Organic farming represents the only practice that truly respects ecosystems and animal welfare, as well as ensures fair remuneration for producers.
A recent Swedish study, in Global Food Security, shows how the organic system can also fulfill food security objectives, increase the resilience of the agricultural system and enable strategic business evolution. (1) Analysis and reflections.
Organic farming, sustainability and resilience
Researchers at Uppsala University and the Stockholm Resilience Center have developed an innovative approach to assessing the sustainability of an agricultural enterprise from the broader perspective of its contribution to the system and food security. Using a set of indicators that includes:
– climate impact(Life-Cycle Assessment, LCA),
– security of food supplies, which increases with rotation and diversification of crops of commodities with human food destiny,
– resilience of farms. Where diversity in products and relationships can buffer against time- and market-related shocks.
The study found the appreciable progress on the above-mentioned indicators over a five-year period (2015-2019) of a Swedish farm that had already been converting to organic for ten years (1995). With a UAA (utilized agricultural area) of 67 hectares in 2015, increased to 100 in 2019.
Food security and land yield
Food security-that is, the security of food supplies for all humans -is at the top of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in UN Agenda 2030 (#SDG2, End Global Hunger). The goal is clouded by the issue of food waste, which EU member states still struggle to calculate.
Thus, land yield is the basic issue. It is essential to ensure that each hectare of cultivated land can provide, on average, the necessary food for 5 people. 7 billion people can be fed by 1.5 billion ha of UAA. (2). But the global population will reach 10.5 billion(TWI2050, UN). Therefore, it is essential to increase land yields in agriculture.
Increasing yields in organic farming
Increasing yields in organic farming is possible, according to Swedish researchers. And it is indeed easier, preserving the integrity of soils rather than ravaging them with pesticides and other agrotoxics, as a large French study on agroecology in Europe has shown (IDDRI, 2019). (3) In addition to ensuring better remuneration of farmers and ranchers, as also demonstrated in France. (4)
The Swedish farm in this study increased the yield per hectare of land by diversifying crops:
– in 2015, the farm’s 67 ha was mainly used for raising sheep and lambs, as well as growing soft wheat,
– over the next five years, new varieties of cereals (oats, buckwheat, rye) and legumes (gray peas and common beans), small groups of native cattle and pigs, and laying hens were introduced.
Resilience and long-term profitability
Resilience in agriculture expresses the ability to assess in time the possible risks of environmental (climatic events, plant diseases, zooonoses) and mercantile adversities, and adopt procedures that can mitigate their negative effects. In a long-term strategy that no insurance policy can ever cover:
– the diversification of production, in this case, allowed for increased profitability in economic and quantitative terms, despite the variability of yields by crop and annuality.
– Innovative biological inputs such as algae, microalgae, and tannins, through their ability to strengthen the microbiota of plants and animals, have demonstrated extraordinary contributions to resilience in agriculture and animal husbandry. (5) Mycorrhizae even proved useful in counteracting the effects of Xylella F. On olive trees in Apulia. (6) And zeolite, which precisely in the variant mined in Maremma has the highest cation exchange in the world, is valuable ally in soil fertility.
Diversification of products and markets
Diversification, in the Swedish agricultural enterprise, has also helped to stem the damage associated with drought (which affected oat production in 2018) and bird pest invasion (which despoiled legume crops in 2019). In fact, the increased resilience of native crops (rye) and the growing profitability of new crops have enabled not only positive but also growing results. The integration of high-yielding crops and native varieties, in the long-term perspective, balances the higher yields of the former with the greater reliability of the latter.
The broader product offering (from 5 to 12) has enabled the Swedish company to differentiate its customer base and thus its sources of revenue. Beyond PAC funding (33 percent of revenues in 2015, later declining to 25 percent), the enterprise originally referred to a slaughterhouse and marginally to consumers (only for hides and wool). In subsequent years, the market expanded to include traditional distribution and HoReCa, a food industry (20 percent of revenues), and various local companies. Direct sales reached 35 percent of income, and the business relationship with the slaughterhouse was suspended. Volumes with industry, value added with retailers and direct sales.
Quality relationships, community
The cultural evolution of the organic farm enterprise has stimulated the initiation of service activities. An in-house restaurant and an area dedicated to training and meetings facilitated meetings first with commercial clients and end consumers, then also with farmers, NGOs, academia. In a network logic where a ‘sustainable company of the future’ has become the crossroads of meetings and sharing, in a community context. Just like Vazapp‘ is done in Italy. (7)
‘We see ourselves as biosphere stewards with ecosystem services as our primary product’
Conversely, relations with the slaughterhouse and intermediaries were discontinued as no longer necessary or consistent with the need to see the actual value of the productions recognized. In a strategy to escape the ‘price drug’ based instead on the now false assumption of substitutability of products qualified as mere commodities.
