Factors Affecting the Use of Organic Seed by Organic Farmers in Europe

Stefano Orsini, Ambrogio Costanzo, Francesco Solfanelli, Raffaele Zanoli (), Susanne Padel, Monika M. Messmer, Eva Winter and Freya Schaefer
Additional contact information
Stefano Orsini: Organic Research Centre, Trent Lodge, Stroud Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6JN, UK
Ambrogio Costanzo: Organic Research Centre, Trent Lodge, Stroud Road, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6JN, UK
Francesco Solfanelli: Department of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences (D3A), Università Politecnica delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy
Susanne Padel: Thünen-Institut of Farm Economics, Bundesallee 63, 38116 Braunschweig, Germany
Monika M. Messmer: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland
Eva Winter: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse 113, 5070 Frick, Switzerland
Freya Schaefer: FiBL Deutschland, Kasseler Straße 1a, 60486 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 20, 1-16

Abstract: The new European Organic Regulation 2018/848 has announced the phasing out of derogations for the use of untreated non-organic seed by 2036. However, the use of organic seed by organic farmers is currently limited. This paper aims to identify the factors affecting the use of organic seed. It is based on data collected from 749 organic farmers in 20 European countries, by conducting an online survey and using a network sampling. Results of the descriptive statistics and linear mixed models indicate that: (1) the situation of organic seed use is not consistent across geographical regions and crop sectors; (2) the use of organic seed is higher on farms selling directly to consumers than on those selling to supermarkets; (3) larger and more recently converted farms use less organic seed than established organic farms. In the second part of the paper, we analyse farmers’ attitudes towards organic seed use. The structural equation model (SEM) suggests that the highest contribution to explaining intention to use organic seed comes from social norms, i.e., farmers’ perception of societal expectations, particularly from the consumer and the organic certifier. Such expectations, if communicated in the public and political discourse, could stimulate the use of organic seed.

Keywords: Europe; linear mixed models; organic farmers; organic regulation; organic seed; structural equation model (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 (8)

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