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Contract farming has gained in importance in many developing countries. Previous studies analysed effects of contracts on smallholder farmers' welfare, yet mostly without considering that different types of contractual relationships exist. Here, we examine associations between contract farming and farm household income in the oil palm sector of Ghana, explicitly differentiating between two types of contracts, namely simple marketing contracts and more comprehensive resource-providing contracts. Moreover, we look at different income sources to better understand how both contracts are linked to farmers' livelihood strategies. We use cross-sectional survey data and regression models. Issues of endogeneity are addressed through measuring farmers' willingness-to-participate in contracts and using this indicator as an additional covariate. Farmers with both types of contracts have significantly higher household incomes than farmers without a contract, yet with notable differences in terms of the income sources. Farmers with a marketing contract allocate more household labour to off-farm activities and thus have higher off-farm income. In contrast, farmers with a resource-providing contract have larger oil palm plantations and thus higher farm incomes. The findings suggest that the two contract types are associated with different livelihood strategies and that disaggregated analysis of different income sources is important to better understand possible underlying mechanisms.

By successfully including smallholders, the oil palm boom in Southeast Asia has contributed significantly to rural economic development and poverty alleviation, notwithstanding its huge environmental costs. Oil palm production in other world regions is currently picking up, including in Africa. Yet it is uncertain whether the positive socioeconomic impacts from Southeast Asia can be replicated elsewhere. Little development gain may thus accompany severe environmental harm if oil palm expansion leads to deforestation. To shed light on the (prospective) role of oil palm for rural development we perform a systematic comparison of Ghana’s and Indonesia’s oil palm sectors at the macro and micro level, focusing on smallholder inclusion and using a mixed-methods approach. We identify substantial differences in structural conditions and policy foci that have led to two very different oil palm sectors. While the Indonesian experience clearly highlights the development opportunities coming with smallholder inclusion inagro-industrial production, our analysis shows that transferability to the West African context is limited due to regional specificities.

This study asks whether innovation in smallholder production reduces or accelerates land expansion. Even though innovation in agriculture has reduced land expansion globally, rebound effects can occur locally and often at the expense of vital ecosystem functions. In contrast to other studies that investigate rebound effects in response to technological innovation, our study focuses on technical efficiency, the remaining component of total factor productivity. We use a short panel dataset from smallholder oil palm farmers in Sumatra, Indonesia, and develop a two-stage approach in which we estimate technical efficiency and determine its land expansion effect. Our findings suggest that technical efficiency and in particular land efficiency are low, indicating that 50% of the currently cultivated land could be spared. However, the land-sparing effect of increasing technical efficiency is at risk of being offset by about half due to a rebound effect. To maximize the conservation potential from increasing smallholder efficiency, policies need to simultaneously incentivize well-functioning land markets and stricter protection measures for land with high ecological value to mitigate local rebound effects.

Livestock is one of the most important sectors of world agriculture. Livestock industries are as ubiquitous in the world as grain crops. Meadows and pastures in agricultural lands occupy three times more land than arable lands. Therefore, the bulk of livestock products are grown in countries located in temperate regions., Животноводство является одной из важнейших отраслей мирового сельского хозяйства. Животноводство, как и зерновые, широко распространено во всем мире. Пастбища и пастбища на сельскохозяйственных угодьях занимают втрое больше пашни. Поэтому основная часть продукции животноводства выращивается в странах, расположенных в регионах с умеренным климатом.

Smallholder farmers in developing countries often suffer from high risk and limited market access. Contract farming may improve the situation under certain conditions. Several studies analyzed effects of contracts on smallholder productivity and income with mixed results. Most existing studies focused on one particular contract scheme. Contract characteristics rarely differ within one scheme, so little is known about how different contract characteristics may influence the benefits for smallholders. Here, we address this research gap using data from oil palm farmers in Ghana who participate in different contract schemes. Some of the farmers have simple marketing contracts, while others have resource-providing contracts where the buyer also offers inputs and technical services on credit. A comparison group cultivates oil palm without any contract. Regression models that control for selection bias show that resource-providing contracts increase farmers’ input use and yield. Resource-providing contracts also incentivize higher levels of specialization and an increase in the scale of production. These effects are especially pronounced for small and medium-sized farms. In contrast, the marketing contracts have no significant effects on input use, productivity, and scale of production. The results suggest that resource-providing contracts alleviate market access constraints, while simple marketing contracts do not in this context.

