Sustainability of organic farming within a conventionalization context. The case of cattle and pig production in Mediterranean systems

Abstract

Organic food production is proposed as a pathway to achieve the goals of the transition to new sustainable food systems in Europe. Both the production and consumption of organic food have grown significantly in recent decades. However, the European regulatory, economic, social, and political environment has contributed to the sector showing certain imbalances and vulnerabilities that raise doubts about its role in the food transition. Additionally, the phenomenon of conventionalization has been pointed out by various authors as a process in which organic production mimics conventional methods in terms of production, marketing, and even consumption, thereby reducing the environmental, economic, and social benefits that are assumed. This phenomenon could undermine the sustainability of the sector in the long term. There is no consensus on how conventionalization is defined and how it affects the sector, as it is highly dependent on context and the affected subsector. The aim of this thesis is to assess the sustainability of European organic production through several case studies. The goal is to contribute to the debate on its role in the food transition, to identify the processes and causes affecting its sustainability, and to determine whether conventionalization is taking place in the studied sectors. The Andalusia region was chosen as a regional study due to its representativeness in the overall Spanish organic sector. The sustainability study then focused on organic cattle and pig livestock systems in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula (Andalusia, Extremadura, and Castilla León). Livestock farming was selected as a case study due to its importance in the Spanish agri-food system, the significant role of livestock systems in Spanish organic production, and the fact that many farms are located in Mediterranean systems. Extensive Mediterranean systems based on grazing are an example of environmental sustainability due to the ecosystem services they provide and their contribution to maintaining family farming. However, they are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the socio-economic context that characterizes them. The three studies conducted in this thesis are framed within the principles of Agroecology as a discipline that analyzes the sustainability of food systems. Among the attributes that define sustainability from an agroecological perspective, Autonomy (environmental, economic, and social) was chosen as the central axis for designing indicators. The methodology employed in this study was the Agrarian Metabolism, based on energy, materials, and information flows that recirculate at the farm level and between the farm and its surroundings. These flows explain the biophysical processes and territorial relationships that condition the productive strategies used by producers, their energy efficiency, and the investment made in generating ecosystem services. In particular, energy indicators (EROIs - energy return on investment) and other metabolic indicators were used to explain the decoupling of the territory regarding the use of energy and materials. Additionally, other socio-economic indicators were employed. The results of the three studies show that there is no single management model under organic certification. There is a mix of models that show different degrees of efficiency, sustainability, and ecosystem service provision. Some imbalances and signs of conventionalization were detected at the territorial level (Andalusia) and in the case studies of cattle and pig production in the southwest of Spain. However, a generalized claim about the existence of this process cannot be made, as it affects different ways depending on the productive sector and different links in the value chain. In the studied examples of livestock, it was found that this phenomenon has little presence in production but does appear in marketing and some social indicators. In the case of the semi-intensive white pig sector, it was observed that it is the model with the least autonomy, meaning it is less sustainable and more conventionalized in its management compared to the other models. Several aspects were identified as significantly affecting autonomy and, therefore, related to conventionalization in livestock systems: sales in conventional markets and long supply chains, energy and food resource dependence (mainly from organic soybean imports), the use of non-adapted livestock breeds, lack of associations, specialization, and the lack of generational renewal. In the extensive organic cattle and pig systems, it has been observed that all of them, to a greater or lesser extent, contribute to the energy transition and the provision of ecosystem services, as well as investing in recycling phytomass within the system to maintain sustainability in the long term. Among them, the dehesa systems that carry out animal fattening in the farm stood out. Five agroecosystem management strategies with varying degrees of sustainability have been identified. None of these organic models are entirely sustainable, but all provide complementary services to society (environmental, social, and economic) linked to their strategy. These strategies are conditioned by a very specific regulatory-political framework. Therefore, it is time to implement public policies aimed at addressing the vulnerabilities of each of them. In particular, with regard to the recognition and economic compensation for ecosystem services, promoting the use of local breeds, developing local markets to satisfy domestic demand, strengthening mixed livestock-agriculture systems, or territorial agreements between livestock farmers and farmers to improve access to locally sourced food, encouraging the production of Mediterranean legumes, and establishing measures to promote generational renewal in family farms. The methodological proposal generated is highly useful for assessing the sustainability of organic production in the future and is applicable to other systems and contexts in Europe.