Sustainable Food Production in Utrecht: Policies and Mechanisms for Local Circular Dairy Farming

Abstract

The world population is increasing, causing a growing demand for food. This together with the pressure that the agricultural sector exerts on the environment, stresses the need for sustainable agricultural models. Circular models and local food systems have arisen as promising alternative agricultural models. Due to changing nitrogen regulations, the Dutch dairy farming sector is under scrutiny. Therefore, this research looks at how policies and mechanisms can be improved to foster the development of local circular dairy farming, through a case study in the province of Utrecht. An innovation system approach is taken in this research, allowing the identification of points hindering the transition to circular dairy farming in the current dairy farming sector. Data was collected from three sources: literature, interviews and a survey. The literature review looked at both academic literature and policy documents, and five semi-structured interviews were conducted with dairy farmers in the province of Utrecht. Lastly, a survey (n = 18) was conducted to gather data from a larger group of farmers and to validate the results from the literature review and interviews through triangulation. Data was organized around the four sub-questions. For the last sub-question, data was organized around the innovation system functions that are part of the innovation system approach. The results show that the functions related to the development and diffusion of knowledge are well-fulfilled, whereas the functions related to entrepreneurial activity, guidance of the innovation process, market formation, resource mobilization and legitimacy creation are lacking. The recommendations from this research are that inconsistent policies should be revised, which will aid in restoring the trust of farmers in the government. Furthermore, increased attention could be given to the creation of a market for circularly produced milk. Without this, there is little incentive for dairy farmers to increase the circularity on their farm. Future research could include more perspectives, giving a more complete picture of the functioning of the dairy farming sector as an innovation system. This could also address the relationships between actors by including methods such as focus groups or workshops. Lastly, the consumer side could be looked at, as consumers can potentially play an important role in the transition towards local circular dairy farming.