scholarly journals Developing a Methodology for Aggregated Assessment of the Economic Sustainability of Pig Farms

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1760
Author(s):  
Agata Malak-Rawlikowska ◽  
Monika Gębska ◽  
Robert Hoste ◽  
Christine Leeb ◽  
Claudio Montanari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Closed Cycle ◽  
Aggregation Method ◽  
Dynamic Changes ◽  
Pig Farms ◽  
Weighting Procedures ◽  
Sustainability Assessments

The economic sustainability of agricultural production is a crucial concern for most farmers, especially for pig producers who face dynamic changes in the market. Approaches for economic sustainability assessment found in the literature are mainly focused on the short-term economic viability of the farm and rarely take a long-term perspective. In this paper, we propose and test a new, innovative assessment and aggregation method, which brings about a broader view on more long-term aspects of economic sustainability. This wider view on economic sustainability, in addition to classical concepts such as technical efficiency, labor productivity, and farm profitability, incorporates the assessment of the levels of entrepreneurship, risk management, and the resilience of the invested resources. All indicators were scaled and aggregated using scaling and weighting procedures proposed by experts into subthemes and themes. The methodology was tested on a sample of 131 pig farms located in 6 EU countries: Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Finland, and Austria. We hypothesized that closed-cycle farms might be economically more sustainable than those farms that are specialized in pig breeding or finishing. The results showed that closed-cycle farms do indeed have advantages in terms of raising healthy animals and having slightly better overall resilience of resources, however specialized breeding and finishing farms appeared to be more sustainable in the areas of profitability, risk management, and reproductive efficiency. Our approach supports evidence-based economic sustainability assessments of pig farms and provides a tool that can be used for economic sustainability improvement strategies for farms.

scholarly journals Financial Ratios as Indicators of Economic Sustainability: A Quantitative Analysis for Swiss Dairy Farms

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Zorn ◽  
Michele Esteves ◽  
Ivo Baur ◽  
Markus Lips
Keyword(s):  
Correlation Analysis ◽  
North American ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Financial Ratios ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Financial Indicators ◽  
Farm Accountancy Data Network ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Sustainability Assessments

In agriculture, a rising number of sustainability assessments are available that also comprise financial ratios. In a literature review of farm management textbooks, taking account of the differences between European and North American practices and considering prevalent sustainability assessment approaches, we identified frequently used financial ratios. Five ratios relate to the indicator profitability and four to the indicator liquidity. Another eight financial indicators refer to the indicators financial efficiency, stability, solvency and repayment capacity. Based on more than 14,000 accountancies of dairy farms from the Swiss Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN), we carried out a Spearman correlation analysis for normalised and harmonised financial ratios. The correlation analysis revealed mostly positive correlations. To assess the implementation of a quantitative economic sustainability assessment we compare an aggregated indicator compound of all 17 ratios with two selections of financial ratios–first, a compound European and, second, a compound North American economic sustainability indicator. The correlation between the complete and the reduced sets of indicators suggest that both aggregate economic indicators can be reasonably applied to estimate the economic sustainability for Swiss dairy farms.

scholarly journals Stabilizing the framework of SAPO-34 zeolite toward long-term methanol-to-olefins conversion

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liu Yang ◽  
Chang Wang ◽  
Lina Zhang ◽  
Weili Dai ◽  
Yueying Chu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nmr Spectroscopy ◽  
Zeolite Catalyst ◽  
Catalytic Efficiency ◽  
Dynamic Changes ◽  
Structural Dynamic ◽  
Term Stability ◽  
Long Term Stability ◽  
Hydrocarbon Pool ◽  
Intrinsic Good

AbstractAs a commercial MTO catalyst, SAPO-34 zeolite exhibits excellent recyclability probably due to its intrinsic good hydrothermal stability. However, the structural dynamic changes of SAPO-34 catalyst induced by hydrocarbon pool (HP) species and the water formed during the MTO conversion as well as its long-term stability after continuous regenerations are rarely investigated and poorly understood. Herein, the dynamic changes of SAPO-34 framework during the MTO conversion were identified by 1D 27Al, 31P MAS NMR, and 2D 31P-27Al HETCOR NMR spectroscopy. The breakage of T-O-T bonds in SAPO-34 catalyst during long-term continuous regenerations in the MTO conversion could be efficiently suppressed by pre-coking. The combination of catalyst pre-coking and water co-feeding is established to be an efficient strategy to promote the catalytic efficiency and long-term stability of SAPO-34 catalysts in the commercial MTO processes, also sheds light on the development of other high stable zeolite catalyst in the commercial catalysis.

scholarly journals Sustainability Assessment of Public Transport, Part I—A Multi-Criteria Assessment Method to Compare Different Bus Technologies

