Cropping Patterns for Conventional and Organic Farming: a Farm-Level Linear Programming Model (MAD)

We model the opportunities provided by organic agriculture in the Emilia-Romagna region (Italy) in order to mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The sources of farm-based emissions are identified and compared with a recent work by Schneider et al (2007). A distinction is made between direct and indirect sources of emissions and besides carbon dioxide two other gases are examined, which are relevant in agriculture, namely methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). A linear programming model based on a set of equations that allows identifying the optimal rotation among those available in the Emilia-Romagna region is run for a representative farm, thus quantifying the amount of carbon which can be stored permanently in that farm under different scenarios. Finally, suggestions are given for the design of public policies that aim to reward low inputs systems, for which organic agriculture can be considered as a prototype. Results of the compared simulations show that the alleged benefits of organic agriculture in terms of less emissions and more sequestration basically hold but they can be conditional upon using the same cropping pattern for the two systems and under certain conditions the consideration of labour inputs can make conventional systems more efficient.