livestock to their on-farm feed capacity and (4) do not use antibiotics regularly or prophylactically. Based on the recursive-dynamic, agent-based agricultural sector model SWISSland, we assessed, ex-ante, the impacts of the initiative on environmental and economic indicators at the farm- and sector-level. Stakeholders from both groups, supporters and opponents of the initiative, were involved in the assessment. We found that the incorporation of far more stringent environmental standards into the cross-compliance system caused a larger number of farms to opt-out: For 33–63% of the pork and poultry farms and 51–93% of the vegetable/orchards/winery farms, it was more profitable to forego direct payments. However, the majority of the ruminant farms (87%) were expected to comply with the standards. Although the non-complying farm types were associated with the most severe environmental impacts, we found that the initiative nonetheless had positive effects on water quality at the sectoral level in Switzerland: e.g., the share of pesticide-free arable land increased to 70–92%, those of the permanent cropland to 11–52%, and the nitrogen surplus decreased. However, the total agricultural production measured in calories decreased (12–21%), and therefore agricultural imports would increase. If the current direct payment budget goes completely to the complying farms, and if these farms receive a price premium, then we predict an average farm income increase of 2–34% for the complying farms; otherwise, a decrease of 6–22% will be found depending on the scenario. A sensitivity analysis showed that price uncertainties had the highest impact on farm income. • Impacts of stricter cross-compliance standards in Switzerland are analysed using an agent-based model. • Cross-compliance standards become stricter by incorporating a ban on pesticides and on-farm feed balances • Leading to positive effects on water quality, though consequently increasing the number of farms that opt-out. • Causing a decrease of the total agricultural production in Switzerland and therefore an increase in agricultural imports. • Non-complying farms would produce more intensively, at the same time complying farms would produce more extensively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potatoes are one of the commodities with the highest loss shares along the entire supply chain. In the present study, we analyzed six potential loss reduction scenarios concerning their environmentalsocio- economic sustainability compared with the current situation by using the ''SustainOS" methodology. For this purpose, life cycle assessments, full-cost calculations and an online consumer survey were conducted. Environmental improvements through loss reduction were rather small and did not cross limits of significance, but the socio-economic performance of the entire supply chain can be improved considerably. Pearson correlation coefficients and linear regression analyses were used to predict the influence of specific subjective items like the intention to avoid food loss, knowledge related to food loss and consumers' price sensitivity on the assigned preference. Results show that perceived risks, perceived inconvenience and the general acceptance of loss-reducing instruments influence consumers' preferences. Altogether, only three out of six tested scenarios seem realistic: selling unwashed potatoes in a lightproof box, selling unpacked potatoes, and improved quality sorting at farms. For two of the other scenarios, consumers significantly indicated their refusal even if losses decreased considerably, whereas the sixth scenario was unfavorable from a socio-economic perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2020, the first COVID-19 lockdowns resulted in food panic buying and excessive food stockpiling across many countries around the world. Many governments recommend keeping emergency food stocks for three to ten days for times of potential shortages in food supply. Based on data from an online survey conducted among Swiss inhabitants, we investigated the effect of knowledge level and stockpiling behaviour according to governmental stockpiling recommendations in normal times on the decision to build up more food stocks than usual during the first lockdown in 2020. For this purpose, we applied a combination of latent class analysis and logistic regression. Latent classes were constructed based on knowledge level and stockpiling behaviour according to governmental stockpiling recommendations in normal times. Subsequently, the information on class membership was used as predictor of the decision to excessively stockpile food during the first lockdown. The variable "class membership" revealed that respondents with a low knowledge level and food stocks below governmental recommendations in normal times had a 7.6 percentage points lower probability of excessively stockpiling food during the first lockdown than respondents with a high knowledge level and recommended food stocks in normal times. Excessive stockpiling was additionally driven by the worry that certain food products would disappear from the supermarket shelves entirely or would be in short supply. Moreover, regression results revealed that respondents who reduced their shopping frequency during the first lockdown in 2020 showed a higher probability of building up more food stocks than usual. Our findings are crucial for food suppliers and policymakers to understand the drivers of panic buying and to prevent this phenomenon in future crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We study people's perceptions of agricultural policy goals. • We conduct a survey in Switzerland on the importance of eight policy goals. • Animal welfare is perceived as the most important goal. • Differences between the Swiss language regions indicate cultural differences. • Policy needs to take into account cultural differences within the population. Agricultural policy goals should be legitimised by the population, as agriculture is an important recipient of governmental support in Europe. Questions arise as to how people assess these policy goals, which factors affect the perception of agricultural policy goals and to what extent cultural differences