Financial Indicators of Sustainability for Farming Business and Families - A Conceptual Model to Relate these Indicators to those Used for Environmental and Spcial Sustainability

Nicola M. Shadbolt and Stuart D. Morriss

No 346366, 11th Congress, University of Calgary, Canada, July 14-19, 1997 from International Farm Management Association

Abstract: Indicators for sustainable agriculture developed in New Zealand to date have focused more on the environmental and biophysical than the social and financial components. The latter, however, are increasingly seen as pre-requisites to achieving long term financial and social viability in the agricultural sector. At present environmental costs are internalised in the financial performance of farmers because environmental protection in agriculture is funded almost entirely by farmers. It is therefore necessary to examine the perception of farmers on whether a relationship exists between farm financial resources and the environmental effects of farming to identify pragmatic and reliable financial indicators of sustainable agriculture at both the farm and the regional or national level. This paper examines the links between financial, social and environmental indicators to better understand if cause and effect relationships exist between them and introduces a range of economic indicators used to measure the financial health of a business. A model to evaluate the indicators in terms of their ability to measure the sustainability of farming businesses over time is described and performance indicators that could assist farmers to achieve sustainable farming goals are suggested.

Keywords: Farm Management; Agricultural Finance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 16
Date: 1997
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:ifma97:346366

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.346366

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