In 2019 is gewerkt aan het opstellen van boerderijvarianten die passen binnen een circulaire en klimaat neutrale maatschappij. Om meer handen en voeten te geven aan de opgestelde boerderijvarianten is er nu een nadere uitwerking en verfijning uitgevoerd. Er zijn zes boerderijvarianten uitgewerkt op broeikasbasemissies en verdiencapaciteit per hectare. Gedurende het proces werd duidelijk dat enkele varianten of maatregelen uit de verkenning van 2019 niet realistisch gezien worden. Deze zijn daarom niet in de boerderij-analyses meegenomen. De volgende zes boerderijvarianten zijn op beide criteria (economie en broeikasgasemissies) beoordeeld en vergeleken met de referentie situatie in het gebied: De Eiwitboerderij, de groenblauwe boerderij, de energieboerderij, de circulaire boerderij, de vezelboerderij en de internetboerderij. Deze varianten zijn afgezet ten opzichte van de referentie situatie; akkerbouw met lage grondwaterstanden tussen de 120-160 cm onder maaiveld, waar zetmeelaardappelen, suikerbieten en zomergerst worden geteeld. De dikkere veenpakketten op deze bedrijven emitteren met de huidige lage grondwaterstanden veel broeikasgassen door de oxidatie van het veen. Doelstellingen vanuit het klimaatakkoord richten zich erop deze uitstoot te verminderen. Dit rapport presenteert inschattingen van mogelijk te realiseren emissiereducties door de toepassing van de boerderijvarianten op deze dikke veenpakketten. Veel varianten passen een ander gewas of maatregel toe op 20% van het bedrijf, omdat aangenomen is dat 20% van het oppervlakte van het bedrijf dikke veenlagen bevat. Daarnaast zijn economische cijfers zijn verzameld voor de verschillende maatregelen en alternatieve gewassen. Deze zijn uitgewerkt op saldo niveau per hectare per jaar en vervolgens toegepast in boerderijvarianten. Uit deze analyse blijkt dat de energie boerderij met zonnepanelen in vaste constructie en een verhoogd waterpeil op 20% van het bedrijf het best scoren op zowel economisch perspectief en broeikasgasemissiereductie. Bovendien worden in deze varianten betere resultaten gerealiseerd dan in de referentie situatie. Ook de internet boerderij presteert redelijk goed, ook al staan daar nog wel flinke investeringen tegenover. De eiwitboerderij zit aan de andere kant van het spectrum; er treedt geen vermindering van broeikasgasemissies op en het saldo per hectare is lager dan in de referentie situatie. De circulaire boerderij en de vezelboerderij zijn in staat de emissies te verlagen, maar leiden tot lagere economische opbrengsten. De groenblauwe variant lijkt qua prestatie veel op de referentie boerderij, maar weet wel andere neveneffecten te realiseren zoals een toename in waterberging en biodiversiteit. De volgende benodigde stappen zijn om de praktische toepasbaarheid te toetsen en de technische en hydrologische haalbaarheid van de varianten verder te onderzoeken via pilots en experimenten.

Pastoral counties of northern Kenya are expected to undergo massive change in the coming years due to the government’s ambitious infrastructural development agenda. However, the area frequently experiences violence as a result of conflict between pastoralist communities, and also due to ethno-political contestations. Isiolo County is one such place where planned development projects and conflict risks coincide, making it an important case study for understanding how the future may unfold. This Working Paper is written in the framework of a larger project called “Future Rural Africa: Future-making and social-ecological transformation” by the Universities of Bonn and Cologne and BICC (Bonn International Center for Conversion). BICC is interested in the kinds of claims that are being made on land and its resources and how these may change the existing dynamics of organised violence. The Paper explores the complexity of existing conflict in Isiolo and the emerging effects of new plans and land claims. At its most basic level, conflict between pastoral groups, or between pastoralists and farmers is motivated both by survival (pastoral mobility and access to water and pasture in a climatically challenging area) and the accumulation of livestock wealth. Politics, which is generally extended along ethnic lines, adds another layer to the inter-communal conflict through the need for political survival and the accumulation of personal wealth. The devolution of many powers and budgets to county level since 2013 has then raised the stakes for political power. Since plans for infrastructure have been made known, tensions have emerged, and fears of exclusion and dispossession of customary land users through speculative land-grabbing and uncompensated state acquisition. With Isiolo being a hub of the illicit small arms trade, guns have become a conflict multiplier at every level. The county is highly securitised with several specialised police units. However, they lack capacity and their actions have tended to be either inadequate or overly reactive and their relationship with communities is poor. As a result, day to day security of pastoralist communities and their livestock relies on the rather informal and unprofessional National Police Reserve, who are armed by the state, and community members, who purchase their own arms through illicit markets. Politicians on occasion have also supplied arms and ammunition to communities. The Paper concludes that the various layers of conflict should be considered and addressed simultaneously, and that development is a new and potent factor in conflict at both political and community levels. A careful, inclusive conflict-sensitive approach to development is essential, but this is unlikely to happen if leaders look for personal power and gain.