influence this assessment. We address these questions by conducting an online survey among 1,542 respondents in the German-, French- and Italian-speaking parts of Switzerland. We find that the multifunctional role of agriculture is strongly anchored in the population's perception of agricultural policy. The stated preferences of the participants show that increasing animal welfare is clearly the most important agricultural policy goal for Swiss citizens. Controlling for a range of sociodemographic characteristics and personal attitudes, we find evidence of differences between language regions and thus of cultural differences in the assessment of individual agricultural policy goals. For example, compared to respondents in the other two language regions, German-speaking respondents found increasing domestic food production significantly more important, whereas reducing food prices for consumers, increasing farmers' income, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions were perceived as significantly less important goals. Environmental attitudes were closely related to the perceived importance of agricultural policy goals; thus, we can expect heated discussions in the future, especially if environmental objectives continue to be missed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Administrative burdens are transaction costs due to administrative activities conducted solely because of regulation requirements. Since the shift from market support to cross-compliance-based direct payments, farmers increasingly complain about substantial administrative burdens related to the direct payment scheme. Using data from a survey among 100 Swiss farmers, group comparisons and regression analyses revealed significant differences in working time requirements to meet cross-compliance information obligations across farm types. Dairy producers need significantly more working time than crop producers. The age and education of farmers were not found to affect time requirements. Applying the standard cost model, administrative burdens for all Swiss farmers were estimated to be 136 Mio CHF in 2018 and about 5% of the budget spent on direct payments was needed to cover these costs. Policy measures to reduce administrative burdens should focus on specialized dairy producers, which contribute 37% to the sectoral costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most Western-European countries exceed the critical loads for nitrogen (N) losses. High nitrogen (N) inputs make agriculture one of the largest contributors to N pollution. There might be a potential to reduce this losses with an output tax on animal products, as they have low N use efficiency and a tax has the potential to reduce the consumption of this products. We want to assess the potential of a food tax on animal products to reduce the N surplus of Swiss agriculture. We implemented a tax on meat and a tax on milk and meat in the agent-based model SWISSland. The model combines an agent-based model with a microeconomic model at the farm scale. To better understand the low response of the food tax, we applied in a second step a robust two-step global sensitivity analysis of abatement costs of individual model agents. Imposing a tax led to an N surplus reduction of 2.1% where only meat was taxed and 2.3% where both milk and meat were taxed. The sensitivity analysis showed that distinct agents reacted non-uniformly to changing prices, so that the effect of the tax was sometimes even cancelled out. This calls for more differentiated policies to reduce the negative impact of N losses. The overall impact of the food tax was minor as the distinct agents react not uniformly to lower producer prices. [Display omitted] • Nitrogen surpluses of Swiss agriculture remain on a high level since the 90's. • We assessed the effects of a food tax on nitrogen surplus in the agent-based model SWISSland. • Food taxes on milk and meat products reduced nitrogen surpluses by 2.1% to 2.3%, respectively. • A robust sensitivity analysis on different model agents revealed that distinct agents react differently to varying prices. • Food taxes are not effective to reduce nitrogen surpluses as distinct farms react non-uniform to changing prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The use of agent-based modelling approaches in ex-post and ex-ante evaluations of agricultural policies has been progressively increasing over the last few years. There are now a sufficient number of models that it is worth taking stock of the way these models have been developed. Here, we review 20 agricultural agent-based models (ABM) addressing heterogeneous decision-making processes in the context of European agriculture. The goals of this review were to i) develop a framework describing aspects of farmers ' decision-making that are relevant from a farm-systems perspective, ii) reveal the current state-of-the-art in representing farmers ' decision-making in the European agricultural sector, and iii) provide a critical reflection of underdeveloped research areas and on future opportunities in modelling decision-making. To compare different approaches in modelling farmers ' behaviour, we focused on the European agricultural sector, which presents a specific character with its family farms, its single market and the common agricultural policy (CAP). We identified several key properties of farmers ' decision-making: the multi-output nature of production; the importance of non-agricultural activities; heterogeneous household and family characteristics; and the need for concurrent short- and long-term decision-making. These properties were then used to define levels and types of decision-making mechanisms to structure a literature review. We find most models are sophisticated in the representation of farm exit and entry decisions, as well as the representation of long-term decisions and the consideration of farming styles or types using farm typologies. Considerably fewer attempts to model farmers ' emotions, values, learning, risk and uncertainty or social interactions occur in the different case studies. We conclude that there is considerable scope to improve diversity in representation of decision-making and the integration of social interactions in agricultural agent-based modelling approaches by combining existing modelling approaches and promoting model inter-comparisons. Thus, this review provides a valuable entry point for agent-based modellers, agricultural systems modellers and data driven social scientists for the re-use and sharing of model components, code and data. An intensified dialogue could fertilize more coordinated and purposeful combinations and comparisons of ABM and other modelling approaches as well as better reconciliation of empirical data and theoretical foundations, which ultimately are key to developing improved models of agricultural systems. