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A Holistic Sustainability Assessment of Tea Farms in
Southern India
A Holistic Sustainability Assessment of Tea Farms in
Southern Indiawith RISE_1.0 (Response Inducing
Sustainability Evaluation)
Contacts: [email protected]
What is Sustainable Agriculture?What is Sustainable Agriculture?
(SAI-Platform 2003, modified)
“It adopts productive, competitive and efficient production practices, while protecting
and improving the natural environment and the global ecosystem, as well as the socio-economic conditions of local communities in
conformity with human dignity”
Assessment and AnalysisAssessment and Analysis
economy
ecology
RISE
socio-cultural aspects
Energy
Water
Soil
Bio-diversity
N & P EmissionPotential
Plant Protection
Waste
Economic Stability
Economic Efficiency
Local Economy
Working Conditions
Social Security
-100
-80
-60
-40
-20
0
20
40
60
80
100
Feedback to farmerFeedback to farmer
Energy
Water
Soil
Bio-diversity
N & P EmissionPotential
Plant Protection
Waste
Economic Stability
Economic Efficiency
Local Economy
Working Conditions
Social Security
-100
-80
-60
-40
-20
0
20
40
60
80
100
economy
ecology
RISE
socio-cultural aspects action
"response-inducing" =triggering improvement
Feedback to farmerFeedback to farmer
Identification of potentials and weaknesses pin-pointing of intervention points
• 12 indicators: EnergyWaterSoilBiodiversityEmission potential (N&P)Crop protectionWasteEconomic stabilityEconomic efficiencyLocal economyWorking conditionsSocial security
Naturalresources
Management
Economy
Social situation
Feedback to farmerFeedback to farmer
Identification of potentials and weaknesses pin-pointing of intervention points
• 12 indicators
• for each indicator:various „state“ and „driving force“ parameters
or Indicator „Social security“:
DP1: Potentially payable salary
DP2: Farm succession plan
DP3: Legality and documentation of employment
DP3a: Residence permit status ofemployees
DP3b: Employment contract DP3c: Working permit
or Indicator „Social security“:
SP1: Social security:- Insurances (retirement,unemployment, health,accident and disability)
- Protection from dismissalin case of sickness,accident or maternity)
SP2: Means of subsistence
Feedback to farmerFeedback to farmer
Identification of potentials and weaknesses pin-pointing of intervention points
Indicator Biodiversity
Parameter Value
SP1: Farming system 16
DP1: Proportion of intensely used farm land 58DP2: Plot size 52DP3: Weed control 10
Degree of SustainabilityDS = S - D = 16 - 40 = -24
Response
Less intensly used fields &
smaller or devided plots
Example:
BenchmarkingBenchmarking
over time and/or among peers
economy
ecology
RISE
socio-cultural aspects
time2000 2002 2004 2006
single farm assessment
Use of RISEUse of RISE
Assessments of individual farms
• Farm Managers direct improvements on the farm
• Development projects identification of key problems and intervention
points
• Research, Extension & Monitoring Institutions
diagnosis, sector comparison, intervention planning, …
e.g.
e.g.
