AN ASSESSMENT OF THE POTENTIAL OF PROCESSED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS IN POLAND COMPARED TO BIOEAST COUNTRIES

In the face of many global challenges, including ongoing climate change, policymakers are seeking viable solutions. The bioeconomy and its development are one of them. Partnerships, such as BIOEAST, are established to support the development of the bioeconomy in CEE countries. The conversion of biological biomass into new bio-products with high added value can contribute to a reduced environmental impact. One of the three economic sectors producing biomass for manufacturing is agriculture. Within the framework of this study, using the PRODCOM statistical list, which provides statistics on the production value of manufactured products, an assessment of manufacturing involving biomass processing utilizing biomass from the agricultural sector in countries of the BIOEAST initiative was performed. In BIOEAST Initiative countries, biomass from agriculture is predominantly used by the food production sector, followed by economic sectors, such as beverages, textiles, leather and wearing apparel. In several BIOEAST initiative countries, the percentage of the production value utilizing biomass from the agricultural sector is remarkable. Poland is one of those countries for which the value of manufacturing production utilizing agricultural biomass represents almost 30% of the total manufacturing value. The results obtained from the analysis, along with detailed information on specific product groups, can provide valuable information for decision makers planning the development of the bioeconomy in reviewed BIOEAST countries, including Poland.

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Does a Demographic Crisis Threaten European and Polish Agriculture?

Wieś i Rolnictwo ◽

10.53098/wir012021/05 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 97-117

Author(s):

Michał Dudek ◽

Tomasz Wojewodzic

Keyword(s):

Rural Communities ◽

Agricultural Sector ◽

Public Institutions ◽

Family Farming ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Demographic Situation ◽

Generational Changes ◽

The Face ◽

Institutional Contexts

In recent decades, problems in family farming have been coupled with a demographic crisis. In the face of unfavourable demographic forecasts and processes, the EU’s agricultural policy has consistently underlined the strategic importance of family farming and the need for its development as a vital segment of the economy and the core of rural communities. The paper aims to assess the grounds for policies focusing on alleviation of the demographic crisis in EU agriculture as well as giving a preliminary presentation of the effects of implementing the instrument involving subsidies for young farmers’ farms, on the example of Poland. The analyses suggest that the mechanisms for accelerating generational changes in EU agriculture have been based on questionable premises and have been not adjusted to the needs at national and regional level. In the EU policy documents and public debate, the support for generational turnover is based on arguments diagnosing a particularly adverse demographic situation in the agricultural sector. The article shows that this position is too general and unnuanced, because it does not include the general long-term population changes, other economic sectors and the different socio-economic and institutional contexts in member states, as well as being limited to a narrow range and often non-comparable public statistics. At present it is also hard to find justification for claims that instruments like subsidies for young farmers have resolved the problem of farms without successors and contributed to generational renewal in agriculture. Varied sources of data and information have been used, including EU and Polish legislation, thematic and expert studies related to demographic issues in agriculture, and empirical material gathered by public institutions.

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Development of a checklist to guide equity considerations in health technology assessment

International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care ◽

10.1017/s0266462320002275 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 37 ◽

Author(s):

Maria Benkhalti ◽

Manuel Espinoza ◽

Richard Cookson ◽

Vivian Welch ◽

Peter Tugwell ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Knowledge Translation ◽

Health Technology Assessment ◽

Priority Setting ◽

Technology Assessment ◽

Literature Search ◽

Health Inequities ◽

Health Technology ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Added Value ◽

Pilot Test

Abstract Objectives Health technology assessment (HTA) can impact health inequities by informing healthcare priority-setting decisions. This paper presents a novel checklist to guide HTA practitioners looking to include equity considerations in their work: the equity checklist for HTA (ECHTA). The list is pragmatically organized according to the generic HTA phases and can be consulted at each step. Methods A first set of items was based on the framework for equity in HTA developed by Culyer and Bombard. After rewording and reorganizing according to five HTA phases, they were complemented by elements emerging from a literature search. Consultations with method experts, decision makers, and stakeholders further refined the items. Further feedback was sought during a presentation of the tool at an international HTA conference. Lastly, the checklist was piloted through all five stages of an HTA. Results ECHTA proposes elements to be considered at each one of the five HTA phases: Scoping, Evaluation, Recommendations and Conclusions, Knowledge Translation and Implementation, and Reassessment. More than a simple checklist, the tool provides details and examples that guide the evaluators through an analysis in each phase. A pilot test is also presented, which demonstrates the ECHTA's usability and added value. Conclusions ECHTA provides guidance for HTA evaluators wishing to ensure that their conclusions do not contribute to inequalities in health. Several points to build upon the current checklist will be addressed by a working group of experts, and further feedback is welcome from evaluators who have used the tool.

