Abstract
Multifunctionality is one way to reconcile agriculture with sustainable development: agriculture, beyond the production of food and fibre, also provides important social, environmental and economic functions to society. In general, much of the current literature on agricultural multifunctionality is qualitative and narrative, and focuses on demonstrating the existence of social and/or environmental functions. In this chapter, we start with the existence of these multiple functions and we seek to measure the relationships between them through the design of indicators of multifunctionality. We present a structured sequential framework to guide the development of multifunctionality indicators based on the concept of joint production. The three stages articulated in this framework are: Identification of jointness. Qualitative assessment of jointness. Quantitative assessment of jointness.
Using data from empirical evidence suggests that multifunctionality in agriculture is far from being negligible.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
This definition of jointness is not universal: other definitions of jointness couch non-commodity outputs solely in terms of environmental characteristics, excluding the social dimension (e.g. Nowicki 2004) which could in part reflect the fact that assessment of social non-commodity outputs is hampered by a lack of available data.
- 2.
Regulation functions: ‘this group of functions relates to the capacity of natural and semi-natural ecosystems to regulate essential ecological processes and life support systems through bio-geochemical cycles and other biospheric processes. Regulation functions maintain a “healthy” ecosystem at different scale levels and, at the biosphere level, provide and maintain the conditions for life on Earth’ (De Groot 2006).
- 3.
Like the establishment or restoration of wetlands, or the creation of wildlife habitat on farmland.
- 4.
De Groot (2006) proposes to ‘translate the ecological complexity into a more limited number of ecosystem functions. These functions, in turn, provide the goods and services that are valued by humans. (...) ecosystem functions are defined as “the capacity of natural processes and components to provide goods and services that satisfy human needs, directly or indirectly”’.
- 5.
Threshold effects on ecological discontinuities have been defined by Muradian (2001) as sudden modifications of a given system property, resulting from the soft and continuous variation of an independent variable.
References
Baumol, W., Panzar, J., & Willig, R. (1981). Contestable markets and the theory of market structure. New York: Harcout, Brace & Jovanovich.
Belletti, G., Brunori, G., Marescotti, A., & Rossi, A. (2003). Multifunctionality and rural development: A multilevel approach. In G. van Huylenbroeck & G. Durand (Eds.), Multifunctional agriculture: A new paradigm for European agriculture and rural development (pp. 55-80). Hampshire: Ashgate.
Bontems, P., Rotillon, G., & Turpin, N. (2005a). Acceptable reforms of agri-environmental policies. Paper presented at the American Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting, Providence, RI, 24-27 July 2005.
Bontems, P., Rotillon, G., & Turpin, N. (2005b). Self-selecting agri-environmental policies with an application to the Don watershed. Environmental and Resource Economics, 31, 275-301.
Brandt, J., & Vejre, H. (2004). Multifunctional landscapes - motives, concepts and perspectives. In J. Brandt & H. Vejre (Eds.), Multifunctional landscapes - theory, values and history (pp. 3-31). London: WitPress.
Brouwer, F. (ed). (2004). Sustaining agriculture and the rural environment: Governance, policy and multifunctionality. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
Brunstad, R. J., Gaasland, I., & Vårdal, E. (2005). Multifunctionality of agriculture: An inquiry into the complementarity between landscape preservation and food security. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 32(4), 469-488.
Cairol, D., Perret, E., & Turpin, N. (2006). A report on results of the Multagri project concerning indicators of multifunctionality and their relevance for SEAMLESS-IF, PD 2.3.1, SEAMLESS integrated project. EU 6th Framework Programme (contract no. 010036-2), www.SEAMLESS-IP.org, 80 p. Retrieved from http://www.seamless-ip.org
De Groot, R. S. (2006). Function-analysis and valuation as a tool to assess land use conflicts in planning for sustainable, multi-functional landscapes. Landscape and Urban Planning, 75(3-4), 175-186.
Gillette, C., Merchez, L., & Perret, E. (2005a). Indicateurs territoriaux de multifonctionnalité agricole pour un développement durable plus fonctionnel. Paper presented at the Colloque international Indicateurs territoriaux du développement durable, Aix-en-Provence, December 1 and 2, 2005.
Gillette, C., Merchez, L., & Perret, E. (2005b). Agricultures multifonctionnelles et constructions territoriales en Rhöne-Alpes: Regards croisés entre statistiques et dires d’acteurs. Paper presented at the Symposium International Territoires et enjeux du développement régional: Résultats de recherche en partenariat avec cinq régions, Lyon, March 9-11, 2005.