Use of RISEUse of RISE
Assessments of groups of farms(=Evaluation at higher level)
• Development projects identify key problems and intervention points
• Processing Industry identify bottlenecks re raw material supply and quality
• Policy makers, NGOs, interest groups PR, priority setting and policy development, …
• Research, Extension & Monitoring Institutions diagnosis, sector comparison, intervention planning, …
Map of IndiaMap of India
The 13 selected and assessed tea farms have a size of 3 – 63 ha Big tea estates with a size of more than 400 ha were not evaluated
The study regionThe study region
Tea growing region receives an annual precipitation of 1750 mm
The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu:
Sustainability polygonSustainability polygon
Driving Force (D)
State (S)
Degree of Sustainability (DS)
Degree of Sustainability:
negative
positive
border area
Degree of Sustainability:
negative
positive
border area
Figure: Synthesis of the RISE – sustainability polygon for the assessed tea farms in using the average for each indicator for all 13 farms
Variation of the 12 indicatorsVariation of the 12 indicators
Figure: Variation of the 12 indicators as calculated by the model RISE 1.0 for 13 tea farms in India
Indicators
SSWCLEEEESWSPPEPBDSOWREN
De
gre
e o
f S
ust
ain
ab
ility
100
80
60
40
20
0
-20
-40
-60
-80
-100
Social situationSocial situation
Social securitySocial security
• Salaries below the minimum living wage
• Lack of insurances
• Limited legal protection of workers– Big estates have to fulfil social standards
– Property division of bigger farms
• Private solutions to compensate for lacking insurances are insufficient
• Substantial difference in the income of the farm managers and the employees
Social situationSocial situation
Working conditionsWorking conditions
• Tea requires work of 52 weeks a year
• Unpaid holidays
• Some companies require leaves on Sunday’s Sunday work
• Further education is not practiced
Economic situationEconomic situation
Economic efficiencyEconomic efficiency
• Tendency: worse situation for smaller farms
• High interest on the owners‘ equity considerably influences the profit
Figure 1: Standard calculation for a specific farm with an interest on the owners’ equity of 4.6%
Figure 2: Indicators calculated without an interest on the owners’ equity for the same farm
Economic situationEconomic situation
Economic stabilityEconomic stability
• The stability is diverse among the farms (seven have a positive result / six have a negative result) :
- Differences in the debt burden of the farms
- Investment situation is generally weak - State of the low number of assets is
diverse- Tea plantations are in a good state
Ecological situationEcological situation
BiodiversityBiodiversity
• The (inter-)cropping system is very similar among the farms – As a general trend: The smaller a farm is
the more diverse crops are grown on the same plot
– Low awareness of the importance of ecological compensation zones and buffer zones
– Management influences Biodiversity: e.g. the use of herbicides, fertilization
Plant ProtectionPlant Protection
• Application techniques of pesticides are deficient
• IPM is not practiced on several tea farms
• Copper-based fungicides are sometimes used instead of an available substitute product
• Disposal of pesticide containers is a problem
Due to a high disease pressure in tea, pesticides need to be applied regularly
Expansion of tea productionExpansion of tea production
• Increase of the irrigated area further investigation on the impact required
• Improved fertilisation
(organic / compost of tea leaves)
• Proper use of pesticides
Possibly even better economic efficiency
Improved social situation ??
Comparison of two polygonsComparison of two polygons
Figure: Two sustainability polygons of two different farms, with one farm (left) that achieves double the yield of tea per acre than the other farm (right).
Possible risksPossible risks
• Movement of labour
• Social dumping
Social:
Economic:
• Low prices will influence the condition of the tea plantation yield will decrease
Possible risksPossible risks
• N pollution due to impropre application of fertilisers• High use of pesticides (ecology / health / safety)• Red spider mite becomes a major pest (at present
mainly on big estates)• Resistances IPM has to be practiced by the
farmers
Advise is necessary to avoid possible risks
Ecological:
ConclusionConclusion
• Social security and economic efficiency are not sustainable in the analyzed sample
• Biodiversity, plant protection, economic stability and the working conditions have to be observed carefully
• Expansion of the tea production clarification on the impact is necessary:
1. RISE assessment:
verification / calculation of scenarios
advise / feedback required
ConclusionConclusion
• Tea sustains the regionIf tea production is sustainable the whole region is
sustainable• Increase labor productivity by increasing tea yields through
appropriate management practices (e.G. Fertilization, irrigation, IPM)!
• “RISE-pioneer farms” and transfer of good practices to other farms • Roundtable with all stakeholders to improve the social situation
2. General:
Application and Experiences Application and Experiences
Work aheadWork ahead
"original" RISE(farm-level)
improve develop
ISO 14000 series,Environmental Performance Indicators
( EPIs), ...
- climate - economic changesFramework conditions: - resource availability and quality - policy changes
- diseases and pests - consumers' attitude- … - …
economy
ecology
RISE
Risks ? Vulnerability ?
socio-cultural aspects
"c-RISE"(covering entire supply chains)
"c" forsupply chain