This report focusses on the question: is it useful to process the surplus of cattle slurry on a dairy farm, or is it better to export non-processed slurry directly to arable farmers? The economic value of ten different manure products has been evaluated from the perspective of a dairy farmer who delivers it and the arable farmer who receives it. The revenues concern fertiliser savings (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) and organic matter supply for improving the soil fertility / quality. The costs involve costs of different housing system, (mechanical) separation, sampling & analysing, transport and application on the field. The results show that with regard to fertiliser savings and costs in many cases processing cattle slurry is not profitable. When organic matter is also included in the financial profits the solid fraction of mechanical separation is also an attractive product. Farmyard manure (straw manure) can also be favourable for arable farmers but production costs are high due to high costs for straw. Dit rapport gaat in op de vraag: heeft het zin dat melkveehouders niet op het eigen bedrijf plaatsbare rundveedrijfmest bewerken, of is het beter om deze onbewerkt af te zetten naar akkerbouwers? De economische waarde van tien verschillende mestproducten zijn geëvalueerd vanuit het perspectief van de melkveehouder en akkerbouwer. De opbrengsten betreffen de besparing aan meststoffen (stikstof, fosfor en kalium) en de waarde van de organische stof als bodemverbeteraar. De kosten betreffen verschil in kosten huisvesting, mechanische scheiding, monstername & analyse, transport en aanwending op het land. De resultaten laten zien dat mestbewerking in veel gevallen niet gunstiger is dan gebruik van onbewerkte rundveedrijfmest wanneer gekeken wordt naar kunstmestbesparing en kosten. Wanneer ook de organische stof financieel wordt gewaardeerd, wordt ook de dikke fractie na mestscheiding economisch interessant. mest kan voor de akkerbouwer interessant zijn, maar is duur vanwege het benodigde stro.

Arable crops are typically grown in annual rotations. Diverse rotations can support ecosystem services, provide economic resilience and support adaptation to climate change. Our aim was to assess farmers' attitudes to planning and diversifying crop rotations, focusing on their responses in the face of contrasting climate viewpoints. We interviewed 75 farmers from four regions along a latitudinal gradient from the south of the UK to the south of France. We used a semi-structured questionnaire with face-to-face interviews and asked farmers to respond to two narrative viewpoints of climate change impacts: one viewpoint focused on opportunities, the other on constraints. We found in all four regions that farmers' use rotations, and the crops within rotations, to achieve their main objectives of financial stability and improved soil health. Most farmers (79-100% depending on region) said they had experienced climate change, and many (54-83%) had already implemented changes in their farming practices. We did not find a difference in these results based on latitude. However, farmers' self-reported outlook was mostly optimistic in southern UK and become progressively more pessimistic further south. Overall, most farmers predicted that they would diversify and lengthen rotations in response to climate change. However, when presented with a viewpoint of climate change impacts focusing on opportunities, more farmers were likely to diversify and lengthen, and fewer were likely to shorten rotations, compared to a viewpoint presenting constraints from these impacts. Crucially, here we show that the presentation of climate change affects the ways in which farmers predict how they will respond to climate change. Diversified rotations would align with multiple other economic and environmental benefits. Therefore, it is essential to consider the way in which climate change impacts are communicated, and the effect on farmers' behavior, when designing measures to support environmentally-sustainable adaptation to climate change.

Культурные ландшафты региона формируются в результате наложения их антропогенных модификаций на предыдущих этапах хозяйственного освоения. Цель данной работы — провести историко-геоэкологический анализ процесса хозяйственного освоения территории Пензенской области в период с XVII до середины XIX вв. и раскрыть особенности формирования культурных ландшафтов. Методологической основой исследований является теория культурного ландшафта и теория геоэкологического анализа процессов хозяйственного освоения ландшафтов. Историко-геоэкологический анализ данного этапа хозяйственного освоения проводился путем сравнительного анализа пространственно-временной информации о природе, населении и его хозяйственной деятельности на данном этапе и наложения ее на современную ландшафтную карту Пензенской области. Анализ исторических, палеогеографических и архивных картографических данных позволяет выделить исследуемый период как стадию начала крупноочагового хозяйственного освоения территории Пензенской области. На формирование культурных ландшафтов значительное влияние оказывает строительство засечных черт и русские переселенцы. Трансформация природных ландшафтов происходит, с одной стороны, в связи с возведением и функционированием оборонительных линий, с другой стороны, в связи с хозяйственной деятельностью человека, наибольшей трансформации подверглись ландшафты к северу от засечных черт. Произошло значительное сокращение лесов в связи с развитием строительства, земледелия, поташного производства в регионе и вырубки лесов для нужд кораблестроения в России., Cultural landscapes of the region are formed as a result of the imposition of their anthropogenic modifications at the previous stages of economic development. The purpose of this work is to conduct a historical and geoecological analysis of the process of economic development of the territory of the Penza region in the period from the XVII to the middle of the XIX century and reveal the features of the formation of cultural landscapes. The methodological basis of the research is the theory of cultural landscape and the theory of geo-ecological analysis of the processes of economic development of landscapes. Historical and geoecological analysis of this stage of economic development was carried out by comparative analysis of spatial and temporal information about nature, population and its economic activity at this stage and its imposition on the modern landscape map of the Penza region. The analysis of historical, paleogeographic and archival cartographic data makes it possible to single out the period under study as the stage of the beginning of the large-focal economic development of the territory of the Penza Region. The formation of cultural landscapes is significantly influenced by the construction of the borderline and Russian immigrants. The transformation of natural landscapes occurs on the one hand, in connection with the construction and operation of defensive lines, on the other hand, in connection with human activities. Landscapes to the north of the zasechny traits have undergone the greatest transformation. There was a significant reduction in forests due to the development of construction, agriculture, potash production in the region and deforestation for the needs of shipbuilding in Russia.

