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Factors Affecting the Use of Organic Seed by Organic Farmers in Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Stefano Orsini

    (Organic Research Centre, Trent Lodge, Stroud Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6JN, UK)

  • Ambrogio Costanzo

    (Organic Research Centre, Trent Lodge, Stroud Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6JN, UK)

  • Francesco Solfanelli

    (Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences (D3A), Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy)

  • Raffaele Zanoli

    (Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences (D3A), Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy)

  • Susanne Padel

    (Thünen-Institut of Farm Economics, Bundesallee 63, 38116 Braunschweig, Germany)

  • Monika M. Messmer

    (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland)

  • Eva Winter

    (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland)

  • Freya Schaefer

    (FiBL Deutschland, Kasseler Straße 1a, 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany)

Abstract

The new European Organic Regulation 2018/848 has announced the phasing out of derogations for the use of untreated non-organic seed by 2036. However, the use of organic seed by organic farmers is currently limited. This paper aims to identify the factors affecting the use of organic seed. It is based on data collected from 749 organic farmers in 20 European countries, by conducting an online survey and using a network sampling. Results of the descriptive statistics and linear mixed models indicate that: (1) the situation of organic seed use is not consistent across geographical regions and crop sectors; (2) the use of organic seed is higher on farms selling directly to consumers than on those selling to supermarkets; (3) larger and more recently converted farms use less organic seed than established organic farms. In the second part of the paper, we analyse farmers’ attitudes towards organic seed use. The structural equation model (SEM) suggests that the highest contribution to explaining intention to use organic seed comes from social norms, i.e., farmers’ perception of societal expectations, particularly from the consumer and the organic certifier. Such expectations, if communicated in the public and political discourse, could stimulate the use of organic seed.

Suggested Citation

  • Stefano Orsini & Ambrogio Costanzo & Francesco Solfanelli & Raffaele Zanoli & Susanne Padel & Monika M. Messmer & Eva Winter & Freya Schaefer, 2020. "Factors Affecting the Use of Organic Seed by Organic Farmers in Europe," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-16, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:20:p:8540-:d:428700
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    Cited by:

    1. Susanne Padel & Stefano Orsini & Francesco Solfanelli & Raffaele Zanoli, 2021. "Can the Market Deliver 100% Organic Seed and Varieties in Europe?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-14, September.
    2. Eva Winter & Christian Grovermann & Monika M. Messmer & Joachim Aurbacher, 2023. "Assessing seed and breeding interventions for organic farming using a multiagent value chain approach," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 11(1), pages 1-27, December.
    3. Matteo Petitti & Sergio Castro-Pacheco & Antonio Lo Fiego & Domenico Cerbino & Paolo Di Luzio & Giuseppe De Santis & Riccardo Bocci & Salvatore Ceccarelli, 2022. "Evolutionary Participatory Selection for Organic Heterogeneous Material: A Case Study with Ox-Heart Tomato in Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-24, September.
    4. Friedrich Rübcke von Veltheim & Heinke Heise, 2021. "German Farmers’ Attitudes on Adopting Autonomous Field Robots: An Empirical Survey," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-19, March.
    5. Freya Schäfer & Kaja Gutzen & Maaike Raaijmakers & Katharina Meyer & Xenia Gatzert & Martin Sommer & Ágnes Bruszik & Monika M. Messmer, 2022. "Securing Commitments from Stakeholders in 10 EU Member States—The Organic Seed Declaration to Foster Stakeholder Involvement," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-13, July.
    6. Francesco Solfanelli & Emel Ozturk & Emilia Cubero Dudinskaya & Serena Mandolesi & Stefano Orsini & Monika Messmer & Simona Naspetti & Freya Schaefer & Eva Winter & Raffaele Zanoli, 2022. "Estimating Supply and Demand of Organic Seeds in Europe Using Survey Data and MI Techniques," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-23, August.
    7. Rohe, Sebastian & Oltmer, Marie & Wolter, Hendrik & Gmeiner, Nina & Tschersich , Julia, 2022. "Forever Niche: Why do organic vegetable varieties not diffuse?," Papers in Innovation Studies 2022/8, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    8. Winter, Eva & Grovermann, Christian & Aurbacher, Joachim & Messmer, Monika M., 2021. "Analysing Interventions in the Seed and Breeding System for Organic Carrot Seed Use in Germany - a Multi-Agent Value Chain Approach," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 314959, International Association of Agricultural Economists.

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