Assessing the Sustainability Performance of Organic and Low-Input Conventional Farms from Eastern Poland with the RISE Indicator System

On-farm assessment of the sustainability of small-scale dairy systems with three methods based on indicators

Small-scale dairy systems are important contributors to national milk supplies in many areas of the world, and an option to ameliorate rural poverty in developing countries. In Mexico, they comprise over 78% of dairy farms. These systems must be sustainable in order to persist in the future. By applying several methods to assess the sustainability of farms, valuable information is collected on the practical, operational, and systemic requirements, as well as an insight into the difficulties in the use of each tool in practice. The objective was to assess the sustainability of small-scale dairy systems during the rainy season. Three methods were compared (IDEA, RISE, and SAFA) to evaluate their ability to deal with such systems in the Mexican context. Ten small-scale dairy farms were assessed from June to November 2018. Monthly semi-structured interviews were applied to collect economic, social, and environmental information. The three methods met criteria for on-farm assessments, with no large differences among them. The IDEA method was more applicable in the context of small-scale dairy systems because its indicators may be collected on-farm and were easy to measure. RISE requires more specialized technical information not always available at the small-scale farm level, and SAFA covered the largest number of indicators but is better suited for large-scale systems. The IDEA and RISE methods are adequate tools to assess the sustainability of small-scale dairy systems. The mean overall sustainability score over the three methods for the 10 assessed farms was 55.3±5.7 over 100. This medium level of sustainability indicates areas of opportunity to enhance the sustainability of small-scale dairy systems.

Biomass Energy Technologies from Innovative Dairy Farming Systems

Modern and innovative dairy cattle breeding technologies are highly dependent on the level of mechanization. This article presents modern solutions for dairy cattle breeding, in particular, for livestock buildings, in which longitudinal development is possible in accordance with the farm’s needs as well as with obtaining additional energy from biogas and post-ferment for granulated organic fertilizer. In the analysed technology for milk production, methane fermentation, biogas yield, and the possibility of fertilizer production in the form of granules are considered. The presented modular cattle breeding technology includes sustainable production, which is economic; environmentally friendly, with preconditions in the facility including animal welfare; and socially acceptable, resulting from a high level of mechanization, which ensures both comfortable working conditions and high milk quality. The presented production line is an integral part of the milk production process with the possibility of organic fertilizer being used in the production of healthy food.

Efficiency and Sustainability in Farm Diversification Initiatives in Northern Spain

The value-added diversification strategy provides an option for guaranteeing the sustainability of small farms. This study examines how factors related to managerial strategy and socio-environmental sustainability influence the efficiency of diversification initiatives. For this purpose, we use a novel and unique database of value-added ventures implemented by 49 dairy farms located in northern Spain. We construct a production frontier using a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to estimate technical efficiency. The mean technical efficiency of the initiatives was 0.56 and 0.59 for the constant and variable returns specifications, respectively. Determinants of efficiency are analyzed with a two-step procedure with a double bootstrap. We find that the elaborations of more complex products other than fresh milk are negatively associated with efficiency. However, specialization in one product with different variants and direct sales both have a positive association with efficiency. In terms of socio-environmental variables, there is a positive association between efficiency and the use of quality schemes such as ‘protected designation of origin’ (PDO), the use of organic labelling and the farmer having university education, and a negative association with the percentage of family labor. Our findings support the idea that value-added diversification contributes to more resilient pathways of development and underlines the importance of good quality management of marketing and operational factors.