Samenwerking tussen akkerbouw- en melkveebedrijven komt veel voor in Drenthe, met name in de vorm van grondruil. De provincie heeft Wageningen UR gevraagd om een expertbeoordeling voor de volgende vraag: is deze huidige vorm van samenwerking duurzaam en waar is nog winst te halen? Daarbij werd specifiek aandacht gevraagd voor organische stof, nutriëntenefficiëntie, bodemgezondheid en de inzet van gewasbeschermingsmiddelen. Uit de beoordeling blijkt dat de huidige vorm van samenwerking qua duurzaamheid niet of nauwelijks afwijkt van de situatie zonder samenwerking. Op de verschillende duurzaamheidsthema’s is nog wel winst te behalen. Het is daarvoor nodig dat de samenwerkende bedrijven gezamenlijk een teelt- en bodemplan maken.

The Aran Islands are exceptional cultural landscapes at the Atlantic fringe of Europe. They are strongly influenced by human settlement and small-scale farming that is still pursued according to traditional practices. Reconstruction of changes in farming from the beginning of the early 20th century onwards, and demographic changes beginning in the early 19th century, are discussed in the light of official statistics. Field surveys, aimed mainly at documenting the extent of Secale cereale (rye) cultivation, provide more precise information on the extent of rye cultivation in recent decades and give fresh insights into present-day flora, vegetation, and plant biodiversity. Results from a previously published, lake sediment-based Holocene pollen profile from Inis Oírr are re-assessed in the light of modern-day pollen deposition studies that we carried out. We discuss the implications of long-distance pollen transport for the interpretation of Holocene pollen diagrams in relation to the history of trees, including Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine), in Ireland, and we emphasize the importance of supporting traditional farming practices, particularly as regards cereal growing, on the Aran Islands. peer-reviewed

The article deals with the analysis of inequality in the distribution of the economic result in businesses engaging in field production in the Czech Republic, by way of the assessment of the impact of subsidies on the said inequality and by defining the effect of the size of the business on the economic result as well as inequality. The methodical tool is the quantification of the Gini coefficient and its elasticity. The data basis consists of panel data of 140 agricultural businesses focusing on field production for the period of the years 2005–2010.The main results of the submitted article substantiate a high inequality in the distribution of the economic result for the accounting period among field production businesses. The said inequality is not generally caused by the differing size of the analyzed businesses, and the associated volume of subsidies obtained, but is affected by other factors, such as the management quality, the investment activity of the business, or exceptional events. Subsidies do contribute to the more equal distribution of the economic result, but their impact is very small. Out of the individual categories of subsidies, the ones with the main redistribution effect are direct payments, as a result of the high proportion of total subsidies that they comprise.

Root biomass is one of the most relevant root parameters for studies of plant response to environmental change, soil carbon modelling or estimations of soil carbon sequestration. A major source of error in root biomass quantification of agricultural crops in the field is the presence of extraneous organic matter in soil: dead roots from previous crops, weed roots, incorporated above ground plant residues and organic soil amendments, or remnants of soil fauna. Using the isotopic difference between recent maize root biomass and predominantly C3-derived extraneous organic matter, we determined the proportions of maize root biomass carbon of total carbon in root samples from the Swiss long-term field trial “DOK”. We additionally evaluated the effects of agricultural management (bio-organic and conventional), sampling depth (0 - 0.25, 0.25 - 0.5, 0.5 - 0.75 m) and position (within and between maize rows), and root size class (coarse and fine roots) as defined by sieve mesh size (2 and 0.5 mm) on those proportions, and quantified the success rate of manual exclusion of extraneous organic matter from root samples. Only 60 % of the root mass that we retrieved from field soil cores was actual maize root biomass from the current season. While the proportions of maize root biomass carbon were not affected by agricultural management, they increased consistently with soil depth, were higher within than between maize rows, and were higher in coarse (> 2 mm) than in fine (≤ 2 mm and > 0.5) root samples. The success rate of manual exclusion of extraneous organic matter from root samples was related to agricultural management and, at best, about 60 %. We assume that the composition of extraneous organic matter is strongly influenced by agricultural management and soil depth and governs the effect sizes of the investigated factors. Extraneous organic matter may result in severe overestimation of recovered root biomass and has, therefore, large implications for soil carbon modelling and estimations of the climate change mitigation potential of soils.

Attendu que de nombreux investisseurs s'arrachent les terres agricoles dans le monde entier, il est difficile de savoir qui s'implique dans quelle entreprise et quels pourraient en être les effets sur les populations locales. Une base de données internationale fait la lumière sur cette situation confuse.