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 825
Author(s):  
Jonas Ammenberg ◽  
Sofia Dahlgren
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Public Procurement ◽  
Assessment Method ◽  
County Level ◽  
Participatory Process ◽  
Problem Context ◽  
The Public ◽  
Sustainability Performance ◽  
Sustainability Assessments

This article departs from the perspective of Swedish regional transport authorities and focuses on the public procurement of bus transports. Many of these public organizations on the county level have the ambition to contribute to a transition involving the continued marginalization of fossil fuels and improved sustainability performance. However, there are several renewable bus technologies to choose between and it can be difficult to know what alternative (or combination) is preferable. Prior research and the authors’ experiences indicate a need for improved knowledge and supportive methods on how sustainability assessments can support public procurement processes. The purpose of this article is to develop a multi-criteria assessment (MCA) method to support assessments of public bus technologies’ sustainability. The method, which was established in an iterative and participatory process, consists of four key areas and 12 indicators. The article introduces the problem context and reviews selected prior research of relevance dealing with green or sustainable public procurement and sustainability assessments. Further on, the process and MCA method are presented and discussed based on advice for effective and efficient sustainability assessments. In the companion article (Part II), the MCA method is applied to assess several bus technologies involving biodiesel, biomethane, diesel, electricity, ethanol and natural gas.

scholarly journals Blending in: A Case Study of Transitional Ambidexterity in the Financial Sector

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1690
Author(s):  
Beniamino Callegari ◽  
Ranvir S. Rai
Keyword(s):  
Financial Sector ◽  
Economic Sustainability ◽  
Organizational Ambidexterity ◽  
Management Literature ◽  
Innovative Capabilities ◽  
Financial Firm ◽  
The Relationship

Organizational ambidexterity is widely recognized as necessary for the economic sustainability of firms operating in the financial sector. While the management literature has recognized several forms of ambidexterity, the relationship between them and their relative merits remain unclear. By studying a process of implementation of ambidextrous capabilities within a large Scandinavian financial firm, we explore the role of top-down reforms and bottom-up reactions in determining the development of sector-specific innovative capabilities. We find that blended ambidexterity follows naturally from the attempt to correct the tensions arising from harmonic ambidextrous blueprints. The resulting blended practice appears to be closely related to the reciprocal model of ambidexterity, which appears to be a necessity rather than a choice, for large firms attempting to develop innovative capabilities. Consequently, we suggest to re-interpret current taxonomies of ambidexterity not as alternative blueprints, but rather as stages in a long-term process of transition.

Stock Market Development And Economic Growth in Nigeria

1998 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Anyanwu
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Stock Market ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Corporate Control ◽  
Market Development ◽  
Political Environment ◽  
Stock Market Development ◽  
Long Run

Is the stock market development important for economic growth in Nigeria? One line of research argues that it is not; another line stresses the importance of stock market development in allocating capital, acquisition of information about firms, easing risk management, mobilization of savings, and exerting corporate control. Indeed, some theories provide a conceptual framework for the belief that larger, more efficient stock markets boost economic growth. This article examines whether there is a strong empirical association between Nigerian stock market development and long-run economic growth. Our empirical results suggest that the Nigerian stock market development is positively and strongly associated with long-term economic growth. This implies that Nigerian policymakers should make concerted efforts at removing obstacles to stock market development while creating and sustaining an enabling macroeconomic and political environment for the market’s development.

scholarly journals BrO/SO<sub>2</sub> molar ratios from scanning DOAS measurements in the NOVAC network

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 1845-1870 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Lübcke ◽  
N. Bobrowski ◽  
S. Arellano ◽  
B. Galle ◽  
G. Garzón ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molar Ratio ◽  
Optical Absorption Spectroscopy ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Dynamic Changes ◽  
Volcanic System ◽  
Molar Ratios ◽  
Remote Sensing Technique ◽  
Field Campaigns ◽  
Term Field

Abstract. The molar ratio of BrO to SO2 is, like other halogen/sulphur ratios, a~possible precursor for dynamic changes in the shallow part of a volcanic system. While the predictive significance of the BrO/SO2 ratio has not been well constrained yet, it has the major advantage that this ratio can be readily measured using the remote-sensing technique Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (DOAS) in the UV. While BrO/SO2 ratios have been measured during several short-term field campaigns this article presents an algorithm that can be used to obtain long-term time series of BrO/SO2 ratios from the scanning DOAS instruments of the Network for Observation of Volcanic and Atmospheric Change (NOVAC) or comparable networks. Parameters of the DOAS retrieval of both trace gases are given and the influence of co-adding spectra on the retrieval error will be investigated. Difficulties in the evaluation of spectroscopic data from monitoring instruments in volcanic environments and possible solutions are discussed. The new algorithm is demonstrated by evaluating data from the NOVAC scanning DOAS systems at Nevado del Ruiz, Colombia encompassing almost four years of measurements between November 2009 and end of June 2013. This dataset shows variations of the BrO/SO2 ratio several weeks prior to the eruption on 30 June 2012.

