Summary
This comparative assessment evaluated the economic and environmental advantages of mixed crop-livestock farming systems relative to specialised production systems under real-world conditions in south-west France. Among 48 farms surveyed in the Coteaux de Gascogne region, mixed crop-livestock farms achieved comparable overall gross margins to specialised farms but demonstrated greater economic resilience to input and output price fluctuations. The analysis suggests that integration of livestock and crops can provide stability benefits, though the environmental gains often cited in theory required empirical validation in this regional context.
Regional applicability
The findings are from France and may have limited direct transferability to United Kingdom farming conditions, which differ in agro-climate, farm structure, policy support, and market conditions. However, the methodological approach to assessing economic resilience and environmental performance of mixed systems could inform similar comparative studies in the UK upland and marginal farming regions where diversification is being promoted.
Key measures
Gross margin, production costs, price sensitivity of margins, crop management practices, farm land-use diversity, nitrogen farm-gate balance
Outcomes reported
The study compared economic performance (gross margins, production costs, price sensitivity) and environmental metrics (crop management practices, land-use diversity, nitrogen balance) between mixed crop-livestock farms and specialised farms in a French hill region.
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