This paper reviews 70 recent empirical and theoretical studies that analyse land-use change at the farm-household level. The review builds on a conceptual framework of land-use change drivers and conducts a meta-analysis. It turns out that the most frequently analysed scenario is the conversion of non-used forests or forested areas into land used for agricultural purposes about a third of all considered scenarios. The second largest share is accounted for by studies that look into the conver-sion of non-used forests or forested areas into ranching. Most studies analyse land-use change using household and/or village data and, in doing so, often rely on relatively small samples of 100-200 ob-servations. There is a clear regional concentration of studies on Central and South America and some studies on African countries, with only few studies on Asian countries. This is surprising, since evi-dence hints at high deforestation rates in South-East Asia due to logging activities and plantation agri-culture. We find that a number of studies face problems of internal validity because of endogeneity (simultaneity and reverse causality) and omitted variable bias that are not adequately addressed. De-spite these weaknesses, the literature points at micro-level economic growth, for example in income and capital endowments, as a strong catalyst of human induced land-use change. The rich reviewed empirical literature illustrates the complexity of micro-level land-use change processes, in particular the inter-relationships between household-level characteristics, factor market conditions, and land-use change. These are conditioned by institutions and policies. In particular, the market-oriented re-forms adopted by many developing countries in the 1980s and 1990s seem to have had an important role in altering land use, while impacts of more recent policies, like PES or REDD+, still need to be bet-ter explored. However, the empirical designs of many reviewed studies fail to properly account for this complexity. Finally, the review reveals a lack of interdisciplinary work that uses integrated data and models to analyse land-use change.

As foreigners snap up farmland around the world, it is hard to know who is investing in what, and what the effects on local people might be. An international database is throwing light on the murk.

The rapid expansion of the oil palm area in many tropical countries has raised concerns about its negative impact on local communities, food security, and on the environment. While the expansion of oil palm in early stages was mainly driven by large private and public companies, it is expected that smallholders will outnumber large estates in the near future. For policy formulation it is hence important to better understand who these smallholders are and why they have started to cultivate oil palm. In this paper, we used a rich dataset collected in the province of Jambi, which is one of the most important production areas for oil palm, to analyse smallholders’ decision making by combining qualitative, quantitative, and experimental methods. We identified agricultural expertise, lacking flexibility in labour requirements, availability of seedlings, and investment costs as the major constraints for farmers to cultivate oil palm. Important reasons for oil palm cultivation are the higher returns to labour and the shorter immature phase of oil palm. We also showed that oil palm farmers are neither risk-averse nor risk-loving, rather, they appear to be risk-neutral.

We compared the effects of conventional and organic arable farming on soil organic matter (SOM) content, soil structure, aggregate stability and C and N mineralization, which are considered important factors in defining sustainable land management. Within one soil series, three different farming systems were selected, including a conventional and an organic arable system and permanent pasture without tillage. The old pasture represents optimal conditions in terms of soil structure and organic matter inputs and is characterized by high earthworm activity. More than 70 years of different management has caused significant differences in soil properties. SOM content, mineralization, earthworm activity and water-stable aggregation decreased as a result of tillage and arable cropping when compared with pasture, but were significantly greater under organic farming than under conventional farming. Total SOM contents between 0 and 20 cm depth amounted to 15, 24 and 46 g kg−1 for the conventional arable, organic arable and permanent pasture fields, respectively. Although less sensitive to slaking than the conventionally managed field, the soil under organic farming was susceptible to compaction when high pressures were exerted on the soil under wet conditions. The beneficial effects of organic farming are generally associated with soil biochemical properties, but soil physical aspects should also be considered. Depending on soil type and climate, organic farmers need to be careful not to destroy the soil structure, so that they can enjoy maximum advantage from their organic farming systems.

Land-cover data are used for the enforcement of quota restrictions, yield estimations and agricultural statistics. With the launch of the European Remote sensing Satellite (ERS-1) the first long-term spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) has become available for the mapping of land-cover. This paper assesses the capability of ERS-1 SAR precision data to (i) discriminate between the crop types for land-cover inventory purposes at (ii) the earliest stage in the growing season, using field-based classification. The objectives were tested for an agricultural region in The Netherlands where 12 crop types are found. Fourteen ERS-1 SAR images were available for this area, covering the 1992 growing season between May and November. The field-based classification yielded an overall classification accuracy of 80 per cent with the optimal data set. The stage at which the crop types could be assessed is crop dependent. Most crop types could not be distinguished before the month of August.