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • Agent-based modelling is a suitable tool for improving the understanding of farmers' behaviour. • Review 20 agricultural ABM addressing heterogeneous decision-making processes in the context of European agriculture. • Considerable scope to improve diversity in representation of decision-making by combining existing modelling approaches. • More coordinated and purposeful combinations of ABM and hybrid modelling approaches are needed. • Results provide an entry point for collaboration of agent-based modellers, agricultural systems modellers and social scientist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food production causes large environmental impacts. In Switzerland, more than half of the initial potato production is not directly consumed by humans but lost. To analyze the environmental impacts caused by these losses, we conducted a Life Cycle Assessment concerning the demand for nonrenewable energy resources, the global warming potential, human toxicity and ecotoxicity (terrestrial and aquatic). We allocated these environmental impacts at each stage of the Swiss potato supply chain to marketable potatoes and potato losses. Furthermore, this study investigated how potential loss reduction scenarios and various loss treatments (animal feed, biogas, incineration) might affect the total ecological performance of the supply chain. The results showed that potato losses were responsible for 39% of the total terrestrial ecotoxicity, 31% of the total potato supply chain's global warming potential, 31% of its human toxicity, 27% of its aquatic ecotoxicity and 23% of its demand for nonrenewable energy resources. The results indicated in general that environmental benefits due to the loss treatments were bigger than benefits achieved by the loss reduction scenarios. Loss treatments, in particular feeding and fermentation, could reduce the examined impacts, but not generating losses represented a better option, especially at the household stage (the impacts here were 8–42 times as high as the impacts of losses at agricultural production). A combination of loss reduction and loss treatment could overcompensate the environmental impacts caused by potato losses because potatoes may be used to substitute for other goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Crop protection in general and apple crop protection in particular often rely on pesticides, although several alternative pest management measures are available. In this context European agricultural policy requires the implementation of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) by 2014. Within IPM, more than one strategy can be practiced but selecting the most sustainable strategy is difficult because it requires simultaneous assessment of multiple environmental and economic aspects or attributes. Here, we introduce the SustainOS methodology for sustainability assessment of orchard systems, and we evaluate its usefulness in a case study involving four crop protection strategies in apple orchards of five European regions. SustainOS is an iterative, multi-attribute approach for defining and rating the sustainability of crop protection strategies in comparative studies. It consists of a transparent system-description tool including context, target, and crop protection parameters. The parameters are used as input data for life cycle assessment, environmental risk assessment, and full-cost calculations. The various results from these quantitative assessments are used to generate a multi-attribute rating with respect to ecological and economic sustainability. We demonstrate how the quantitative results can be translated into rating classes. By applying the SustainOS methodology, we show that the ecological sustainability for all five regions can potentially be improved by implementing alternative crop protection measures currently available. We also report that, by increasing yield, yield stability, and fruit quality, implementation of IPM can improve the economic situation of apple growers. Because of its transparency, SustainOS facilitated the collaborative development and comparison of crop protection strategies for sustainable orchard systems by an international network of agronomists, economists, and environmental scientists. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a theory that is sufficiently adapted to sector competitiveness. The case of greenhouse vegetable production in The Netherlands and Switzerland is used to explain differences in sector competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach – Interviews focusing on the fields of spatial planning, labor, energy supply, and market organization were carried out with stakeholders and producers in both countries and evaluated by Grounded Theory. Findings – The work shows that the flexibility not only of producers, but also of the whole institutional framework in The Netherlands exceeds the flexibility on the Swiss side by far, which may be an important factor for explaining differences in competitiveness. Research limitations/implications – The result that it is a basic difference in flexibility and adaptability that determines sector competitiveness is valid for the vegetable sector. It should be examined whether similar patterns can be found in other sectors. Originality/value – The competitiveness discussion is transferred to a new economic level, namely the economic sector. Likewise, new answers are found in looking for explanations for differences in competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]