Bio revolution, limitations and prospects
The organic revolution in which the writer strongly believes-in line with the Bio 2030 Manifesto, presented at SANA 2019 (8)-is possible but must come to terms with reality. Swedish researchers highlight how the industriousness of so many specialized and isolated organic micro-farms cannot meet the need to provide enough food for the world’s population. Therefore, we need to go beyond the local view and lay the foundation for widespread sustainable development in terms of edible energy produced, environmental impact and (socio-)economic outcome.
In other words, we add, the short supply chain needs to move out of the niche and into the mainstream. That is, products must be accessible to everyone and for all budgets. Therefore, they serve:
– public markets for direct sales, freed from association constraints (e.g., Coldiretti). (9) Where trade disintermediation must be matched by an affordable price of goods, with a win-win perspective,
– home deliveries, including through groupage to warehouses located widely throughout the territories (e.g., dark supermarkets, without a store),
– services (e.g., IV gamma and V gamma, subject to the exclusion of microenterprises from the requirements established only in Italy), (10)
– Distribution in large-scale retail and food service, with absolute prohibition of unfair trade practices, (11)
– solidarity. We need to follow the example of AlterBanc and the members, in Catalonia. (12) Provision of good and fair food to food banks, cooperation and the third sector. And to social spending can be added ‘suspended spending,’ along the lines of Naples’ suspended coffee,
– transparency. In a 4.0 trust relationship, a popular public blockchain can ensure system coherence, including in the equitable redistribution of value that arises and is rooted in primary production. (13)
Supply chain relationships
The processing industry can in turn participate in the organic revolution as the best expression of the ‘supply chain sustainability’ that lies at the heart of the SDGs (Mazzuccato et al., 2019). (14) European consumAtors have finally realized the crucial value of raw material quality, which is expressed in:
– non-use of pesticides and other agrotoxics in agriculture, topping the list of ‘fears on the plate’ in the EU, (15) along with
– antibiotics in animal husbandry, which can and should be eliminated today, (16) in the context of a guarantee on
– origin and fair remuneration of primary agricultural production.
Aligning values and goals among players in the farm-to-fork supply chain, Swedish researchers point out, is key to the necessary market evolution. Also to be stimulated through influencers on corporate social networks. Transparent information on the value chain through a public blockchain system, as noted by FAO, can in turn ensure the fair remuneration of farmers (17,18). The Swedish farm starting in 2016 has partnered with a large plant-based beverage industry, which has enabled, among other things, its involvement in a special edition product marketing project.
Challenges to be faced
The Swedish research highlights further challenges ahead, which are also of particular relevance to the Italian organic supply chain, which stands out in the EU in terms of the number of operators but still lags behind on the share of UAA (Utilized Agricultural Area) dedicated to organic. 15.2 percent of farmland is organic in the Bel Paese, 20.4 percent in Sweden. (19) And therefore:
– training. The agricultural enterprise under study has highly educated staff in agriculture but also in management and marketing. Continuous learning and research are essential to strengthening the company’s ability to deal with the uncertainty that pervades the food system (resilience),
– Networking. Overspecialization and inability to network among local farmers are identified as the main obstacles to sharing change. Instead, the plurality of crops, the variety of animal and plant species, and the sharing of training projects should stimulate cooperation among local actors (e.g., exchange of crops, feed, manure, seeds). Reinforcing their identity mission as ‘guardians of the biosphere’.
Public support
The European Commission, in its Farm to Fork (f2f) strategy unveiled on 20.5.20, named organic farming as the benchmark for greening, referring to the goal that it should reach 25 percent of the UAA in the old continent by 2030. (20) However, the smoke-gray CAP reform imposed by the agricultural confederations subservient to the pesticide and seed monopolists(Big 4) has diverted funding to mere greenwashing operations. (21)
The Brussels executive itself has already declared the failure of the Farm to Fork strategy, in a scenario report where it indicates how organic in the EU will barely reach 10 percent, by 2030. (22) It’s time to raise our voices in the name of farmers and ranchers who really want to evolve business strategy but are clearly not able to do the nuts and bolts. Greening support measures should not be diverted to greenwashing.
Dario Dongo and Giulia Orsi
Notes
(1) Röös E., Bajzelj B., Weil C., Andersson E., Bossio D., Gordon L.J. (2021). Moving beyond organic – A food system approach to assessing sustainable and resilient farming. Global Food Security, Volume 28, March 2021, Article 100487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2020.100487
(2) Cassidy E.S., West P.C., Gerber J.S., Foley J.A. (2013). Redefining agricultural yields: from tons to people nourished per hectare, Environ. Res. Lett., 8 (3), 2013, Article 034015. doi: 10.1088/1748-9326/8/3/034015.