A comparison was made between conventional farm management (CONV) and integrated farm management (INT) on a calcareous silty clay loam soil, with a crop rotation of winter wheat, sugar beet, spring barley and potatoes. Both types of management were started at two levels of soil organic matter, 2.2% and 2.8%, respectively, resulting from a previous experiment with different inputs of organic matter. Farm management and sampling strategies for soil variables, including soil organisms, and crop development are described. In INT, 20% less nitrogen and 90% less pesticides (mainly as a result of the lack of soil fumigation) were added than in CONV. The soil tillage depth was reduced from 20–25 cm in CONV to 12–15 cm in INT. INT crop yields were on average 90% (83–102%) of CONV crop yields and INT crop N uptake was on average 85% (74–103%) of CONV crop N uptake. INT management with the partial replacement of mineral fertiliser N by compost and manure, conserved the original levels of soil organic matter, but under CONV these levels decreased. The total N in soil increased under INT and did not change appreciably under CONV.

This dataset contains experimental data from a number of field experiments with potato in The Netherlands (Van Evert et al., 2011). The data are presented as an SQL dump of a PostgreSQL database (version 8.4.4). An outline of the entity-relationship diagram of the database is given in an accompanying file. Dutch is required to understand some of the column names, because time pressure has prevented translating all column names to English. Views are presented without much comment. You may or may not find them helpful. The database was used in this form by us to perform our analyses and to prepare our publications. The information presented here represents a good-faith effort to preserve and transfer the experimental data from a number of experiments. We realize that the documentation of the meaning of tables and columns could have been better, but this is as complete as we could make it with the available resources. The following researchers and assistants were each involved in one or more of the experiments: * Frits K. van Evert * David A. van der Schans * Willem C.A. van Geel * Hanja Slabbekoorn * Remmie Booij * Jan Nammen Jukema * Bert Meurs * Dik Uenk References: Van Evert F.K., Van der Schans D.A., Malda J.T., Van den Berg W., Van Geel W.C.A., Jukema J.N. (2011) Geleide N-bemesting voor aardappelen op basis van gewasreflectie-metingen: Integratie van sensormetingen in een N-bijmestsysteem. PPO Rapport 423. WUR-PPO, Lelystad.

Four European countries on a north to south trajectory were sampled for their crop protection policies. Selected respondents were interviewed about their expectations with respect to the eventual reduction of pesticide use in the near future. Crop protection, policies among these countries are out of phase: Sweden has successfully completed a plan to reduce pesticide usage to 50% of a base-line value; the Netherlands are in the process of implementing such a plan; France is aiming to achieve supervised control; Spain is trying to reduce pesticide residues in export commodities. Before the year 2000, considerable reductions in the volume of pesticides used can be expected only in the Netherlands. Among the reasons for scepticism with regard to the reduction of dependence on pesticides and pesticide use are ‘lack of alternatives’, ‘inadequate research capacity’, ‘inadequate supervision for observance of regulations’, ‘absence of clear national policies’ and ‘absence of EC policy’.

Regular field estimates of earthworm populations were made for two consecutive years in two fields of an experimental farm in the “Noord Oost Polder” in The Netherlands. The fields represent different agricultural management systems: conventional management and “integrated” management (i.e. reduced cultivation and lower inputs of inorganic fertilizers and biocides as compared with conventional management). Practically no earthworms were present in the conventionally managed field. In the “integrated” field, however, earthworms were observed on almost all occasions. Three species of earthworms were found, namely Aporrectodea caliginosa, Lumbricus rubellus and A. rosea . During the sampling period numbers ranged between 0 and 400 individuals m −2 , representing a biomass of 0–100 g fresh biomass m −2 . Tillage (rotary hoeing) reduced populations by > 50%, but under favorable food and weather conditions populations recovered within 5 months. A. caliginosa and L. rubellus showed different life strategies: the former migrated to deeper layers to survive winter cold, the latter survived frost periods as cocoons. Potential influences of earthworms on soil structure are the protection of the soil surface to slaking by the production of stable casts, and the perforation of deeper soil layers and plough pans, opening up the subsurface soil for plant roots. However, in the integrated system used in this study, cast were buried in the soil at the time they were needed most on the surface. Perforation of deeper layers occurred mainly when populations were high, which was in autumn. Early in the season, presence of earthworms could not prevent ponding during heavy rainfall.

