While Slovenia has significant bioeconomy potential, it remains underutilized, facing challenges in primary bioeconomy sectors, their integration along value chains, uptake of industrial innovation, ...and institutional coordination. This paper aims to support the unlocking of Slovenia's bioeconomy potential, and foster sustainable and integrated development of its value chains. It provides the evidence base of the composition, volumes and current utilization of the available biomass streams from agriculture, forestry and aquatic systems. It discusses the potential uses of these resources and highlights the need for improved logistics and scalability. Additionally, the structure and performance of bioeconomy-related industries in Slovenia are examined, emphasizing the importance of firm consolidation and integration for successful bioeconomy development. It emphasizes the importance of sector-specific transformation pathways, from primary production to expanding hybrid sectors. The exchange between policymakers and stakeholders is encouraged to recognize synergies, accelerate cooperation, and improve economic performance while closing material and energy loops. The document also reviews the supporting environment for bioeconomy development and proposes steps for improved coordination and strategic planning.
Local livestock breeds in Slovenia have been eligible for financial incentives in the form of a fixed payment per livestock unit (LU) since 2002. The scheme has however not been successful in ...reversing the erosion of animal genetic resources (AnGR). This paper investigates an alternative, whereby incentive payments would better reflect breeders' actual opportunity costs. The paper contributes to the limited existing body of knowledge related to the use of tender mechanisms in the design of the payments for agrobiodiversity conservation schemes (PACS), particularly for AnGR. Empirical findings draw on the results of a stated preference survey involving 301 farmers in Slovenia, engaging, or being potentially able to engage, in the rearing of local pig, sheep and goat breeds. Interval and logistic regression model results suggest that willingness to accept (WTA) conservation support significantly differs from actual payment levels. The estimated WTA was found to be 27% lower for the local sheep and goat breeds and 5% higher for the local pig breed, suggesting that differentiated incentive payments would provide a more cost-effective alternative. Additional analysis of breeders' preferences and motives for engaging in local livestock breed production further informs understanding regarding AnGR conservation policy and the importance of accompanying actions to reverse negative population trends. These include reducing administrative barriers and enhancing the market valorisation of local breeds.
The bioeconomy occupies the centre of the Green Deal, the EU’s plan to support transformative growth following the COVID-19 episode. However, parts of the EU, such as countries in Central and Eastern ...Europe (CEE) continue to lag behind in harnessing the potential held by the bioeconomy. This article argues that in CEE countries, where the primary and conventional bioeconomy sectors play a more important role, ‘early’ transition pathways such as improvements in productivity and practice- as well as commercialisation-oriented innovation (the do–use–interact model: DUI) are just as important as approaches based on (generally publicly supported) R&D, innovation adoption, and technology transfer (science–technology–innovation model: STI), typically associated with high-value bioindustrial applications. The argument is tested by conducting a survey of 352 experts in the region that gives an insight into the CEE macro-region’s assets with respect to deploying the bioeconomy’s potential and assessing the transition pathways relevant to the better performance of bioeconomy (primary, manufacturing, and other related) sectors. The results show the particular relevance of consolidating the primary and traditional sectors to support improvements in productivity based on the vertical and horizontal interaction typically associated with DUI, while the relevance of STI is mostly linked to advanced sectors, which are narrowly distributed across the region. The findings are relevant to policy given that the EU’s bioeconomy policy has thus far chiefly focused on STI support that better corresponds to the needs of countries at more advanced stages of developing the bioeconomy, but is less appropriate for the specific context and needs of CEE.
