Animal Production Systems Group, Wageningen University & Research, De Elst 1, 6708, WD, Wageningen, the Netherlands; Devenish Nutrition Ltd., Dowth Hall, A92T2T7, Co. Meath, Ireland.
Farming Systems Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708, PB, Wageningen, the Netherlands.
J Environ Manage. 2024 Aug;366:121900. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.121900. Epub 2024 Jul 16.
Agricultural systems tend to be characterised by large diversity, therefore, solving socio-economic and environmental problems in agriculture requires targeted and contextualised policies. However, policies often fail to recognize this heterogeneity in their design or implementation. This can result in the use of sector-wide characteristics and, consequently, generic policies that are not tailored to specific farming systems. In this context, farm typologies can be a useful tool, as they help to identify differences and commonalities in highly heterogeneous groups. In this study, we focused on the Irish beef and sheep farming sectors and used a wide range of structural, socio-economic, and environmental indicators to develop a farm typology. This resulted in the identification of six distinct farm types: Small Cattle Farms, Extensive Sheep Farms, Medium-size Sheep Farms, Medium-size Cattle Farms, Medium-size Mixed Farms, and Intensive Cattle Farms. We then analysed the socio-economic and environmental performance of these six farm types and discussed the potential variation of the implementation and impact of currently proposed policies and interventions among farm types. We argue that failing to consider different farm types within policies can make their farm-level implementation unsuccessful and thus hinder the achievement of sector-wide sustainability goals. The approach we developed in this manuscript could also be applicable to other sectors and locations, and could help guide the design of more successful targeted policies.
农业系统往往具有多样性的特点，因此，解决农业领域的社会经济和环境问题需要有针对性和针对性的政策。然而，政策在设计或实施时往往没有认识到这种异质性。这可能导致使用全行业特征，以及因此，不针对特定农业系统的通用政策。在这种情况下，农场类型学可以作为一种有用的工具，因为它们有助于识别高度异质群体中的差异和共同点。在本研究中，我们专注于爱尔兰的牛肉和羊肉养殖部门，并使用广泛的结构、社会经济和环境指标来开发农场类型学。这导致确定了六种不同的农场类型：小型牛场、粗放型绵羊场、中型绵羊场、中型牛场、中型混合农场和集约型牛场。然后，我们分析了这六种农场类型的社会经济和环境绩效，并讨论了目前提出的政策和干预措施在农场类型之间实施和影响的潜在变化。我们认为，如果在政策中不考虑不同的农场类型，可能会导致其在农场层面的实施不成功，从而阻碍整个部门可持续性目标的实现。我们在本文中开发的方法也可以适用于其他部门和地点，并有助于指导更成功的有针对性政策的设计。
