Lee-Ann Sutherland

Transition pathways towards sustainability in agriculture : case studies from Europe

1. IntroductioN 2. Conceptual Framework: Adapting socio-technical transitions to farming 3. Understanding the diversity of European rural areas 4. Methodology 5. Countryside Consumption 6. Farmer Collaboration 7. High Nature Value Farming 8. Reducing environmental impacts of agriculture 9. Renewable Energy Production 10. Alternative Marketing Channels 11. New Forms of Governance 12. Adaptive Governance for Transition Scenarios 13. Lessons learned about transitions to sustainability in farming 14. Conclusions

Conceptual insights derived from case studies on 'emerging transitions' in farming.

The multi-level perspective (MLP) has been applied to agri-food studies in the past, however, they have tended to focus either on large-scale ( national) and often historical transitions (e.g. Grin, 2010), or on very specific system innovations initiated by technical innovations (e.g. Elzen et al., 2012). The former focus on long-term processes and, thus, allow an assessment of whether or not a broader transition has occurred, or at least is well under way. The latter focus on processes that started recently, and whose future development is still uncertain so that it may be too early to speak of a ‘transition in the making’. The ambition of the case studies presented in this book was to provide novel insights on the ‘middle-ground’: niches that have matured and that have started engaging with the regime to initiate the start-off phase of a transition. The coverage of very diverse cases, from different regions of Europe and relating to different combinations of regimes, was designed to acquire a broad understanding of emerging transitions occurring in relation to farming and rural areas in Europe. In this chapter, we will briefly review the specificity of farming and associated implications for understanding transitions. We will then review the lessons learned, especially regarding the definitions of niche and regime in the context of transitions, and in relation to niche-regime interactions. We will also briefly reflect on the role of research – as part of the regime – in emerging transitions. We conclude by assessing the challenges of studying transitions in farming, and the challenges posed by the need to take into account the diversity within farming.

Scenario planning: The future of the cattle and sheep industries in Scotland and their resiliency to disease

In this paper, we present a description of foresighting activities undertaken by EPIC, Scotlands Centre of Expertise on Animal Disease Outbreaks, to investigate the future uncertainty of animal health security in the Scottish sheep and cattle sectors. Using scenario planning methodologies, we explored four plausible but provocative long-term futures which identify dynamics underpinning the resilience of these agricultural sectors to animal disease. These scenarios highlight a number of important drivers that influence disease resilience: industry demographics, the role of government support and regulation and the capacity for technological innovation to support the industry to meet local and global market demand. Participants in the scenario planning exercises proposed creative, robust strategies that policy makers could consider implementing now to enhance disease control and industry resilience in multiple, uncertain futures. Using these participant-led strategies as a starting point, we offer ten key questions for policy makers and stakeholders to provoke further discussion about improving resiliency and disease preparedness. We conclude with a brief discussion of the value of scenario planning, not only for the development of futures which will inform disease contingency plans and improve industry resilience, but as a mechanism for dialogue and information sharing between stakeholders and government.

Beyond Crofting: Assessing Change on Scotland's Small-Scale Holdings

Abstract In this paper, we go ‘beyond crofting’ to assess the changes to both croft and non-croft small-scale land management in Scotland from 2000 to 2011, through an analysis of agricultural census statistics. We find that although small-scale holdings (defined as holdings of less than 10 ha) occupy a very small percentage of Scotlands agricultural land, they account for 19.6% of Scotlands agricultural labour. Small-scale holdings also play important roles within the commercial poultry and horticulture sectors, and house 35.9% of reported horses. Small-scale land management is increasing throughout Scotland, but with evident regional distinctions. Upland and island holdings (many of which are crofts) have seen substantial reductions in their sheep numbers as part of the wider reduction in agricultural activity associated with 2005 Common Agricultural Policy reforms. In contrast, sheep numbers are growing on small-scale holdings in the lowlands, underpinned by a complex mix of commercial and lifestyle drivers. We highlight that benefits traditionally associated with crofting, such as population retention and rural development, could also be associated with small-scaling holding in general. However, the increase in small-holding and retention of labour in some regions may be evidence of peri-urban gentrification processes, rather than fulfilment of traditional crofting functions in remote areas.

Adaptation, resilience and CAP reform: a comparison of crofts and livestock farms in Scotland

ABSTRACT In this paper, we assess the recent and anticipated changes on Scotland’s livestock-producing crofts, using a representative survey of Scottish farmers undertaken in 2013. We find that crofters are similar to other livestock farmers, both inside and outside of the traditional crofting counties, in terms of age, years of involvement in the holding and percentage of identified successors, but are less likely to own their holdings or to operate them for profit. Crofters reported being more subsidy dependent than other livestock producers, and many appear likely to retreat from crofting in the event of substantive subsidy reductions. However, crofting respondents identified input costs, regulations, commodity prices and climate change as having had greater influence on how they manage their crofts than the 2005 transition to the ‘Single Farm Payment’. Overall, crofters reported making fewer changes than their counterparts in non-crofting counties, but similar levels to those of other livestock farmers within crofting counties, suggesting less ‘room for manoeuvre’ within the remote areas in which most crofts are located. However, there is some evidence that ‘active’ crofts are ‘bouncing forward’ in response to recent challenges, particularly into forestry and agri-tourism, also reporting significantly higher perceived economic prospects.

Discourses of on-farm wind energy generation in the UK farming press

ABSTRACT As the owners of the majority of land in the U.K., farmers are well placed to contribute to renewable energy targets. Media coverage can both drive and reflect farmers’ views about renewable energy but has been largely unexplored to date. This article uses discourse analysis to examine the evolution of coverage of one form of renewable energy – on-farm wind – in the U.K. farming press from 1980 to 2013. We identified a diverse debate with five major discourses. On-farm wind turbines are alternatively represented as: profitable farm diversification opportunities; producers of clean energy; important for rural development and sources of conflict. Although press coverage predominantly encourages wind energy production, a further discourse advises farmers to ‘Proceed with Caution’. While emphasising images and values which have widespread affinity among U.K. farmers, the press have increasingly employed an economic frame, constructing wind energy generation as a farm diversification strategy. The most recent farming press coverage predominantly encourages an instrumental approach to wind energy, crowding out other (non-economic) rationales and marginalising local community concerns. This appears to reflect the financial orientation of recent policy support (particularly Feed-in Tariffs), and may have long-term costs in enabling sustainable energy production systems.