The challenge for a multifunctional agriculture: private and public good supply in Southern Palencia (Spain) | El reto de la multifuncionalidad agraria: oferta de bienes privados y públicos en el sur de Palencia

Spanish; Castilian. La agricultura es considerada cada vez más como una actividad productora de múltiples bienes y servicios, lo que supone un reto para las explotaciones agrarias, hasta la fecha guiadas principalmente por el objetivo de producir alimentos y materias primas de forma eficiente desde la perspectiva técnica. El presente trabajo pretende investigar el potencial de la actividad agraria para adaptarse a estas nuevas demandas sociales y proporcionar bienes ambientales y sociales. Para ello se ha encuestado a una muestra representativa de explotaciones en el sur de Palencia, obteniendo información sobre sus variables estructurales y su capacidad para acometer cambios en sus cultivos o prácticas de gestión que promuevan una mayor producción de bienes públicos. Los resultados obtenidos permiten detectar la influencia de variables estructurales sobre el desarrollo de la multifuncionalidad en este ecosistema, identificar grupos homogéneos de explotaciones y discutir el potencial de distintas medidas de política agraria que maximicen la oferta de multifuncionalidad.

English. European agriculture is viewed more oftenly as a provider of multiple goods and services, many of which are not related to food and fibre production. From the supply side, this change creates a challenge to agricultural holdings, traditionally managed to achieve productive and efficiency goals. The objective of this paper is to discover the capacity of agricultural activity to adapt itself to these new social demands for environmental and social goods and services. A survey has been delivered to a representative sample of agricultural holdings in Southern Palencia, a marginal area in Spain. The survey provided data on first, structural variables and second, on information, adaptation and predisposition to introduce changes into their current management plans shifted towards a greater provision of public goods. Different agricultural techniques and/or new crops (energy crops, GMOs, direct sowing and minimum tillage) as well as more general attitudes towards agricultural activity (i.e. land abandonment, farm size increase, diversification, etc.) have been considered. Responses to the new policy scenario faced after CAP-MTR have also been elicited. Results presented are grouped in four main categories. First we identify the current multifunctionality supply in the area, which is characterised by a low and highly subsidised agricultural output combined with a high participation rate in agri-environmental schemes (proxy variable for the provision of environmental services) and low labour demand but with full time residence in rural areas (proxy variable for social services). Secondly, the influence of structural variables on farmers' predisposition to adopt new management techniques is considered. Younger farmers, with a higher level of education, with larger farms and living in rural areas are found to be the most prone to adopt these techniques. Thirdly, a cluster analysis has been carried out to identify groups of homogenous farmers and see whether tailored policies could be addressed to them. The main result found is that the differences generating homogenous groups of dry land farmers are related to farmer's socio demographic variables while for irrigation farmers differences stem from their holding characteristics. Last, we discuss the effects of CAP MTR on agricultural holdings' management plans. Massive land abandonment can be disregarded and more proactive changes (farm size increase and provision of agricultural services to other farms) seem to be most accepted. Nevertheless, market constraints, with an excess of agricultural services supply and a lack of land supply, can create distortions that may lead to a non efficient allocation of factors.