The economic potential of agroecology: Empirical evidence from Europe

doi:10.1016/j.jrurstud.2019.09.003

Journal of Rural Studies

Volume 71, October 2019, Pages 46-61

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2019.09.003 Get rights and content

Highlights

•
Throughout Europe a range of proto-agroecological practices can be identified. .
•
Agroecology carries considerable economic potential: it sustains employment levels and increases incomers. .
•
The VA/GVP ratio helps to explain the strength of agroecological farming.
•
Agroecological farming is key to the much needed transformation of European agriculture.

Abstract

This article discusses the economic dimensions of agroecological farming systems in Europe. It firstly theoretically elaborates the reasons why, and under what conditions, agroecological farming systems have the potential to produce higher incomes than farms that follow the conventional logic. This theoretical exposition is then followed by a presentation of empirical material from a wide range of European countries that shows the extent to which this potential is being realized. The empirical data draw upon different styles of farming that can be described as ‘proto-agroecological’: approaches to farming that are agroecological by nature, but which may not necessarily explicitly define themselves as agroecological. The empirical material that we present shows the huge potential and radical opportunities that Europe's, often silent, ‘agroecological turn’ offers to farmers that could (and should) be the basis for the future transformation of European agricultural policies, since agroecology not only allows for more sustainable production of healthier food but also considerably improves farmers' incomes. It equally carries the promise of re-enlarging productive agricultural (and related) employment and increasing the total income generated by the agricultural sector, at both regional and national levels. While we recognise that agroecology is a worldwide and multidimensional phenomenon we have chosen to limit this analysis to Europe and the economic dimension. This choice is made in order to refute current discourses that represent agroecology as unproductive and unprofitable and an option that would require massive subsidies.

Section snippets

Agroecology in Europe

Wezel et al. (2009) conceptualize agroecology as having three-prongs: embodying a scientific discipline, a social movement and a set of practices. These three aspects have different relative weights in different contexts: in France the practice is strongly emphasized; in Germany the scientific discipline, and in Brazil the social movement. There is a need to develop all three dimensions in an integrated way, especially in order to foster a transdisciplinary, systemic, approach with the

Agroecology as a viable economic model: a theoretical discussion

There are solid theoretical reasons to support the hypothesis that agroecological agriculture entails a techno-economic model that promises to generate incomes that are comparable to, if not superior to, those obtained from conventional agriculture. This potential resides in the combination of (1) the higher ratio between Value Added and the Gross Value of Production (VA/GVP) realized in agroecological production,³

The impacts of the price squeeze and volatility

As equation (1) shows, farm incomes depend on how (increases in) VA/GVP and GVP/LU relate to each other. In turn, this depends on contextual elements such as markets, agricultural policies, consumer preferences, social movements and more besides.

For several decades scale-increases and technology-driven intensification allowed conventional and industrial farms to realize better incomes than agroecological and traditional peasant farms. The crucial pre-conditions for this resided in the

The economic performance of agroecology: initial empirical data from Europe

It is intriguing that most of the emerging literature on the economic performance of AE in Europe focuses on animal production (and notably dairy farming). This probably reflects, at least partly, the central role that the integration of animal and arable production has played in the agrarian history of Europe. Whilst modernization policies promoted specialization (thus separating arable and animal production and undermining the importance of grazing), AE has a strong focus on re-establishing

Discussion

In this paper we have elaborated the thesis that the VA/GVP ratio is strategic in distinguishing (proto-) agroecological approaches to farming from conventional and industrial approaches. This thesis is confirmed, we think, through our analysis of (often newly available) datasets that compare different ways of farming. In all our examples (proto-)agroecological practices generate VA/GVP ratios that exceed those from comparable conventional and industrial practices. Although this higher VA/GVP

Conclusions

There is currently a paucity of published data on the economic performances of agroecology within Europe. We hope that this analysis goes some way to filling that gap and will complement D'Annolfo et al.’s (2017) recently published review of the social and economic performance of AE, which analysed 17 case studies from the world and provided some initial evidence of the positive economic impacts of AE.

In the first part of this paper we set out some theoretical grounds for assuming that AE may

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¹: The authors are grateful to the anonymous reviewers for their detailed and thoughtful comments and critiques of an earlier draft of this paper.

