Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Short communication
Austral J. Vet. Sci.
Vol 56, 91-97 (2024)
DOI: 10.4206/ajvs.562.05

Use of Delphi methodology to select sustainability indicators on dairy farms: an exploration of environmental, economic, social and animal welfare dimensions

1 Escuela de graduados, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile.
2 Programa de Bienestar Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile; Instituto de Ciencia Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, Chile.
Keywords: sustainable livestock production assessment indicators sustainability dimensions animal welfare Delphi methodology

Submitted: 2024-01-24

Accepted: 2024-06-18

Published: 2024-07-03

*Corresponding author:
tamara.tadich@uach.cl

How to Cite

Sánchez-Hidalgo, M., & Tadich, T. (2024). Use of Delphi methodology to select sustainability indicators on dairy farms: an exploration of environmental, economic, social and animal welfare dimensions. Austral Journal of Veterinary Sciences, 56(2), 91–97. https://doi.org/10.4206/ajvs.562.05

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Tamara Tadich, Melissa Sánchez-Hidalgo

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Sustainable livestock production is essential to ensure the availability of food and resources, and to address the social, economic, and environmental challenges that threaten conventional livestock production. While there is consensus among economic, social, and scientific groups on the need to assess sustainability to make decisions that protect resources for present and future generations, there are few sustainability assessment tools that address it holistically. The aim of this study was to develop an assessment tool applicable to farms by identifying the indicators currently applied in dairy farms, based on a systematic literature review and expert opinion. This study used the Delphi methodology to explore sustainability indicators at the farm level. A panel of seven expert researchers and academics in livestock sustainability and animal welfare participated in the study. A high level of consensus was found for 15 economic indicators, 14 social indicators, 20 environmental indicators, and 16 animal welfare indicators. Some indicators, such as financial autonomy, transmissibility, cow and labor productivity, husbandry system, labor intensity, community bonding, labor satisfaction, biodiversity, crop rotation, fertilization, manure management, and water management, showed a high level of consensus and were considered useful in assessing sustainability on dairy farms. In addition, livestock sustainability experts reached a high consensus on 16 animal welfare indicators that could be useful in assessing farm sustainability. These results provide a solid basis for sustainability indicators in the economic, social, environmental, and animal welfare dimensions, which could serve as a basis for developing a sustainability assessment tool for dairy farms.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