The increasing and often conflicting challenges that agricultural production systems face today require a more comprehensive approach to planning in the sector, integrating the economic principles of ...production with its social characteristics and ecological impacts. The paper presents an innovative attempt to incorporate biophysical criteria into a standard socio-economic optimisation model, illustrated through a study of the Slovenian dairy sector. The biophysical perspective on the system's functioning is determined by means of emergy analysis. This is an environmental accounting approach which reflects the cumulative environmental support needed to produce a certain output. The eco-centric perspective on the emergy approach complements the standard socioeconomic perspective of value that reflects the utility of a product (anthropocentric perspective). The model is developed based on a preceding analysis of socio-economic and emergy-based performance characteristics of different production types at the farm level that, when aggregated, constitute the sector. The multi-criteria optimisation model is supported by weighted goal programming (WGP) and aims to investigate the effects of two opposing agricultural policy paradigms on the organisation of the sector at the national level. The results show that a protectionist or eco-social focus of public interventions results in the sector's organisation with rather contrasting performance characteristics. The model outcome that represents a compromise between the two agro-political paradigms clearly suggests that incorporation of the emergy criterion into the optimisation model leads to a diverse and balanced structure and a more favourable economic and biophysical performance of the sector. Accordingly, the results confirm the complementarity of economic and emergy approaches and provide implications for a more comprehensive planning of agricultural activity.
•Optimisation model of dairy sector combines socio-economic and emergy criteria•Different economic and policy objectives significantly affect sectoral performance.•Socio-economic and biophysical performance can be improved simultaneously.•Increase in organic production plays a substantial role in the sector's improvement.•Diverse and balanced structure is crucial for resilience and survival of the sector.
As no study on attitudes towards local food has compared "organic" and national quality scheme consumer segments, this study aimed to provide further insights and clarifications on the issue of ...consumer segmentation in terms of trust towards organic food and food of selected quality perceived as local, along socioeconomic characteristics, and other important determinants of this complex interaction. The research examines consumers' attitudes and perceptions related to two quality schemes for special Slovenian foods: "Organic", which relates to production methods; and "Selected Quality", which relates to quality attributes. The study focused on two segments of consumers, who exhibit a high level of trust towards the two quality schemes. Comparative analysis of the consumer segments looked for the potential differences with respect to their sociodemographic profiles, as well as to their understanding of the definition of local food, attitudes towards local food, trust in actors and institutions, and willingness to purchase local food. The study combined qualitative approaches and a quantitative survey with a general population sample. The results showed that both consumer groups have similar understandings of local food, with region-based interpretations outperforming country-based interpretations. The "Organic" group was more cosmopolitan and supportive of the local community, regardless of geographic proximity, than the "Selected Quality" group. Older consumers occupy a larger share of both segments, with professionals and individuals with higher incomes more likely to be in the "Organic" group and retirees and students more likely to be in the "Selected Quality" group. To increase the consumers' interest in food with the "Organic" and "Selected Quality" schemes, more specific product propositions should be developed.
Agriculture is a complex system in which the economic principles of production are directly intertwined with its biological and ecological characteristics. The paper investigates synergetic ...potentials of multiple-criteria and multiple-perspective evaluation of agricultural activity through a study of the dairy sector in Slovenia. Socio-economic and emergy evaluation was performed on nine farm types, formulated to represent the diversity of the country's dairy sector. The results indicate larger discrepancies in the performance of the farm types when defined by socio-economic or emergy based indicators. Standard socio-economic evaluation favours larger conventional systems that are cost efficient and financially independent. Emergy analysis however, favours less productive organic farms, which show greater ability to exploit free local resources and produce less stress on the local environment. Socio-economic and emergy indicators show that small conventional farm types are the poorest performers overall. Analysis of emergy flows reveals for all farm types a high dependency on the wider socio-economic system, suggesting that within the current economic system agriculture itself has little ability to affect its sustainability. The paper suggests a complementarity in the evaluation approaches. Their joint application can improve the quality of the decision-making process in various stages of planning in agriculture and land use.
•Socio-economic and emergy performance was assessed for nine dairy farm types.•Larger and intensive farm types perform favourably in socio-economic terms.•Smaller and organic farm types show better biophysical performance.•Integrated approach provides valuable inputs for agricultural and land use planning.•Improvement potentials are limited within the current economic system.
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