?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.title=Sustainable+and+Conventional+Agriculture+in+South-Eastern+Australia+-+A+Comparison&rft.creator=Wynen%2C+Els&rft.subject=+Farm+economics&rft.subject=+Weed+management&rft.subject=+Soil+tillage&rft.subject=+Crop+husbandry&rft.subject=Australia&rft.subject=+Cereals%2C+pulses+and+oilseeds&rft.subject=+Animal+husbandry&rft.description=A+survey+of+sustainable+cereal%2Flivestock+farmers+in+South-Eastern+Australia+in+1985-86+is+described+in+this+study.+%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+first+conclusion+is+that+the+average+net+financial+results+of+producers+who+farm+without+the+use+of+synthetic+fertilisers+and+pesticides+can+not+be+seen+to+be+different+from+those+obtained+on+comparable+conventional+farms+in+1985-86.++%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+sustainable+farms+were+in+areas+with+similar+climate+and+soil+quality+(as+measured+by+improved+capital+value+per+hectare)+to+that+of+their+conventional+counterparts.+The+use+of+less+fertilisers+per+cropped+unit+of+land+on+sustainable+farms+is+therefore+not+due+to+the+intrinsic+quality+of+the+land%2C+but+to+a+conscious+decision+to+adopt+an+approach+to+farming+very+different+from+the+conventional+production+system.+The+fact+that+some+farmers+tending+towards+sustainable+practices%2C+especially+those+in+relatively+marginal+cropping+areas%2C+were+still+using+some+synthetic+fertilisers+indicates+that+not+all+problems+have+been+solved+regarding+soil+fertility+and+alternatives+to+conventional+inputs.%09%0D%0A%0D%0ASeveral+methods+were+used+by+sustainable+farmers+to+prevent+loss+of+soil+fertility.+First%2C+the+percentage+of+arable+area+cropped+was+kept+down.+On+average+the+fully+sustainable+(fs)+farmers+cropped+less+than+half+of+the+arable+area%2C+while+the+conventional+neighbours+of+the+fs+farmers+(the+cfs+farmers)+cropped+more+than+three+quarters.+All+of+the+fs+farmers+cropped+less+than+their+conventional+counterparts.+This+was+not+true+for+the+semi-sustainable+(ss)+producers%2C+whose+cropping+percentages+were%2C+on+average%2C+much+closer+to+those+of+their+conventional+counterparts+(css).++%0D%0A%0D%0ASoil+fertility+was+also+maintained+by+the+use+of+animals.+However%2C+no+statistically+significant+differences+in+number+of+livestock+were+recorded+between+the+two+systems+per+hectare+grazed.+%0D%0A%0D%0AA+third+possible+method+of+maintaining+soil+fertility+is+by+diversifying+crops.+Although+no+statistical+differences+in+number+of+crops+were+recorded%2C+the+percentage+of+cropped+area+in+wheat+was+lower+on+sustainable+than+on+conventional+farms.++%0D%0A%0D%0AMost+of+these+management+tools+(levels+of+cropping+and+stocking%2C+and+diversification+of+cropping)+can+be+used+not+only+to+solve+soil+fertility+problems%2C+but+also+in+the+battle+against+pests.+With+regard+to+mechanical+pest+management%2C+differences+in+cultivation+practices+were+not+immediately+obvious+from+figures+on+fuel+costs+per+hectare+cropped.+Also+timing+of+cultivation+was+similar+in+the+two+systems%2C+although+sustainable+farmers+tended+more+towards+the+use+of+tined+implements.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+differences+in+management+practices+did+not+lead+to+significant+differences+in+yields.+However%2C+the+sustainable+farmers+did+obtain+lower+receipts+from+cropping+per+hectare+operated.+This+was+due+to+a+smaller+cropped+area+as+a+percentage+of+arable+area.+These+lower+receipts+are+at+least+partly+compensated+for+by+lower+input+costs+of+fertilisers%2C+pesticides%2C+and+especially+machinery+and+equipment.%09+%0D%0A%0D%0AReceipts+from+livestock+per+hectare+operated+were+similar+under+the+two+management+systems%2C+for+those+pairs+of+farmers+where+both+kept+stock.