  1. Ahmad, S., Yew Wong, K. (2019). Development of weighted triple-bottom line sustainability indicators for the Malaysian food manufacturing industry using the Delphi method. Journal of Cleaner Production 20, 1167-1182.
  2. Attia, K., Darej, C., Hamdi, N., Zahm, F. (2021). Sustainability assessment of small dairy farms from the main cattle farming systems in the north of Tunisia. New Medit 3, 191-205.
  3. Arvidsson Segerkvist, K., Hansson, H., Sonesson, U., Gunnarsson, S. (2020). Research on environmental, economic, and social sustainability in dairy farming: a systematic mapping of current literature. Sustainability 12, 5502. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12145502
  4. Bacenetti, J., Duca, D., Negri, M., Fusi, A., & Fiala, M. (2015). Mitigation strategies in the agro-food sector: The anaerobic digestion of tomato purée by-products: An Italian case study. Science of The Total Environment 526, 88–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.04.069
  5. Binder, C.R., Feola, G., & Steinberger, J. (2010). Considering the normative, systemic and procedural dimensions in indicator-based sustainability assessments in agriculture. Environmental Impact Assessment Review 30, 71–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2009.06.002
  6. Broom, D.M. (2014). Sentience and Animal Welfare. CABI, Wallingford, pp200.
  7. Broom, D.M. (2021). A method for assessing sustainability, with beef production as an example. Biological Reviews 96, 1836-1853. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12726
  8. Broom, D.M. 2023. The sustainability of cattle production systems. In: Cattle Welfare in Dairy and Beef Systems, ed. M. Haskell, 351-379. Switzerland: Springer Nature. doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21020-4_13 ISBN 978-3-031-21019-8
  9. Brunett, L., García, L., González, C., González, F., & Bonilla, J. (2006). La Agroecología como paradigma para el diseño de la agricultura sustentable y metodologías para su evaluación. Sociedades rurales, producción y medio ambiente. Ensayos y Revisiones Bibliográficas 6, 83–110.
  10. Castillo-Rodríguez, D., Tapia, M., Brunett, L., Márquez, O., Terán, O., & Espinoza, E. (2012). Evaluación de la sustentabilidad social, económica y productiva de dos agrosistemas de producción de leche en pequeña escala en el municipio de Amecameca, México. Revista Científica UDO Agrícola 12, 690 – 704. https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/45667/1/cg12079.pdf
  11. Cederberg, C.; Wivstad, M.; Bergkvist, P.; Mattsson, B.; Ivarsson, K. (2005). Environmental assessment of plant protection strategies using scenarios for pig feed production. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment 34, 408 413. DOI: 10.1639/0044-7447(2005)034[0408:eaopps]2.0.co;2
  12. Cox, W. & Ziv, J.C. (2005). Dimensions of sustainability: people, land, environment, and transport infrastructure’s reliability and development. http://www. publicpurpose.com/bari.pdf
  13. Eckard, R., Grainger, C., & de Klein, C. (2010). Options for the abatement of methane and nitrous oxide from ruminant production: A review. Livestock Science 130, 47–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2010.02.010
  14. English, J.M., & Kernan, G.L. (1976). The prediction of air travel and aircraft technology to the year 2000 using the delphi method. Transportation Research Record 10, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/0041-1647(76)90094-0
  15. Evans, L.T. (1996). Crop Evolution, Adaptation and Yield; Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK; New York, NY, USA.
  16. Galioto, F., Paffarini, C., Chiorri, M., Torquati, B., Cecchini, L. (2017). Economic, environmental, and animal welfare performance on livestock farms: Conceptual model and application to some case studies in Italy. Sustainability 9, 1615. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9091615.
  17. Gómez-Ravelo, I., De las Cuevas Milán, H., Fernández de Castro Fabre, A., & González, D. (2013). Software evaluación de expertos por el método Delphy para el pronóstico de la investigación agrícola. Revista Ciencias Técnicas Agropecuarias, 22, 81-86. https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/932/93231386014.pdf
  18. Grobbelaar, S.S. (2007). R&D in the national system of innovation: A system dynamics model. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa. https://repository.up.ac.za/bitstream/handle/2263/26471/Complete.pdf?sequence=9
  19. Henning, J., & Jordaan, H. (2016). Determinants of financial sustainability for farm credit applications—A Delphi study. Sustainability 8, 77. doi:10.3390/su8010077
  20. Keeney, S., Hasson, F., & McKenna, H.P. (2001). A critical review of the Delphi technique as a research methodology for nursing. International Journal of Nursing Studies 38, 195-200. doi: 10.1016/s0020-7489(00)00044-4
  21. Meul, M., Van Passel, S., Fremaut, D., & Haesaert, G. (2012). Higher sustainability performance of intensive grazing versus zero-grazing dairy systems. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 32, 629-638. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13593-011-0074-5
