Riccardo Primi, Frédéric Vanwindekens, Bertrand Dumont, Christopher Brock, Defne Ulukan, Bruno Ronchi, David Parsons, Lisa Schanz, Christoph Winckler, Gun Bernes, Elise Lang, Patrick Veysset, Bernadette Oehen, Marie Destruel, Mathilde Blanc, Marc Moraine, Marie Moerman, Guillaume Martin, Lucille Steinmetz, Tabea Meischner, Marc Benoit, AGroécologie, Innovations, teRritoires (AGIR), Institut National Polytechnique (Toulouse) (Toulouse INP), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Unité Mixte de Recherche sur les Herbivores - UMR 1213 (UMRH), VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute, Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries, Institute of Sea Fisheries, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Forschungsring e.V, Innovation et Développement dans l'Agriculture et l'Alimentation (UMR Innovation), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE), Research Institute of Organic Agriculture - Forschungsinstitut für biologischen Landbau (FiBL), Università degli studi della Tuscia [Viterbo], University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), and Centre Wallon de Recherches Agronomiques (CRA-W)
While there is increasing evidence of the sustainability benefits of diversified systems in the organic cropping sector, this has been much less investigated with organic livestock farming. To fill this knowledge gap, we surveyed a sample of 128 European organic multi-species livestock farms located across seven countries – Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland – and covering a large range of livestock species combinations. We recorded 1574 variables as raw data out of which we calculated 107 indicators describing farm structure, management and several sustainability dimensions: resource use efficiency and conservation, animal, land and work productivities, animal and human welfare. After technical validation of the data, we withdrew 26 farms and the database covers 102 farms. This database is well suited to unveil relationships between various dimensions of organic multi-species livestock farm sustainability and their structure and management. It can help reveal sustainable strategies for organic multi-species livestock farming systems and understand levers or barriers to their development.