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Assessing the Capacity of Adaptive Policy Pathways to Adapt on Time by Mapping Trigger Values to Their Outcomes

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11061716 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 1716 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Luciano Raso ◽

Jan Kwakkel ◽

Jos Timmermans

Keyword(s):

Monitoring System ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Level Of Confidence ◽

Adaptive Policy ◽

Misclassification Errors ◽

The Future ◽

Adaptive Action ◽

The Face

Climate change raises serious concerns for policymakers that want to ensure the success of long-term policies. To guarantee satisfactory decisions in the face of deep uncertainties, adaptive policy pathways might be used. Adaptive policy pathways are designed to take actions according to how the future will actually unfold. In adaptive pathways, a monitoring system collects the evidence required for activating the next adaptive action. This monitoring system is made of signposts and triggers. Signposts are indicators that track the performance of the pathway. When signposts reach pre-specified trigger values, the next action on the pathway is implemented. The effectiveness of the monitoring system is pivotal to the success of adaptive policy pathways, therefore the decision-makers would like to have sufficient confidence about the future capacity to adapt on time. “On time” means activating the next action on a pathway neither so early that it incurs unnecessary costs, nor so late that it incurs avoidable damages. In this paper, we show how mapping the relations between triggers and the probability of misclassification errors inform the level of confidence that a monitoring system for adaptive policy pathways can provide. Specifically, we present the “trigger-probability” mapping and the “trigger-consequences” mappings. The former mapping displays the interplay between trigger values for a given signpost and the level of confidence regarding whether change occurs and adaptation is needed. The latter mapping displays the interplay between trigger values for a given signpost and the consequences of misclassification errors for both adapting the policy or not. In a case study, we illustrate how these mappings can be used to test the effectiveness of a monitoring system, and how they can be integrated into the process of designing an adaptive policy.

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Breaking The Silos: an online and narrator-led role-playing game for multi-risk DRR management

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-4938 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Marleen de Ruiter ◽

Anaïs Couasnon ◽

Philip Ward

Keyword(s):

Expert Knowledge ◽

Recovery Process ◽

Role Playing ◽

Disaster Risk ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Disaster Impacts ◽

Strong Focus ◽

Before And After ◽

Role Playing Game

The increased complexity of disaster risk due to climate change, expected population growth and the increasing interconnectedness of disaster impacts across communities and economic sectors, require Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) measures and practitioners that are better able to address these complexities. Nonetheless, in the traditional risk paradigm, there is a strong focus on single-hazards and the risk faced by individual communities and sectors.Breaking the Silos is a narrator-led, role-playing game designed to support decision makers and stakeholders in understanding and managing the complexities of implementing DRR measures in a multi-(hazard) risk setting.&#160;The game starts in de aftermath of a (randomly selected) disaster. The different roles include key decision-makers and stakeholders of a country. The team is responsible for the post-disaster recovery process and can decide to implement DRR measures. However, while some of these DRR measures can decrease risk of one hazard, they can increase the risk of another hazard. In each subsequent round, the team faces another (randomly selected) disaster. Unlike many other risk serious games, Breaking the Silos includes many random factors to better simulate reality. The roles are designed such that expert knowledge and objectives are spread throughout the participants and they can even be conflicting at times.The game was successfully launched during the World Bank&#8217;s 2020 Understanding Risk conference. Before and after playing the game, participants were asked to complete surveys asking them about their perception of the challenges of Disaster Risk Management and whether the game raised their awareness of these challenges. The preliminary findings indicate that Breaking the Silos is a useful tool in supporting decision makers and practitioners to become aware of (the risks of) hazard-silo thinking and possible (a)synergies of DRR measures.

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Religious Engagement and the Migration Issue: Towards Reconciling Political and Moral Duty

Religions ◽

10.3390/rel11050236 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 236

Author(s):

Joanna Kulska

Keyword(s):

Ethical Issues ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Religious Communities ◽

The Political ◽

Political Decision ◽

Short Term ◽

Nation States ◽

Religious Engagement ◽

The Face ◽

Religious Actors

The increasingly acknowledged post-secular perspective has resulted in the emergence of some new approaches theorizing this phenomenon. One such approach has been the concept of religious engagement, which calls for the redefinition of the perception of religious non-state actors towards including them as important partners in the process of identifying and realizing political goals. According to this view, due to the multidimensional role played by religious communities and non-state religious actors, they need to be recognized as pivotal in creating a new form of knowledge generated through encounter and dialogue of the political decision-makers with these subjects. Among numerous others, the challenge of migration calls for enhanced debate referring to both political and ethical issues. When such a perspective is applied, the question is raised of the duties and limits of nation-states using more or less harsh political measures towards refugees and migrants based on the concept of security, but also short-term political goals. In the face of a state’s lack of will or capacity to deal with the problem of migration, the question of religion serving not only as the service-provider but also as the “trend-setter” with regard to fundamental ethical questions needs to be considered.

