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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
There has been an undeniable and remarkable performance of the global food system over the last fifty years. During this period, total food supply has increased almost threefold, whereas population has only done so in a twofold ratio, along with very significant shifts in diet related to economic development. European agricultural activity plays an important role in European and world food security through the agricultural production, supply and international trade. The main aim of this paper was analyses the agricultural sustainability of the twenty-eight Member States of the European Union in terms of economics, environmental, social and political activity. Information and data comes from FADN database from the European Commission related to the year 2013, because is the last information available. The methodology includes the min-max approach based on the four components of sustainability, namely, economic, social, environmental and politics. We include the new component of politics in the sustainability because European agricultural are high subsidised and these subsidies have impacts on European agricultural sustainability. All the referred components of sustainability were based on various indicators in each component based on the literature. The min-max approach was employed to normalise the selected indicators expressed in variety dimensions for their need to be put on a common basis according to Vitunskiene & Dabkiene, (2016). Multivariate methods, namely Component Principal Analysis was used to estimate weights for the selected indicators to construct sub-indices and then the sub-indices were aggregated into the farm relative sustainability index according to Vitunskiene & Dabkiene, (2016), but adjusted to the present goals. After, cluster analysis was used to form homogeneous groups of European countries according the agricultural sustainability indices. The results confirm three groups of European countries, namely, the North and Central countries; the New Member States and the Mediterranean counties. The results confirm that European agriculture firms and respective countries had a medium sustainability. The main conclusion highlines confirms the importance of the sustainability as a tool to better adjust agricultural policies among the European member states and the need of to take into account the social, environmental and competitiveness of the agricultural sector in each cluster of countries and respective agricultural firms.
Description
Keywords
European Member States Economics Environmental Political Social Sustainability
Citation
Dos Santos, M. J. P. L. (2018, oct, 20-21). Sustainability of European firms. Paper presented at 3rd International Conference on Experiential Learning 2018, Faculty of Economics and Business, Karachi, Pakistan.
Publisher
Faculty of Economics and Business