The Development of Social Sustainability Indicators for Irish

farms using FADN data

Name: Mary Brennan

Supervisors: Prof. Thia Hennessy

Dr. Emma Dillon

166th EAAE Seminar on Sustainability in

the Agri-Food Sector

National University of Ireland, Galway

30th August 2018

Presentation & Paper Overview • Objective: To develop social sustainability

indicators for Irish agriculture, building upon those currently analysed by the Teagasc NFS. Outline of Social Sustainability; What, How, Who and Why?

• Literature Review: Examination of social Indicators implemented in other countries, draft a ‘wish list’ of potential indicators for Ireland

• Stakeholder consultation on potential indicators: To extract the most valid and relevant sustainability attributes for Irish agriculture.

• Results: Mixed Methods Analysis • Questions: Development of additional

questions for the NFS based upon stakeholder consultation results

• Discussion and future work

Outline of Social Sustainability What is Social Sustainability? • Social sustainability relates to people, and has been defined by as ‘the extent

to which social values, social identities, social relationships and social institutions can continue into the future’, (Black, 2004). Least developed of the 3 traditional pillars of sustainability, subjective characteristics

How do we measure sustainability?• Indicators: quantifiable and measurable attributes of a system

• Support decision making by revealing trends in data, can assist in developing policy measures or to analyse the effects of policies already implemented

Who assesses social sustainability for Irish agriculture? • The Teagasc National Farm Survey (NFS) provides harmonised data on Irish

farm output, costs and income to the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN)

• NFS currently assesses 5 indicators of social sustainability: Household Vulnerability, High Age Profile, Risk of Isolation, Work Life balance and Education level.

Why do we need todevelop indicators?

• Examination of diverse social issues: Human wellbeing, quality of life, demographic changes (succession, migration, mobility)

• Assessment of viability of rural communities & identification of social and consumer concerns in and beyond the farm gate

• Monitoring & evaluation of the CAP with it’s rural development & greening measures & future policy evaluation regarding animal welfare, environment, innovation and technology

• Forecasting of potential risks and challenges to farmer and community well being

Internal and External attributes of social sustainability (Lebacq, Baret et al, 2013; Van Calker, Berentsen et al, 2005) • Internal: From Farmers aspect,

(Physical & Psychological wellbeing) • External: Multifunctionality, socially

acceptable agricultural practices, quality of products, including food security and safety, and cultural goods

FLINT study examined social indicators for farm level sustainability.

Teagasc Small Farms Survey assessed the sustainability of small farms in Ireland not assessed by the NFS, additional emphasis was placed on analysing the social aspects of small farms.

Subdivision of potential indicators into Farmer, Animal and Community Wellbeing

Social Sustainability

Farmer Wellbeing

Internal

High Age Profile

Work Life Balance

Succession planning

Household Vulnerability Isolation Risk

Education Level

Animal Wellbeing

Animal Health & welfare

External

Community Wellbeing

Multifunctionality (contribution to rural

economy)

Availability of services

Food Safety

Heritage and cultural values

Consumer perceptions &

concerns

Stakeholder Consultation & Methodology

The purpose of the stakeholder interviews (19) was to provide: validation and feedback on the potential indicators, to contribute specialist knowledge towards public policy requirements, rural environment, the food industry, and community development

Stakeholders consisted of: Agricultural policy & Farm Representative (2), Farm Data Collectors (2), Academic Researchers, IRL, (2), Rural Development (3), Academic Researchers, EU, (5), and Value Chain Actors ( Dairy Processors, Sustainability Officers etc.) (5)

Concurrent Data Collection Methodology (Mixed Methods). Semi Structured. Qualpredominant • QUAL: 7 opened ended questions, designed to ascertain the stakeholders

knowledge of current social sustainability indicators• Quant: 2 sets of ranking questions

Results: Qualitative data: Themes Theme 1 Mental Health and Well-being of

the farmer Sub themes identified

The effect loneliness can have upon someone’s mental health

Financial pressures from banks and lenders regarding loan repayments, Leading to overworking, mental exhaustion, stress

