How to Monitor the ‘Success’ of (Regenerative) Agriculture: A Perspective

24 Pages Posted: 29 Jul 2023

See all articles by Loekie Schreefel

Loekie Schreefel

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Rachel E. Creamer

Wageningen University and Research (WUR)

Hannah H.E. van Zanten

Wageningen University

Evelien M. de Olde

Wageningen University and Research (WUR)

Annemiek Pas Schrijver

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Imke de Boer

Wageningen University and Research (WUR) - Animal Production Systems Group

Rogier P.O. Schulte

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Abstract

Global food security is threatened by widespread degradation of agricultural land and associated loss of ecosystem services. In response, farming approaches such as regenerative agriculture are heralded by industries and governments as mainstream solutions to keep the global food system within planetary boundaries. The low level of consensus on science-based approaches to the monitoring and verification of the efficacy of such solutions, however, has left many initiatives vulnerable to evidence-based allegations of greenwashing. In this paper, we present a comprehensive perspective on the role of indicators for agricultural systems. We subsequently propose a flexible yet coherent framework for the transparent, time and context-sensitive selection of indicators for monitoring the extent to which regenerative initiatives contribute to their goals.

Keywords: Regenerative farming, metric framework, environmental sustainability, food production, sustainable development, green washing

Suggested Citation

Schreefel, Loekie and Creamer, Rachel E. and van Zanten, Hannah H.E. and de Olde, Evelien M. and Pas Schrijver, Annemiek and de Boer, Imke and Schulte, Rogier P.O., How to Monitor the ‘Success’ of (Regenerative) Agriculture: A Perspective. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4525658 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4525658

Loekie Schreefel (Contact Author)

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Rachel E. Creamer

Wageningen University and Research (WUR) ( email )

Hollandseweg 1
Wageningen, 6706KN
Netherlands

Hannah H.E. Van Zanten

Wageningen University ( email )

Evelien M. De Olde

Wageningen University and Research (WUR) ( email )

Netherlands

Annemiek Pas Schrijver

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Imke De Boer

Wageningen University and Research (WUR) - Animal Production Systems Group ( email )

Wageningen, 6700 AH
Netherlands

Rogier P.O. Schulte

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

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