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The forecaster's added value in QPF

Advances in Geosciences ◽

10.5194/adgeo-25-29-2010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 25 ◽

pp. 29-36 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

M. Turco ◽

M. Milelli

Keyword(s):

Hypothesis Test ◽

Bootstrap Method ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Added Value ◽

Precipitation Forecast ◽

Limited Area ◽

Alert System ◽

Skill Scores ◽

Global Telecommunication System ◽

Meteorological Models

Abstract. To the authors' knowledge there are relatively few studies that try to answer this question: "Are humans able to add value to computer-generated forecasts and warnings?". Moreover, the answers are not always positive. In particular some postprocessing method is competitive or superior to human forecast. Within the alert system of ARPA Piemonte it is possible to study in an objective manner if the human forecaster is able to add value with respect to computer-generated forecasts. Every day the meteorology group of the Centro Funzionale of Regione Piemonte produces the HQPF (Human Quantitative Precipitation Forecast) in terms of an areal average and maximum value for each of the 13 warning areas, which have been created according to meteo-hydrological criteria. This allows the decision makers to produce an evaluation of the expected effects by comparing these HQPFs with predefined rainfall thresholds. Another important ingredient in this study is the very dense non-GTS (Global Telecommunication System) network of rain gauges available that makes possible a high resolution verification. In this work we compare the performances of the latest three years of QPF derived from the meteorological models COSMO-I7 (the Italian version of the COSMO Model, a mesoscale model developed in the framework of the COSMO Consortium) and IFS (the ECMWF global model) with the HQPF. In this analysis it is possible to introduce the hypothesis test developed by Hamill (1999), in which a confidence interval is calculated with the bootstrap method in order to establish the real difference between the skill scores of two competitive forecasts. It is important to underline that the conclusions refer to the analysis of the Piemonte operational alert system, so they cannot be directly taken as universally true. But we think that some of the main lessons that can be derived from this study could be useful for the meteorological community. In details, the main conclusions are the following: – despite the overall improvement in global scale and the fact that the resolution of the limited area models has increased considerably over recent years, the QPF produced by the meteorological models involved in this study has not improved enough to allow its direct use: the subjective HQPF continues to offer the best performance for the period +24 h/+48 h (i.e. the warning period in the Piemonte system); – in the forecast process, the step where humans have the largest added value with respect to mathematical models, is the communication. In fact the human characterization and communication of the forecast uncertainty to end users cannot be replaced by any computer code; – eventually, although there is no novelty in this study, we would like to show that the correct application of appropriated statistical techniques permits a better definition and quantification of the errors and, mostly important, allows a correct (unbiased) communication between forecasters and decision makers.

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Monitoring of the Project to Convert Cereal Production into Olive Plantations in the Province of Tetouan (Northern Morocco)

Journal of Agriculture and Ecology Research International ◽

10.9734/jaeri/2019/v20i330114 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-16

Author(s):

Ettakifi Hajar ◽

Barbara Hicham ◽

El Bouzdoudi Brahim ◽

Errabii Tomader ◽

El Kbiach Mohammed L’bachir

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Sector ◽

Olive Tree ◽

Ecological Impacts ◽

Tree Planting ◽

Added Value ◽

Social Constraints ◽

Cereal Crops ◽

High Productivity ◽

Before And After ◽

Productivity And Competitiveness

The agricultural sector occupies an important economic and social position in Morocco. In this sense, in recent years our country has adopted a new strategy for the agricultural sector called the "Green Morocco Plan". This plan is based on two pillars, the first is that which provides agriculture with high added value, high productivity, and competitiveness, the second is that which offers solidarity-based agriculture, based on the fight against poverty, increasing the income of small farmers, particularly in disadvantaged areas (such as unfavourable stock areas, mountains or oases, plains and plateaus in semi-arid regions). In our present study, we are particularly interested in the project to convert 760 ha of cereal crops into olive groves in the province of Tetouan. On the one hand, all stages of olive tree planting in cereal crops were monitored, as well as a comparison of yields, area, income, productivity and employment before and after the project was carried out. And on the other hand, an analysis of the various positive (social, economic and environmental) and negative (ecological) impacts of the project on the rural population in the province of Tetouan and on the environment in general. On the contrary, this project encountered several constraints, including natural, economic and social constraints.