"The paper analyses the institutional dynamics surrounding common-pool resources in post socialist Central and Eastern Europe. It is conceived in close conjunction with the case studies reported in the four preceding papers in this series. The purpose of this paper is to frame the individual case inquiries, compare the findings from the four plus two additional case studies, and relate those to broader agrarian and environmental changes in Central and Eastern Europe. The comparative assessment suggests that resource governance has shifted from the previously dominant legal and administrative state hierarchies towards markets. In addition, state power has moved from central governments towards local authorities. The waning and decentralization of state power has caused the emergence of significant gaps between property legislation and rights-in-practice, which have been particularly stark in weak states. The discrepancy between legal texts and rights-in-practice leads to the exclusion of public and collective interests in favor of private interests in CPR management. It finds its environmental expression in the declining use of water control systems, widespread destruction of water infrastructure, and unfettered conversion of agricultural land for urban sprawl. Thus, the findings attest to the central role of distributive issues in post socialist privatization and suggest an additional dimension of distributive conflict: different rights and obligations associated with resources. They also suggest the need for post socialist governments to be actively involved in the management of common-pool resources for the protection of public and collective interests." (author's abstract) Der vorliegende Beitrag analysiert die institutionelle Dynamik in Zusammenhang mit den 'common-pool resources' in den postsozialistischen Ländern Mittel- und Osteuropas. Der Beitrag steht in engem Zusammenhang mit den Fallstudien, die in den vorhergegangenen Papieren in dieser Reihe vorgestellt wurden. Der Zweck dieser Arbeit ist es, einen Rahmen für die einzelnen Untersuchungen zu bieten, die Ergebnisse der Fallstudien zu vergleichen und diese auf die landwirtschaftlichen und klimatischen Veränderungen in Zentral- und Osteuropa zu beziehen. Die vergleichende Einschätzung zeigt, dass 'resource government' sich von den vorher dominierenden legalen und administrativen staatlichen Hierarchien in Richtung zu den Märkten verschoben hat. Zusätzlich ist die staatliche Macht von der Zentralverwaltung auf die lokalen Behörden übergegangen. Das Abnehmen und die Dezentralisierung der staatlichen Macht hat das Aufkommen bedeutender Lücken zwischen Eigentumsgesetzgebung und der Rechtspraxis verursacht, die in den schwachen Staaten besonders groß sind. Die Diskrepanz zwischen den Rechtsgrundlagen und der Rechtspraxis führt zu dem Ausschluss der allgemeinen und kollektiven Interessen zugunsten der privaten Interessen im Bereich des 'common pool resource'-Management. Seinen Ausdruck findet dies etwa im sinkenden Gebrauch von Wasserkontrollsystemen, in der weitverbreiteten Zerstörung der Wasserinfrastruktur und in der ungehinderten Umwandlung des Ackerlandes für die Ausbreitung der Städte. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, wie notwendig es für die postsozialistischen Regierungen ist, sich aktiv in das Management der 'common pool resources' einzumischen, um so einen Beitrag zum Schutz öffentlicher und kollektiver Interessen zu leisten. (ICDÜbers)

Der Aufbau einer rechtlichen Basis für Wasser- und Bodennutzung ist für die jungen unabhängigen Staaten Zentralasiens von großer Bedeutung. Davon hängen der Wohlstand, die innen- und außenpolitische Stabilität sowie die Umweltsituation der einzelnen Staaten und der gesamten Region ab. Traditionelle Praktiken der Wasser- und Bodenverteilung und ihre Umformung in sowjetischer Zeit erweisen sich als eine wesentliche Bedingung für Wirtschaftstransformation und Eigentumsreformen in der zentralasiatischen Landwirtschaft. Ausgehend von der historischen Entwicklung der Wasserverteilung und des Bodenrechts in der Region analysiert die Studie vor allem zwischenstaatliche Probleme der Verteilung von Wasserressourcen. (BIOst-Mrk)

One of the outstanding aims of most liberation movements has been to increase the economic well-being of their people, Guinea-Bissau being no exception in this respect. How far has the new Nation State succeeded in fulfilling this aim? A comparative analysis of the implementation of land reclamation projects during colonial and post-colonial times reveals astonishing similarities: especially the centralization of development efforts in the hands of administrators disconnected from the grassroots, lack of target group analysis and misconceptions about the aims and needs, as well as the resources, of the population involved in the development efforts, on the part of the administration. The effects of this negative conditioning process of 'development' over many years on the chances of cooperation between peasants and the administration are still largely unknown. Any development planner who wants to encourage the local population to take their future into their own hands, would have to take account of this negative conditioning process. Un des objectifs exceptionnelle de la plupart des mouvements de libération a été d'accroître le bien-être économique de leur peuple. La Guinée-Bissau ne fait pas exception à cet égard. Dans quelle mesure le nouvel État Nation réussi à remplir cet objectif? Une analyse comparative de la mise en valeur des projets de réhabilitation des terres pendant la période coloniale et post-coloniale révèle des similitudes étonnantes: notamment la centralisation des efforts de développement dans les mains des administrateurs déconnectés de la base, le manque d'analyse du groupe cible et des idées fausses sur les objectifs et les besoins, ainsi que les ressources, de la population impliquée dans les efforts de développement, de la part de l'administration. Les effets de ce processus de conditionnement négatif du «développement» depuis de nombreuses années sur les chances de la coopération entre les paysans et l'administration sont encore largement inconnu. Tout planificateur du développement qui veut encourager la population locale à prendre leur avenir en mains propres, devra tenir compte de ce processus de conditionnement négatif.