Hall, C., McVittie, A., & Moran, D. (2004). What does the public want from agriculture and the countryside? A review of evidence and methods. Journal of Rural Studies, 20, 211-225.
Jongeneel, R. A., & Slangen, L. (2004). Multifunctionality in agriculture and the contestable public domain in the Netherlands. In F. Brouwer (Ed.), Sustaining agriculture and the rural environment: Governance, policy and multifunctionality (pp. 183-203). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
Knickel, K., Renting, H., & van der Ploeg, J. D. (2004). Multifunctionality in European agriculture. In F. Brouwer (Ed.), Sustaining agriculture and the rural environment: Governance, policy and multifunctionality (pp. 81-103). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
Muradian, R. (2001). Ecological thresholds: A survey. Ecological Economics, 38(1), 7-24.
Nowicki, P. L. (2004). Jointness of production as a market concept. In F. Brouwer (Ed.), Sustaining agriculture and the rural environment: Governance, policy and multifunctionality (pp. 36-55). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
OECD. (2001a). Multifunctionality: Towards an analytical framework. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
OECD. (2001b). Multifunctionality: Applying the OECD analytical framework. Guiding policy design. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
OECD. (2003). Multifunctionality: The policy implications. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
OECD. (2006). The new rural paradigm, policies and governance. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Perret, E. (2006). La multifonctionnalité de l’agriculture: regards sur les exploitations agricoles de Rhône-Alpes. Agreste Rhône-Alpes - Coup d’oeil, 87, 4.
Sakuyama, T. (2005). A decade of debate over non-trade concerns and agricultural trade liberalisation: convergences, remaining conflicts and a way forward. International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology, 4, 203-215.
Stapleton, L. M., Young, S. D., & Crout, N. M. J. (2004). Have missing markets for ecological goods and services affected modelling of terrestrial C and N fluxes? Ecological Modelling, 179, 569-574.
Van der Heide, C. M., Overmars, K. P., & Jongeneel, R. A. (2007). Land use modelling for sustaining multiple functions in the rural countryside with an application in the Achterhoek region, the Netherlands. In Ü. Mander, H. Wiggering & K. Helming (Eds.), Multifunctional land use; meeting future demands for landscape goods and services (pp. 251-268). Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
Van der Ploeg, J. D., & Roep, D. (2003). Multifunctionality and rural development, the actual situation in Europe. In G. van Huylenbroeck & G. Durand (Eds.), Multifunctional agriculture: A new paradigm for European agriculture and rural development (pp. 37-55). Hampshire: Ashgate.
Van Huylenbroeck, G. (2003). Multifunctional agriculture: How to provide incentives to farmers? 13th International IFMA Congress of Farm Management, August 2003, Australia.
Van Huylenbroeck, G., & Durand, G. (eds). (2003). Multifunctional agriculture: A new paradigm for European agriculture and rural development. Hampshire: Ashgate.
Vanslembrouck, I., & van Huylenbroeck, G. (2003). The demand for landscape amenities by rural tourists. In G. van Huylenbroeck & G. Durand (Eds.), Multifunctional agriculture: A new paradigm for European agriculture and rural development (pp. 83-100). Hampshire: Ashgate.
Vatn, A. (2002). Multifunctional agriculture: Some consequences for international trade regimes. European Review of Agricultural Economics, 29(3), 309-327.
Vejre, H., Abildtrup, J., Andersen, J., Andersen, P. S., Brandt, J., Busck, A., et al. (2006). Multifunctional agriculture and multifunctional landscapes - land use as interface. In Ü. Mander, H. Wiggering & K. Helming (Eds.), Multifunctional land use - meeting future demands for landscape goods and services (pp. 93-104). Berlin: Springer.
Waarts, Y. (2005). Indicators for the quantification of multifunctionality impacts. Research report MEASCOPE, deliverable 2.4, European Centre for Nature Conservation, 107 p.
Wiggering, H., Dalchow, C., Glemmitz, M., Helming, K., Müller, K., Schultz, A., et al. (2006). Indicators for multifunctional land use - linking socio-economic requirements with landscape potentials. Ecological Indicators, 6, 238-249.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Turpin, N. et al. (2010). Assessment of Multifunctionality and Jointness of Production. In: Brouwer, F., Ittersum, M. (eds) Environmental and Agricultural Modelling. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3619-3_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3619-3_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-3618-6
Online ISBN: 978-90-481-3619-3
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)