agriculture policy Articles
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Editorial: agriculture in Turkey – structural change, sustainability and EU-compatibility
Rural Turkey is dominated by a large agricultural sector that still relies on extensive state support and policy intervention. There is a general agreement that structural change is needed to make its rural economy more innovative and competitive. Yet, as long as the main architects of Turkish agricultural reform are primarily concerned with mitigating the impact of trade liberalisation through ...
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Common agricultural policy (CAP) and measures for environment protection and conservation: contrasts, balances and new methods of development for the future
In the European Union, the problem of the relationship between agriculture and environment has been dealt with following two policies: one aimed at defining a system of rules to limit the risk of environment pollution and decay; the other, mainly aimed at accompanying CAP's reform process. This evolution has concurred to strengthen the idea that agriculture as a means of ensuring environment ...
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Factors influencing the conversion to organic farming in Norway
Determinants of the decision to convert to organic farming methods are examined by applying bivariate analyses and a multinomial logit model to a survey of 1018 Norwegian crop and dairy farmers. The results show that 4% of the conventional respondents plan to convert by 2009, which may imply that the national goal of 10% organically managed area will not be achieved. The analysis indicates that ...
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Ambitious green farming requirements can lead to higher environmental benefits, study shows
A new JRC study shows how the choices farmers make to adopt voluntary green practices are affected by how much they are already obliged to contribute to the environment. The behavioural science study finds that the more mandatory requirements placed on farmers, the less likely they are to make additional voluntary contributions. However, if the mandatory requirements are ambitious enough, the ...
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Managing agricultural biotechnology for sustainable development: the case of semi-arid India
Managing agricultural biotechnology for sustainable development demands more than research and intellectual property rights policies. Economic and regulatory institutions conducive to application of intrinsically sustainable technologies are also required. From an interdisciplinary development research perspective, it is argued that sustainability of Indian agriculture and food crop production ...
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A decision tool for sustainable agricultural policies: the case of water saving scenarios for Apulia Region (Southern Italy)
The economy of Apulia Region largely depends on agriculture but the scarce water resources are the main factor threatening the sustainable production of this sector. This paper describes a geographical information system (GIS) based water balance tool that integrates maps of crops, climate and soil parameters with various scenarios of cropping pattern and farming practice changes. The aim is ...
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Why are some French farmers sludge-takers? Some agronomic and socioeconomic explanations
The continued spreading of household wastewater sludge on farmlands is a major economic and environmental issue. This practice is being challenged in France, mainly through pressure from the agrifood business. Here, by means of an agronomic analysis performed on 60 farms, we show the relevance of the following variables: proportion of arable land, technical performance of the farm, and quality ...
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Agricultural research policy framework for improved livelihoods security in crop-livestock production systems
Concerns for sustainable development and poverty alleviation are forcing public agricultural research systems to focus on improving livelihoods security. Crop-livestock production systems are central to the livelihood security of the rural poor in India and some other countries of the tropics. With increasing population, urbanisation and incomes, massive increases are foreseen in demands for ...
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Family as an autonomous institution for local agricultural resources governance: discourse on organic agriculture development in the mountains of Nepal
This paper focuses on the institutional dynamics of family–led organic farms in the mountains of Nepal. It is based on continuous observations and experiences of local farmers who have dedicated themselves to organic agriculture for a significant period of time. It is found that family–led organic farming can contribute significantly to the sustainable use of local agricultural resources. The ...
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Towards sustainable food and farming systems in industrialised countries
Economic systems at all levels rely for their success on the value of services flowing from the stock of total assets which comprise five types of capital: natural, social, human, physical and financial. Sustainable systems accumulate stocks of these five assets, so increasing the capital base over time. But unsustainable systems deplete or run down capital, spending assets as if they were income ...
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Distorted agricultural prices cause hunger and resources dilapidation
The main objective of this paper is to present facts and arguments trying to prove that price distortion has been the main reason for the dilapidation of human and physical resources all over the world. In some countries, farmers sell their products at prices below their real cost. In these countries, most often, family labour and equipment depreciation are not accounted as real costs. The ...
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Emergy analysis of one century of agricultural production in the Rolling Pampas of Argentina
Historically, agricultural production in the Rolling Pampas of Argentina was characterised by low use of synthetic inputs. This changed during the 1990s, with the widespread adoption of technology privileged by neoclassical macroeconomic policies implemented in the same decade. In this paper, Emergy Accounting is used to quantitatively assess the ecological sustainability of agricultural systems ...
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Multifunctionality: refocusing a spreading, loose and fashionable concept for looking at sustainability?
The notion of agriculture's Multifunctionality (MF) emerged in the 1980s. It then followed two trajectories since the 1990s: a conflicting period linked to its use in the international trade negotiations on the one hand, a spreading in terms of meaning, use and geographically on the other hand. Specific meanings appeared in connection with policy making, at national or international levels, or ...
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Biotechnology for Environmentally Safe Agriculture
Issue: In Europe some uses of biotechnology are meeting vocal opposition from certain quarters. Nevertheless, the vast amount of knowledge acquired recently in biology can be used to develop and apply biotechnology for an environmentally safe agriculture. Public acceptance and a new policy impetus can serve to promote the introduction of safe and competitive agricultural technologies that have a ...
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