Land prices are key driver of farm profitability and competitiveness. Sales prices and leases are determining the viability and the perspectives of farms and their production systems. Our paper aims to analyse the role of land prices for the competitiveness and sustainability of arable farming in Germany, Poland, and France. We test the combination of two methodological approaches that follow similar objectives but use different data and perspectives. The SUFISA case studies show conditions, challenges, farmers’ strategies and the sustainability of arable farming in selected regions. The analysis of farm economic data, and - more specifically - of the impact of land prices and rents is based on the farm comparison data and analyses of agri benchmark model farms. The latter highlights that costs for the factor land affect the economic situation in all areas. Differences in returns, subsidy payments, and cost structures present the viability of crop farms in the German, French and Polish case study regions. However, results show that farmers cannot increase efficiency by farm enlargement anymore due to lacking access to land. In relation to that, increasing land prices hamper farmers' succession. Due to shrinking margins, German farmers fear they have to abandon well-accepted practices that helped to improve sustainability effects. Although land prices in Poland are lower than in other regions, access to land and high operational costs in cropping are critical issues. Overall, the combination of both methodological approaches is challenging but indicates that the complementarity of the insights are worth further development.

The main objective of the project “Mechanization and Energy use in selected arable farms in Central and South Eastern Europe (CASEE)” was to analyse energy characteristics of arable farming in Slovak Republic, Romania, Serbia and Austria, to compare results and identify possibilities of its improvements. The large scale farms are: the university farm of the Slovak University of Agriculture (SK) with 1.112 ha arable land, a cooperative farm in Risnovice (SK) with an arable land of 1.266 ha, a family farm in Apahida-Transylvania (RO) with 400 ha, a farm in Viisoara-Transylvania (RO) with 600 ha, a family farm in Sremska Mitrovica (SRB) with an arable land of 115 ha, a family farm near Novi Sad (SRB) with an arable land of 450 ha and a family farm in Ansfelden/Linz (A) with 368 ha. The farms were visited by the interviewer once or more times and the relevant data, used machinery, quantity of inputs, e.g. fuel, pesticides, fertilizer, seed and yields of harvested crops, were recorded, for the production season 2012. After collection of the basic data all energy inputs and outputs, energy content of crops, were calculated in accordance with data and procedure defined by CIGR (International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering), Handbook Volume V – Energy and Biomass Engineering (1999). Energy input and net energy gain, expressed in MJ/ha, were used to calculate energy characteristics of crops’ production: energy productivity - kg/MJ, energy efficiency index, energy ratio, energy intensity - MJ/kg, fuel intensity - L/kg. The intensity of all used farm inputs (fuel, seeds, fertilizer and pesticide) in crop production systems influences the energy efficiency. The fuel consumption for winter wheat production of the analysed farms ranges between 54 and 91 l/ha. The mean energy ratio (energy-output/energy-input) for winter wheat is 5.6 with ranges between 4.8 and 7.1. Besides the fuel consumption the energy-input via the nitrogen-fertilizer is the main energy consumer in cropping systems. It is clearly identified that the highest possible energy savings are possible by reduction of fertilizers, first of all nitrogen.

TASC (TYRES/TRACKS AND SOIL COMPACTION) is an Excel tool designed foremost as an aid in arable farming. The vulnerability of the soil to the passage of wheels or tracks is assessed after considering soil and load property factors. Danger of soil compaction is also apparent in the unworked underlayers. Factors included soil texture (finger test), penetration resistance in the pan layer (screwdriver test), depth of pan layer, size of tyres (width, overall diameter), load and inflation pressure. After examination of several field trials*, new algorithms will be developed and integrated into the model to obtain the contact area and the vertical stress propagation in the soil. For the assessment of the soil severe compaction risk, the concordance between the model data and field measurements is over 85 %. The tool is particularly well suited for traction tyres used on settled arable soil with a compacted plough pan between 20 and 25 cm depth. Technical data on more than 1’000 tyre types used in agriculture and forestry are available too. Information on tyre size can be directly imported into the program. According to ETRTO standards (European Tyre and Rim Technical Organisation), the tool gives the maximum load considering the tyre size, inflation pressure and speed of travel. TASC is developped firstly to protect prevently the soil from severe soil compaction damage with low reversible or irreversible character.

Land prices are key driver of farm profitability and competitiveness. Sales prices and leases are determining the viability and the perspectives of farms and their production systems. Our paper aims to analyse the role of land prices for the competitiveness and sustainability of arable farming in Germany, Poland, and France. We test the combination of two methodological approaches that follow similar objectives but use different data and perspectives. The SUFISA case studies show conditions, challenges, farmers’ strategies and the sustainability of arable farming in selected regions. The analysis of farm economic data, and - more specifically - of the impact of land prices and rents is based on the farm comparison data and analyses of agri benchmark model farms. The latter highlights that costs for the factor land affect the economic situation in all areas. Differences in returns, subsidy payments, and cost structures present the viability of crop farms in the German, French and Polish case study regions. However, results show that farmers cannot increase efficiency by farm enlargement anymore due to lacking access to land. In relation to that, increasing land prices hamper farmers' succession. Due to shrinking margins, German farmers fear they have to abandon well-accepted practices that helped to improve sustainability effects. Although land prices in Poland are lower than in other regions, access to land and high operational costs in cropping are critical issues. Overall, the combination of both methodological approaches is challenging but indicates that the complementarity of the insights are worth further development.