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On the Way to Eco-Innovations in Agriculture: Concepts, Implementation and Effects at National and Local Level. The Case of Poland

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  • Michał Dudek

    (Department of European Integration, Institute of Rural and Agricultural Development, Polish Academy of Sciences, 72 Nowy Świat St., 00-330 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Wioletta Wrzaszcz

    (Department of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Policy and Rural Development, Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics-National Research Institute, 20 Świętokrzyska St., 00-002 Warsaw, Poland)

Abstract

The aim of the study was to provide the examples of eco-innovations in agriculture relating to the concept of sustainable development and the indication of their conditions. Quantitative and qualitative methods were applied to the research, namely: descriptive statistical and economic analysis of the Polish Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data and Statistics Poland data, as well as case studies of organic food producers, covering the years 2005–2019. Indicated information sources, encompassing long time span of analysis and various data collections, allowed presenting the complementary picture of eco-innovations at the sector and farm levels. The research examined the different types of ecological innovations in Polish agriculture, including: (1) organisational innovations with an institutional background (e.g., the organic farming support and greening mechanism of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)—implemented in the family farming sector); and (2) the product, marketing, process and organisational innovations in selected organic farms that were individual farmers’ initiatives. On the one hand, the research documented the effectiveness of new agricultural policy solutions in the agricultural sector that are examples of organisational eco-innovations. During 2005–2016, the certification system, as well as policy support, contributed to the development of organic farms in Poland in terms of the growth in the share of this type of holdings in total (from 0.5% to 4.6%) and in the overall utilised agricultural area (UAA) (from 0.3% to 3.7%). Moreover, during 2014–2015, as a result of the greening in agricultural holdings, the area sown with pulses and papilionaceous, i.e., crops improving soil structure and protecting soils, rose by 174% and 161%, respectively. On the other hand, the case studies conducted showed that the food producers’ knowledge and skills combined with a favourable local economic and social situation, as well as institutional support, played a key role in the process of the emergence of eco-innovations. Among those factors, the respondents’ individual characteristics associated with attitudes towards farming and the social, human and physical capital passed on by family members should be highlighted. This paper contributes to existing literature in two ways. First, this study combines both quantitative and qualitative (including in-depth interviews) approaches to eco-innovations at the micro and macro level of analysis. Second, by differentiating two approaches to ecological innovations, namely the conventional and the sustainable, the article indicates and considers the key factors favourable to the latter.

Suggested Citation

  • Michał Dudek & Wioletta Wrzaszcz, 2020. "On the Way to Eco-Innovations in Agriculture: Concepts, Implementation and Effects at National and Local Level. The Case of Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-22, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:12:p:4839-:d:371039
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    2. Cristina Keiko Yamaguchi & Stéfano Frizzo Stefenon & Ney Kassiano Ramos & Vanessa Silva dos Santos & Fernanda Forbici & Anne Carolina Rodrigues Klaar & Fernanda Cristina Silva Ferreira & Alessandra Ca, 2020. "Young People’s Perceptions about the Difficulties of Entrepreneurship and Developing Rural Properties in Family Agriculture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-12, October.
    3. Adrian Sadłowski & Wioletta Wrzaszcz & Katarzyna Smędzik-Ambroży & Anna Matras-Bolibok & Anna Budzyńska & Marek Angowski & Stefan Mann, 2021. "Direct Payments and Sustainable Agricultural Development—The Example of Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-20, November.
    4. Robert Skrzypczyński & Sylwia Dołzbłasz & Krzysztof Janc & Andrzej Raczyk, 2021. "Beyond Supporting Access to Land in Socio-Technical Transitions. How Polish Grassroots Initiatives Help Farmers and New Entrants in Transitioning to Sustainable Models of Agriculture," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-19, February.
    5. Jan Polcyn, 2021. "Eco-Efficiency and Human Capital Efficiency: Example of Small- and Medium-Sized Family Farms in Selected European Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-15, June.
    6. Małgorzata Kobylińska, 2021. "Spatial Diversity of Organic Farming in Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-19, August.
    7. Giorgia Bagagiolo & Lucia Vigoroso & Federica Caffaro & Eugenio Cavallo, 2024. "Determinants of eco-innovation in the agricultural machinery sector: the case of small and medium enterprises in the Piedmont region (Italy)," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(10), pages 25849-25869, October.
    8. Dudek, Michał & Pawłowska, Aleksandra, 2022. "Can succession improve the economic situation of family farms in the short term? Evidence from Poland based on panel data," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    9. Konrad Prandecki & Wioletta Wrzaszcz & Marek Zieliński, 2021. "Environmental and Climate Challenges to Agriculture in Poland in the Context of Objectives Adopted in the European Green Deal Strategy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-25, September.
    10. Artiom Volkov & Mangirdas Morkūnas & Maria Crescimanno, 2025. "Is common agricultural policy competent to steer EU agriculture in turbulent times? Evidence from the European dairy sector," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 13(1), pages 1-24, December.

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