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Food Quality Standards: Quality Issues and Challenges of Food Chain in Burkina Faso

Journal of Nutrition and Food Security ◽

10.18502/jnfs.v5i4.4437 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Bakary Tarnagda ◽

Bakoué Jean Paul Karama ◽

Alain Gustave Yaguibou ◽

Pane B. Ouattara-Sourabié ◽

Stéphane S. R. Kaboré ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Burkina Faso ◽

Agricultural Sector ◽

Iso 14001 ◽

Food Industries ◽

Active Population ◽

Food Standard ◽

Health Damage ◽

The Face ◽

Development Support ◽

Large Distribution

Background: In Burkina Faso, the agricultural sector accounts for 35% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and employs 82% of the active population. The agri-food industries must apply the requirements of the management systems to improve their economic position and ensure sustainable development. The present study aimed to highlight the similarities and particularities of these repositories grouped according to the conformity procedures. Methods: Interviews were conducted with the state technical services and research and development support agencies of Burkina Faso in order to identify and make a comparative study of the available benchmarks. Results: We studied eight standards (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, NBF 01-027: 2009, NBF 01-028: 2009, ISO 22000, BRC and IFS). These standards help improving competitiveness of the companies as well as developing the trade and food security. In addition to these standards, three private repositories were used for large distribution: Global Good Agriculture Practices, British Retail Consortium, and International Food Standard. These standards are responsible for the operations of agriculture and agribusiness in the face of numerous commercial, regulatory, health, economic, and societal requirements. They are mainly oriented towards the treatment of the main risks: cross-contamination, fatal accident, health damage, environmental pollution, unavailability of the production tool, loss of customer, etc. Conclusion: The conformity assessment of food products on the basis of specific benchmarks makes it possible to highlight the positive aspects of these products.

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Multi-model subseasonal forecasts of spring cold spells: potential value for the hazelnut agribusiness

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-20707 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Paolo Ruggieri ◽

Stefano Materia ◽

Angel G. Muñoz ◽

M.Carmen Alvarez Castro ◽

Simon J. Mason ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Black Sea ◽

Extreme Event ◽

Global Scale ◽

Mitigation Strategies ◽

Added Value ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Near Surface ◽

Black Sea Region ◽

Probabilistic Forecasts ◽

Spring Frosts

Producing probabilistic subseasonal forecasts of extreme events up to six weeks in advance is crucial for many economic sectors. In agribusiness, this time-scale is particularly critical because it allows for mitigation strategies to be adopted for counteracting weather hazards and taking advantage of opportunities. For example, spring frosts are detrimental for many nut trees, resulting in dramatic losses at harvest time. To explore subseasonal forecast quality in boreal spring, identified as one of the most sensitive times of the year by agribusiness end-users, we build a multi-system ensemble using four models involved in the Subseasonal-to-Seasonal (S2S) Prediction Project. Two-meter temperature forecasts are used to analyze cold spell predictions in the coastal Black Sea region, an area that is a global leader in the production of hazelnuts. When analyzed at global scale, the multi-system ensemble probabilistic forecasts for near-surface temperature is better than climatological values for several regions, especially the Tropics, even many weeks in advance; however, in coastal Black Sea skill is low after the second forecast week. When cold spells are predicted instead of near-surface temperatures, skill improves for the region, and the forecasts prove to contain potentially useful information to stakeholders willing to put mitigation plans into effect. Using a cost-loss model approach for the first time in this context, we show that there is added value of having such a forecast system instead of a business-as-usual strategy, not only for predictions released one to two weeks ahead of the extreme event, but also at longer lead-times.

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Άτυπη οικιακή εργασία και μετανάστευση: ευκαιρία προς μία διαφορετική θεώρηση της αγοράς εργασίας

Social Cohesion and Development ◽

10.12681/scad.8908 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Θάνος Μαρούκης

Keyword(s):

Labour Market ◽

Social Environment ◽

Added Value ◽

Economic Sectors ◽

Reversible Process ◽

Current Form ◽

Domestic Labour ◽

The Creation ◽

High Skill

This paper intends to show, that the current marginalization of domestic labour runs in the detriment of both the workers and the needs of the labour market. It is strongly contested whether domestic labour in its current form can meet the demands of a fl exible and economic and social environment. At the core of discussions on new, fl exible forms of organization of labour one usually fi nds economic sectors involving high skills and added value. However, the diffusion of fl exible employment schemes is related not only with more high skill jobs in the labour market but also with the creation of infrastructures and niches able to support them. In this context, a pathway towards the viability of the marginalized niche of domestic labour is discussed. Key position in this venture is that the devaluation of domestic labour is the product of a social – and therefore manageable and reversible – process.

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