+When+all+eight+fs+and+cfs+farmers+are+included+a+difference+can+be+shown+for+this+variable.%0D%0A%0D%0AOverall%2C+the+total+cash+costs+of+sustainable+farming+were+significantly+lower+than+those+of+conventional+farming.+Total+cash+receipts%2C+though+not+different+between+the+two+systems+for+the+fs-cfs+and+ss-css+farmers+separately%2C+was+higher+for+the+conventional+farmers+if+all+13+farmers+were+pooled.+The+bottom+line%2C++return+to+capital+and+management+adjusted+for+interest+and+rent%2C+was+that+a+difference+between+the+two+systems+could+not+be+shown+statistically.++%0D%0A%0D%0AApart+from+indications+of+differences+between+sustainable+and+conventional+farmers%2C+a+picture+of+differences+between+the+fs+and+ss+group+of+farmers+emerged.+The+css+farmers%2C+although+selected+in+the+same+way+as+the+cfs+producers%2C+showed+some+characteristics+distinct+from+those+encountered+amongst+the+cfs+farmers.+On+average%2C+the+pattern+of+inputs+for+the+css+farmers+indicates+that+it+is+likely+that+they+farm+in+more+marginal+areas+than+cfs+producers+(for+example%2C+relatively+low+land+prices)%2C+where+cropping+is+relatively+extensive+(for+example%2C+relatively+low+use+per+hectare+cropped+of+pesticides%2C+fuel%2C+machinery+and+equipment%2C+and+labour).+%0D%0A%0D%0AThe+question+could+be+asked+whether+there+is+a+causal+relationship+between+the+degree+of+adoption+of+sustainable+farming+and+the+degree+of+marginality+of+the+area.+If+a+relationship+could+be+established%2C+the+question+arises+whether+the+reasons+for+such+a+relationship+are+agronomic+problems%2C+or+whether+they+are+different+in+nature.+For+example%2C+in+marginal+cropping+areas+the+area+in+crop+per+farm+is+relatively+large%2C+with+low+returns+per+hectare.+Although+input+costs+per+hectare+are+also+low%2C+total+expenditure+on+inputs+per+average+farm+is+relatively+high.+This+could+imply+that+higher+risks+are+taken+by+sustainable+farmers+in+marginal+areas+than+by+those+in+non-marginal+area+when+adopting+a+management+system+about+which+little+information+is+available.+It+is+only+when+the+cause+of+a+relationship+between+the+degree+of+acceptability+of+the+sustainable+system+and+the+degree+of+the+area's+suitability+for+cropping+is+established%2C+that+a+beginning+can+be+made+with+answering+the+question+about+the+limits+of+sustainable+agriculture.+%0D%0A%0D%0AIt+is+unlikely+that+differences+between+practitioners+of+the+two+systems+in+formal+and+informal+education%2C+experience%2C+and+knowledge+of+local+conditions+influenced+the+relative+financial+returns+of+the+two+types+of+farming.+Likely+differences+in+management+skills+between+some+pairs+of+farmers+probably+depressed+average+returns+on+sustainable+farms.+It+is+also+likely+that+lack+of+information+about+sustainable+farming+negatively+influenced+the+financial+returns+from+this+type+of+farm+system.+%0D%0A+%0D%0AIn+summary%2C+the+results+from+the+survey+indicate+that+net+private+financial+benefits+from+sustainable+farming+were+similar+to+those+in+the+conventional+sector+in+certain+areas+in+1985-86.+This+was+the+case+despite+lack+of+information+about+the+sustainable+management+system%2C+and+despite+the+fact+that+some+conventional+farmers+were+likely+to+be+better+managers+than+their+sustainable+farmer+counterparts.+&rft.date=1990&rft.type=Report&rft.type=NonPeerReviewed&rft.format=source&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Forgprints.org%2F3062%2F1%2FLatrobeResPap.doc&rft.identifier=Wynen%2C+Els+(1990)+Sustainable+and+Conventional+Agriculture+in+South-Eastern+Australia+-+A+Comparison.+Economics+Research+Report%2C+90.1.&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Forgprints.org%2F3062%2F