Lack of strong income stream

Poor Animal Welfare as an indicator of poor farmer well-being

Issues regarding access to farm relief services & additional labour

Rural Crime: Sense of security

Health and Safety Issues – Farmers working on their own and taking chances

Theme 2 SuccessionSub themes identified:

Challenges around farm transfer

Attractiveness of farming as a career

Theme 3 Social Isolation

Sub themes identified:

Impact that isolation has upon farmers mental well-being

The inability to access, and the lack of facilities for social interaction, the closure of post offices, places for people to talk and to interact with other members of the community.

Lack of public transport links in rural areas:

The importance of local GAA clubs and marts for social interaction

Theme 4 Rural Policy & DevelopmentSub themes identified:

Issues surrounding emigration from rural communities

Broadband coverage in rural areas

Farmers as custodians of rural culture and heritage

Resilience of rural communities and their capacity to adapt

Poor communication between different government departments regarding rural policy (Dept. of Agri, Dept. of Communications, Dept. of the Environment).

Education services for farmers – Availability of adult education services

Results: Quant Data

Q1: Access to high speed broadband is rural areas is satisfactory Q2: The work life balance and stressful nature of farming is impacting upon the psychological well- being of Irish farmersQ3: Farmers sense of security has deteriorated over the past 5 years Q4: Consumers would be willing to pay extra for an agri-food product produced with a high level of animal welfare considerationsQ5: The levels of antibiotic use in Irish livestock needs to be reduced Q6: Younger farmers receive sufficient policy supports to develop their livelihoods Q7:Consumers are increasingly querying sustainable farming practices

Discussion • Analysis of the stakeholder interviews provided guidance on social

question development for the additional NFS

• Additional NFS is limited by space & time constraints, new questions must be novel & collect new data.

• Consultation showed that indicators on Animal Welfare can be ascertained from questions already asked in current NFS

• FLINT study displayed list of AW indicators: Germany – Somatic Cell Count. France, U.K, Spain- Age/Quality of Housing. Finland, Netherlands, U.K: Animal Health expenses/ Vet costs.

Final Questions for Additional SurveyThree questions accepted for NFS additional survey 2018Q1: Access to Services- 4 parts (i) Which of the following best describes your household’s ability to get access to the following amenities?

Bank, Post office, Public Transport, Garda station, Medical services, Social outlet (1 = great difficulty, 2 = some difficulty, 3 = easily, 4 = very easily)

(iii) How has your sense of security changed over the past 5 years? 1 = greatly improved, 2 = improved, 3 = no change, 4 = dis-improved, 5 = greatly dis-improved

Q2: Farmer Wellbeing • Have you experienced stress/anxiety from any aspect of your farm business in the last 5 years? 1 = Yes; 2 =

No• If Yes please choose the top 3 from the list below: ( List of stressors provided: financial stress, security,

animal health, succession planning, poor weather, workload, access to additional labour, scheme compliance, other)

Q3: Succession – 2 parts (ii) Have you chosen a successor for your farm? 1 = Yes; 2 = No• Would you and your successor consider forming a farm partnership before you retire? 1 = Yes; 2 = No; 3 =

Don’t know• Do you think your chosen successor will continue to farm? 1 = Full-time; 2 = Part-time; 3 = Don’t know

Conclusions & Future work The expansion of sustainability metrics is an iterative process, and it is imperative that these measures of sustainability are continuously assessed to ensure they capture trends and evolutions within the economic, environmental and social dimensions of agriculture.

Analysis of additional questions, data available late Spring 2019-Farmer & Community Wellbeing • Provide vital socio-economic stats on current farm and community

level conditions in Ireland- Succession planning, Farm partnerships? Identification of particular stressors to farmers

• Assist in the observation of policies regarding rural sustainability & development: Availability of and access to services in rural regions

Development of animal welfare indicators utilizing current NFS data (Paper 2) – Animal Wellbeing

Thank you for your attention! Questions and Comments welcome!