Separate collection and bio-waste valorization in the Italian poultry sector by material flow analysis

Economic and Environmental Assessment of Conventional versus Organic Durum Wheat Production in Southern Italy

Conventional and intensive agriculture systems represent an environmental challenge. This research aims at evaluating the economic and environmental implications of conventional and organic durum wheat production in Southern Italy by applying material flow analysis and the crop accounting method. The purpose is to evaluate and compare the natural resource consumption, waste generation and economic profitability of conventional and organic durum wheat farming, respectively. The functional unit is one hectare of cultivated land. System boundaries encompass all agronomic operations, from cradle to gate. The research applies a bottom-up approach and relies on either primary or secondary data. It emerges that organic durum wheat production reduces the use of synthetic chemical and phytosanitary products, as well as plastic waste, by up to 100%. Moreover, it decreases diesel use by 15%, with a consequent reduction in CO2 emissions, and also avoids soil and groundwater pollution. From an economic perspective, gross income for conventionally farmed durum wheat is still 55% higher compared to organic production. Public authorities should boost environmental sustainability by supporting organic production from either an economic or a social perspective, by enhancing the sharing of best practices, by certification for farmers’ groups, by research and innovation, and by incentives in taxation. Overall, this research represents a further step towards the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices.

Material flow cost accounting (MFCA) to enhance environmental entrepreneurship in the meat sector: Challenges and opportunities

The material flow cost accounting (MFCA) is one of the most broadly standardized tools accepted in environmental, social and economic research, which traces and quantifies material flows and stock in physical and economic units. Although its application has been recently developed in the field of resource and waste management, few academic articles have investigated its value towards food waste management, which represents a topical concern on a global scale. The present research applies the MFCA to investigate the material, energetic and economic costs associated with the Italian beef, pork and poultry production, exploring related challenges and opportunities towards the enhancement of the environmental entrepreneurship in the meat sector. The present countryside analysis is based on literature and empirical data collected during the Covid-19 pandemic. It highlights the need to improve knowledge on food waste issue under the economic perspective and its dual impact: when it is generated, in terms of income losses due to by-products and finished products sales failure, and when it is disposed, in terms of disposal costs sustained by farms, processing plants and distribution and sales centers. It is estimated that more than 0.45-0.50 Mt of fresh meat is wasted along the entire Italian agri-food chain, equal to more than 242-268 million euros, to which additional energy and water losses should be added (435-481 million euros). MFCA results are useful for business decisions, highlighting quantities, qualities and costs otherwise not considered in common financial reports.