  22. Miller, G., Slimko, M., Tricarico, J., & Peerless, D. (2020). Food system sustainability. A dairy perspective. Nutrition Today 55, 82-86. DOI:10.1097/NT.0000000000000401
  23. Munyaneza, C. (2018). Assessing sustainability of smallholder dairy and traditional cattle milk production systems in Tanzania. PhD Thesis. University of Morogoro, Tanzania.
  24. Pérez-Lombardini, F., Mancera, K., Suzán, G., Campo, J., Solorio, J., Galindo, F. (2021). Assessing sustainability in cattle silvopastoral systems in the Mexican tropics using the SAFA framework. Animals 1, 109. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11010109.
  25. Ruiz, J., Barahona R., Bolivar Vergara, D. (2017). Indicadores de sustentabilidad para lechería especializada: Una revisión. Livestock Research for Rural Development 29, 9.
  26. Seghezzo, L. (2009). The five dimensions of sustainability. Environmental Politics18, 539 — 556. DOI: 10.1080/09644010903063669
  27. Salinas, J. (2014). Sustainability assessment of small-scale dairy production systems. Doctoral dissertation, Autonomous University of Mexico, Distrito Federal, Mexico.
  28. Silva, M., & Gameiro, A.H. (2022). Sustainability indicators for Brazilian dairy livestock the perception of professionals in the sector. Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia 51:e20210049.
  29. Smith, P., Martino, D., Cai, Z., Gwary, D., Janzen, H., Kumar, P., McCarl, B., Ogle, S., O’Mara, F., & Rice, C. (2007). Policy and technological constraints to implementation of greenhouse gas mitigation options in agriculture. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 118, 6–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2006.06.006
  30. Smith, P., Goulding, K.W., Smith, K.A., Powlson, D.S., Smith, J.U., Falloon, P., & Coleman, K. (2001). Enhancing the carbon sink in European agricultural soils: Including trace gas fluxes in estimates of carbon mitigation potential. Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems 60, 237–252. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012617517839
  31. Soussana, J., Klumpp, K., & Tallec, T. (2009). Mitigating livestock greenhouse gas balance through carbon sequestration in grasslands. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 6, 242048. DOI:10.1088/1755-1307/6/4/242048
  32. Van Calker, K., Berentsen, P., Giesen, G., & Huirne, R. (2008) Maximising sustainability of Dutch dairy farming systems for different stakeholders: A modelling approach. Ecological Economics 65, 407–
  33. 419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2007.07.010
  34. Van Passel, S., Nevens, F., Mathijs, E., & Van Huylenbroeck, G. (2007) Measuring farm sustainability and explaining differences in sustainable efficiency. Ecological Economics 62, 149–161. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2006.06.008
  35. Varela-Ruiz, M., Díaz-Bravo, L., & García-Durán, R. (2012). Descripción y usos del método Delphi en investigaciones del área de la salud. Investigación en Educación Médica, 1, 90-95. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/268204400_Descripcion_y_usos_del_metodo_Delphi_en_investigaciones_del_area_de_salud
  36. Velten, S., Leventon, J., Jager, N., & Newig, J. (2015). What Is Sustainable Agriculture? A Systematic Review. Sustainability 7, 7833-7865. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7067833
  37. Verduna, T., Blanc, S., Merlino, V.M., Cornale, P., Battaglini, L.M. (2020). Sustainability of four dairy farming scenarios in an alpine environment the case study of Toma di Lanzo cheese. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 7, 569167. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2020.569167.
  38. WCED, S. W. S. (1987). World commission on environment and development. Our Common Future, 17(1), 1-91.
  39. Zahm, F., Viaux, P., Vilain, L., Girardin, P., & Mouchet, C. (2008). Assessing Farm Sustainability with the IDEA Method – from the Concept of Agriculture Sustainability to Case Studies on Farms. Sustainable Development 16, 271–281. DOI: 10.1002/sd.380
  40. Zhen, L., & Routray, J.K. (2003). Groundwater resource use practices and implications for sustainable agricultural development in the North China Plain. International Journal Of Water Resources Development 18, 583–595. https://doi.org/10.1080/0790062022000017419
  41. Zinn, J., Zalokowski, A., & Hunter, L. (2001). Identifying indicators of laboratory management performance: A multiple constituency approach. Health Care Management Review 26, 40–53. DOI: 10.1097/00004010-200101000-00004
  42. Zucali, M., Battelli, G., Battini, M., Bava, L., Decimo, M., Mattiello, S., Povolo, M., Brasca, M. (2016). Multi-dimensional assessment and scoring system for dairy farms. Italian Journal of Animal Science 15, 492-503. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1828051X.2016.12183.

Make a Submission

Make a Submission

Journal Metrics (2025) & Ranking

JOURNAL METRICS & RANKING (2025)

Impact Factor (2025) 0.5
5 years Impact Factor 1.0
JCR Quartile Q4
JIF Rank 146/170 (Veterinary Sciences)
SJR (2025) 0.208

Indexed in

Publisher


This journal is published by the Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Austral de Chile

Keywords