Resilience through the Financialisation of Risks? The Case of a Dairy System in Northwest Germany

Thies R. Popp and Wiebke Nowack
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Thies R. Popp: Agricultural and Food Policy Group, Thaer Institute for Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
Wiebke Nowack: International Agricultural Trade and Development Group, Thaer Institute for Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 15, 1-20

Abstract: State support for financial risk management schemes has been introduced in numerous agricultural policies to enhance farming system resilience in response to increased income fluctuations and partially reduced producer support levels in the agricultural sector. In order to better understand how financialisation of risks can contribute to an actual improvement of specific farming systems’ resilience, this study investigates its effects with regards to dairy farming. Based on an in-depth case study of a dairy system in Northwest Germany, multilayered challenges faced by the farm system are identified, resilience strategies investigated and the role of financial risk management evaluated. In doing so, the resilience assessment framework developed by Meuwissen et al. (2019) is applied in order to analyse the systems’ capacity to resist, adapt or transform in response to external challenges threatening the provision of system’ functions. The results indicate a high relevance of insurances and savings with regards to the system’s robustness against short-term shocks. However, to address the various long-term pressures, resilience-enhancing attributes that increase the system’s capacity to adapt and transform would need to be strengthened. In particular, more cooperation and knowledge transfer beyond system boundaries could contribute to a holistic risk management allowing for improved farming system resilience.

Keywords: agricultural policy; policy instruments; risk management tools; risk transfer; farming system; challenges; private and public goods; wellbeing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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