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The economic potential of agroecology: Empirical evidence from Europe

Highlights

Abstract

Section snippets

Agroecology in Europe

Agroecology as a viable economic model: a theoretical discussion

The impacts of the price squeeze and volatility

The economic performance of agroecology: initial empirical data from Europe

Discussion

Conclusions

J. Rural Stud.

Eur. J. Agron.

NJAS - Wageningen J. Life Sci.

J. Rural Stud.

Animal

Ecol. Econ.

J. Rural Stud.

Eur. J. Agron.

Land Use Policy

Actes du premier forum de l’autonomie fourragère

Cijfers die spreken

Impacto socioeconómico y ambiental de la agricultura ecológica en el desarrollo rural

Agroecology and Small Farm Development

Agroecology: the Science of Sustainable Agriculture

Enduring Farms: Climate Change, Smallholders and Traditional Farming Communities

Sustainable intensification of grass-based ruminant production

Grassl. Sci. Eur.

Institutionalizing agroecology in France: social circulation changes the meaning of an idea

Sustainability

Low Input Dairy Farming: Potentially Competitive? 16th EAAE Seminar

Cahier des Charges pour la Production, la Transformation et le Commerce des Produits Bourgeon

Impact of participation in Teagasc dairy discussion groups: evaluation report (january 2013)

Teagasc Broadmore Res.

Evaluation of the Impact on Farmers Participating in Teagasc Beef Discussion Groups 2012-2014

Enterprise Planning and Development. Small Business Start-Up Survival and Growth

The coexistence of multiple worldviews in livestock farming drives agroecological transition: a case study in French Protected Designation of Origin (DOP) cheese mountain areas

Controverses sur l’efficacité économique des agricultures familiales : indicateurs pour une comparaison rigoureuse avec d’autres agricultures in

Rev. Tiers Monde

Local Roots Global Reach. Food Wise 2025. A 10-year Vision for the Irish Agri-Food Industry

A review of social and economic performance of agroecology

Int. J. Agric. Sustain.

“I'm sad to be glad”: an analysis of farmers' pride in Flanders

Sociol. Rural.

Les exploitations d’élevage herbivore économes en intrants (ou autonomes) : Quelles sont leurs caractéristiques ? Comment accompagner leur développement ?

Les systèmes de production économes et autonomes pour répondre aux enjeux agricoles d'aujourd'hui, Collection THEMA

Commissariat Général au Développement Curable

The Technico-Economic Observatory of Dairy Cattle Systems from CIVAM 2015 Data

Chapter 1: financial management in proceedings of the better farm beef programme: end of phase 2 conference

Tullamore

Optimising financial return from grazing in temperate pastures

Bouwen aan een Betere Balans: Een Analyse van Bedrijfsstijlen in de Melkveehouderij

The way you do, it matters

Irrigation in two contrasting agrarian development patterns in the northern Portuguese mountains

Economies of size in production agriculture

J. Hunger Environ. Nutr.

Leistungen und entwicklung von oko-milchviehbetrieben mit geringem kraftfuttereinsatz in Baden-Württemberg

De toekomst, ren bespreking van de derde boerderij-enquete voor het Nationaal Landbouwdebat, Misset Uitgeverij bv, Doetinchem

Results Low-Cost Farm 2006

Transition vers plus d’autonomie: entre économie et marginalité. Le cas d’un collectif d’agriculteurs laitiers en region hennuyère wallonne

Agroecology: the ecology of food systems

J. Sustain. Agric.

Case Study Report Bio Vom Berg

Les sytemes herbagers économes. Une alternative de développement agricole pour l élevage bovin laitier dans le bocage vendéen?

Milchproduktion: frischgras mit wenig kraftfutter zahlt sich aus

Agroecology. Ecological Processes in Sustainable Agriculture

Agroecology: the Ecology of Sustainable Food Systems

Agroecology and ecological intensification: a discussion from a metabolic point of view

Sustainability

Impacts technico-économiques du non-labour en Wallonie

Low Input Dairy Farming: Potentially Competitive? 16^th EAAE Seminar