METHODOLOGY OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN THE AGRO-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (5) ◽  
pp. 39-54
Author(s):  
А. M. NEKHLANOVA ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Strategic Management ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Industrial Complex ◽  
Food Markets ◽  
Dynamic Changes ◽  
National Importance ◽  
Intensive Development ◽  
Global Food

The article presents the results of a study of the methodology of strategic management in the agro-industrial complex. In the context of dynamic changes in the external environment, the intensive development of global food markets, the accelerated introduction of digital technologies, biotechnologies, and genetic engineering, strategic management of the agro-industrial complex is an urgent scientific problem of national importance. The presented methodology takes into account the influence of the peculiarities of agricultural production on the formation of a strategic management system in the agro-industrial complex and allows the complex to function successfully in the long term.

Enterprise risk management and sustainability of banks performance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Babajide Oyewo
Keyword(s):  
Risk Management ◽  
Banking Sector ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Enterprise Risk Management ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Banking Reform ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Enterprise Risk ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study investigates firm attributes (namely level of capitalisation, scope of operation, organisational structure, organisational lifecycle, systemic importance and size) affecting the robustness of enterprise risk management (ERM) practice, the extent to which ERM affects the performance of banks and the impact of ERM on the long-term sustainability of banks in Nigeria. This was against the backdrop that the 2012 banking reform was a major regulatory intervention that mainstreamed ERM in the Nigerian banking sector.Design/methodology/approachThe study employed a mixed methodology of content, trend and quantitative analyses. Ex post facto research design was deployed to analyse performance differential of banks, with respect to the implementation of ERM, over a 10-year period (2008–2017). A disclosure checklist developed from the COSO ERM integrated framework was used to assess the robustness of ERM by content-analysing divulgence on risk management in published annual reports. The banking reform periods were dichotomised into pre- (2008–2012) and post- (2013–2017) reform periods. Jonckheere–Terpstra test, independent sample t-test and Mann–Whitney test were applied to analyse a total of 1,036 firm-year observations over the period 2008–2017.FindingsResult shows that bank attributes significantly affecting the robustness of risk management practice are level of capitalisation, scope of operation, systemic importance and size. Performance of banks improved slightly during the post-2012 banking reform period. This suggests that as banks consolidate on the gains of ERM, benefits of the regulatory policy on risk management may be realised in the long run. Result also shows that ERM enhances long-term performance, connoting that effective risk management could serve as a competitive strategy for surviving turbulence that typically characterises the banking sector.Practical implicationsThe emergence of level of capitalisation, scope of operation, systemic importance and size as determinants of ERM provides empirical evidence to support the practice of reviewing the capital requirements for banking business from time to time by regulatory authorities (i.e. recapitalisation policy) as a strategy for managing systemic risk. Top management of banks may consider instituting mechanisms that will ensure risk management is given prominence. A proactive approach must be taken to convert risks to opportunities by banks and other financial institutions, going forward, to cope with the vicissitudes of financial intermediation.Originality/valueThe originality of the study stems from the consideration that it provides some new insights into the impact of ERM on banks long-term sustainability in a developing country. The study also contributes to knowledge by exposing the factors determining the robustness of risk management practice. The study developed a checklist for assessing ERM practice from annual reports and other risk management disclosure documents. The paper also adds to the scarce literature on risk governance and risk management.

Sustainability Assessment of Aviation Fuel Blends

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cherie Gambino ◽  
T. Agami Reddy
Keyword(s):  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Monte Carlo Analysis ◽  
Aviation Fuel ◽  
Aviation Industry ◽  
Fuel Blends ◽  
Transportation Investment ◽  
Employment Generation ◽  
The Military ◽  
Cost Of Transportation

Abstract Stakeholders in the aviation industry committed to a goal of 50% reduction in carbon emissions by the year 2050, to be achieved by reducing emissions 1.5% each year from 2020 onwards. There are multiple pathways to achieve this goal however; with, the most promising technology being Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), which are biofuels blended with kerosene. As the industry shifts towards SAF, it is important to evaluate these fuels in terms of their long-term sustainability, and this is the objective of the current study. Sixteen types of fuels were assessed which include fossil, natural gas, electric, and SAF. A Multi Criterion Decision Making methodology was adopted which considers three categories, namely environmental, economic, and social aspects which in turn are broken up into 8 indicators in all (such as ecological footprints, cost of transportation, investment cost, operating costs, employment generation, and health & safety). A Monte Carlo analysis was also performed to analyze sensitivity of the results to the weights attributed to the three categories. The most sustainable fuel was found to be Hydrogen, with a score of 0.91 out of 1.0. The least sustainable were determined to be the military kerosene-based fuels (with the experimental fuel JP-8 + 100LT being the poorest with a normalized score of 0.50).

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