(3) Dario Dongo, Sabrina Bergamini. 10 years of agroecology to save Europe, the IDDRI study. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 3/25/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/progresso-10-anni-di-agroecologia-per-salvare-l-europa-lo-studio-iddri
(4) Marta Strinati. Agroecology, 6 systems compared. The benefits of organic for farmers. Analysis. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 8/30/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/agroecologia-6-sistemi-a-confronto-i-vantaggi-del-bio-per-gli-agricoltori-analisi
(5) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. Animal husbandry, algae and microalgae to prevent antibiotic use. Algatan. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 9.9.20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/zootecnia-alghe-e-microalghe-per-prevenire-l-uso-di-antibiotici-algatan
(6) Dario Dongo, Marina De Nobili, Guido Cortese. Xylella Fastidiosa, the solution at hand. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 2/23/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/idee/xylella-fastidiosa-la-soluzione-a-portata-di-mano
(7) Dario Dongo, Gianluca Mascellino. Vazapp! Rural hub. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 5/27/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/vazapp-hub-rurale
(8) Dario Dongo Sabrina Bergamini. The Bio 2030 Manifesto. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 2/23/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/speciale-farm-to-fork-la-strategia-presentata-a-bruxelles-il-20-5-20
(9) Francesca Coli, Dario Dongo. Direct sales, access to markets without membership constraints. Council of State pronouncement. FARE(Food and Agriculture Requirements). 25.1.20, https://www.foodagriculturerequirements.com/archivio-notizie/vendita-diretta-accesso-ai-mercati-senza-vincoli-associativi-la-pronuncia-del-consiglio-di-stato
(10) IV range refers to fresh, washed, packaged and ready-to-eat fruits and vegetables. The V range, on the other hand, consists of cooked and reconstituted fruits and vegetables that are packaged and ready for consumption. Law 13.5.11, no. 77 and the Ministerial Decree 20.6.14 implementing it (in OJ General Series No. 186, 12-08-2014), however, prescribe establishment requirements that are extremely onerous and disproportionate to both the actual health needs and the investment capacities of microenterprises
(11) Dario Dongo. Unfair trade practices, the EU directive 2019/633. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 4.5.19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/pratiche-commerciali-sleali-la-direttiva-ue-2019-633
(12) Dario Dongo. AlterBanc, agroecology and social spending in Catalonia. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 4.5.19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/alterbanc-agroecologia-e-spesa-sociale-in-catalogna
(13) Dario Dongo. Public blockchain and agribusiness supply chain, sustainability for producers and consumers. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 28.2.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/blockchain-pubblica-e-filiera-agroalimentare-sostenibilità-per-chi-produce-e-chi-consuma
(14) Dario Dongo. SDGs, the dutiful transformations for the food supply chain. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 9/19/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/sdgs-le-trasformazioni-doverose-per-la-filiera-alimentare
(15) Marta Strinati. Fears on the plate, Eurobarometer survey. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6/14/19, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/consum-attori/i-timori-nel-piatto-indagine-di-eurobarometro
(16) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. One Health and antibiotic resistance, a solution at hand. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 10.2.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/salute/one-health-e-antibiotico-resistenza-una-soluzione-a-portata-di-mano
(17) Mischa Tripoli, Josef Schmidhuber. (2018). Emerging opportunities for the application of blockchain in the agri-food industry. FAO(Food and Agriculture Organization), ICTSD(International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development), http://www.fao.org/3/CA1335EN/ca1335en.pdf
(18) Dario Dongo, Andrea Adelmo Della Penna. Blockchain, the opportunities for the food and organic supply chain. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 1.11.20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/innovazione/blockchain-le-opportunità-per-la-filiera-agroalimentare-e-quella-biologica
(19) Marta Strinati. Organic, cultivated land and consumption on the rise. Eurostat, ISMEA, Nielsen-AssoBio reports.. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 23.2.21 https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/biologico-terreni-coltivati-e-consumi-in-crescita-rapporti-eurostat-ismea-nielsen-assobio
(20) Dario Dongo, Marina De Nobili. Farm to Fork special, the strategy presented in Brussels on 5/20/20. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 5/24/20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/progresso/speciale-farm-to-fork-la-strategia-presentata-a-bruxelles-il-20-5-20
(21) Dario Dongo, Silvia Giordanengo. EU Budget 2021-2027 and #NextGenerationEU, focus on rural development and CAP funding. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 3.12.20, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/bilancio-ue-2021-2027-e-nextgenerationeu-focus-su-sviluppo-rurale-e-finanziamento-della-pac
(22) Dario Dongo, Giulia Orsi. Agriculture in EU-27 scenario report 2020-2030. GIFT(Great Italian Food Trade). 12.1.21, https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/mercati/agricoltura-in-ue-27-relazione-di-scenario-2020-2030
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
