Marcello De Rosa

An empirical investigation of the role of rural development policies in stimulating rural entrepreneurship in the Lazio Region of Italy

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to provide an analysis of the adoption of Rural Development Policies (Rdp) as the result of entrepreneurial behaviours carried out by family farms with a focus on the Lazio Region of Italy. Family farming is the backbone of the European model of agriculture. Rdp provide family farms with a set of opportunities which, if well exploited, could drum up farm’s development. Design/methodology/approach – An empirical analysis of a data base provided by the Lazion region of Italy on the adoption of Rdp by family farms in the Lazio region for the period of 2007-2013. Cluster analysis is the main analytical tool used. Findings – The results evidence significant differences in the adoption of rural policy on the basis of family life cycle and the composition of the family farm. The empirical analysis underlines the low degree of coherence by farms located in rural areas. Practical implications – Farmers’ success in accessing funds requires them to be proactive and take a strate...

Family farm business and access to rural development polices: a demographic perspective

This article aims to show the ability of family farms in obtaining funds from rural development policies. Under the hypothesis that family farms’ characteristics influence their access to policies, the perspective of analysis is demographic. In the paper two demographic viewpoints are investigated, to emphasize the role of the family composition in fostering strategic farms’ decisions: the localization in the life cycle and the presence of assistants. The empirical test is provided for an Italian region: the funds of rural policies gained by family farms are examined, divided up into the three main strategic axes of the rural development plan. The results of the analysis highlight some interesting differences between the two demographic perspectives; the presence of assistants influences a farm’s strategic process and increases the access to rural policies. This induces normative consequences in terms of the possible articulation of policies aimed at sustaining family farms.

Do farm advisory services improve adoption of rural development policies? An empirical analysis in GI areas

ABSTRACT Purpose: The aim of the paper is to evaluate how advisory services stimulate the adoption of rural development policies (RDP) aiming at value creation. Design/methodology/approach: By linking the use of agricultural extension services (AES) to policies for value creation, we will put forward an empirical analysis in Italy, with the aim of evaluating the capability of AES in bringing about higher access to rural policies for value creation in geographical indications (GI) contexts. Findings: Results of our analyses evidence, on the one side, higher capability of funds attraction in GI areas. On the other side, path dependency schemes in accessing RDP are evident. Higher rates of access with the support of advisory services emerge, but only in traditional measure to fund farms’ investments. On the contrary, the use of AES does not facilitate access to other measures for value creation. Practical implications: Our hypothesis is that AES include the support towards farm strategies of development through the adoption of RDP aiming at value creation in GI areas. Our analysis presents practical implications, in terms of a clear need for upgrading and broadening AES’ competencies in the field of projecting farm development and knowledge transfer in the field of funds to be obtained by RDP. Theoretical implications: From a theoretical point of view, the paper may provide a contribution to theoretical debate by offering new insights into the role of advisory services in stimulating innovations and access to support policies. Originality/value: This paper tries to fill a gap in the agricultural extension literature. We posit that the role of AES should comprehend a deeper knowledge (and knowledge transfer) concerning the opportunities provided by RDP.

The Role of Geographical Indication in Supporting Food Safety: A not Taken for Granted Nexus.

The paper focuses on the role of geographical indication in supporting strategies of food safety. Starting from the distinction between generic and specific quality, the article analyses the main factors influencing food safety in cases of geographical indication products, by stressing the importance of traceability systems and biodiversity in securing generic and specific quality. In the second part, the paper investigates the coordination problems behind a designation of origin and conditions to foster an effective collective action, a prerequisite to grant food safety through geographical indications.

Composizione dell’impresa agricola familiare e accesso alle politiche di sviluppo rurale

The aim of the paper is the analysis of the ‘consumption’ of rural development policies (Rdp) as the result of entrepreneurial behaviours adopted by family run farms. The underlying hypothesis is that family run farm’s characteristics influence the consumption of rural development policies. By suggesting a family run farm perspective, we support the idea that any boundary between productive and reproductive work in the farm household is artificial thus conditioning farm strategy and aptitude to invest. Therefore, a relevant aspect to be examined concerns family size, localization in life cycle, and the presence of assistants within the family run farms.The results of our analysis permit to emphasize the importance of family context in the access to Rdp and the relevance of the family assistants on farm’s propensity to get funded.

Innovative rurban networks in Rome

This chapter studies two new food networks in Rome, the so-called ‘Zero-Km Initiative’ and the Elementary School Meal Program. Involving strong producer_consumer relations, these innovative networks were created by small farmers in order to benefit from the economic potentials of new consumption patterns developing in large urban areas (demand for quality food, local food, and so on). The research focuses on the dynamics of coordination between periurban farmers and local institutions as predictors for the long-term sustainability of the two networks. The research has highlighted that when coordination involves a small number of actors (Zero-Km Initiative) the resulting action is efficient and the long-term sustainability of the network is safe. On the other hand, when the network is composed of multiple actors located at different institutional levels and geographical scales such as in the Elementary School Meal Program, the capacity for coordination is weaker if not absent.