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Sub-Saharan Africa is marginalised in the world economy and lags behind other developing regions in world trade. This is attributable to sub-Saharan Africa's inability to industrialise and diversify its exports base. Sub-Saharan Africa is still largely dependent on the exports of primary commodities, and agriculture is a vital export sector for many Sub-Saharan African economies with the majority of their exports reliant on traditional commodities. Most countries in the sub-Saharan African region have low levels of agricultural output and food security problems. Against this background, this study first discusses the problems associated with primary commodity dependence and then examines the need and economic rationale for sub-Saharan Africa to diversify its exports from agriculture into other sectors. From this, it follows that, diversifying agricultural production and exports into organic produce could be one way to create a more sustainable development path for sub-Saharan African trade and food security. With this in mind, this study discusses the economic viability, including the policy considerations, for organic product diversification in sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, to ascertain the empirical position of this study, a statistical assessment of the supply-side food security situation in three sub-Saharan African major organic converters and exporters (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) is presented. The empirical results indicate that among the three countries, considering data trends and variances, Uganda's food security outlook is the most optimistic. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2010. / Title from title page screen (viewed on July 20, 2010). Thesis advisor: Gary McCracken. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This diploma thesis aims to identify the main factors that affect farmers' decisions to convert from conventional farming to organic farming. Currently, organic farming and organic products are highly popularized because they represent one of the ways of achieving a sustainable development of human society and environment. Thus, many developed countries, including the Czech Republic, support the development of organic farming. On the demand side, this is achieved by information and promotional campaigns. On the supply side, developed countries create conditions for certified organic farming systems. Organic farming subsidies are used as a compensation of the increased expenditure resulting from organic farming as compared to conventional farming. In the Czech Republic, the numbers of organic farms are still increasing. However, many questions remain to be answered. What are the incentives influencing the farmers' choices for organic farming? Are organic farmers propelled by the desire to produce healthy food and to contribute to the protection of the environment? Or are they predominantly motivated by economic factors, namely by the subsidies? In order to answer these questions, the author of the diploma thesis conducted a questionnaire survey among Czech organic farmers. The analysis of the survey provided a number of interesting findings. In particular, it can be concluded that the subsidies as an economic motivation factor influenced the farmers' choices for the organic farming. Yet, the noneconomic factors played even more significant role in the farmers' motivations than the subsidies. The most indicated noneconomic factor are an effort to live more in harmony with nature, to personally contribute to the protection of the environment, to avoid the use of chemicals or to produce healthy and quality food.

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published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

This thesis examines differences between organic and conventional farm and operators' characteristics, and identifies which characteristics explain whether a farm is organic or conventional. The data comes from the 2001 Canadian Census of Agriculture, which makes this study the first that is national in scope and includes detailed analysis of the differences between organic and conventional agriculture using a large sample size. / Farms were divided into three groups: conventional, primarily organic, and mixed production (some organic production). Parametric and nonparametric tests were used to analyze farm and operator characteristics. Logistic regression was used to determine which variables explain whether a farm is organic, conventional or mixed. Results indicate that organic farmers are more likely to be younger, female, work less off farm and more on farm, when compared to conventional. Organic farms tend to be smaller, more profitable, more diversified, and have a higher dependency on hired labour. There were no differences in capital intensity. Mixed farms manifested the same patterns as organic when compared to conventional.

This thesis examines the ideas, assumptions, and activities of the predecessors and later advocates of the American organic farming movement. The central argument is that organic practitioners and sympathizers have shared a concern for the "balance of nature" and for man's roIe in that natural balance. 1 also argue that in the United States this natural ideal has been linked to the "myth of the garden", a vision of an agrarian nation and of the independent family farm which has shaped recurrent American rural reform movements. l contend that although they express apparently diverse goals -- for spiritual renewal, for political "revolution" , for personal self-sufficiency, and for a "new science" -- advocates share an underlying sense of their common crusade. Fundamental to this crusade is the value they place on "Nature", on the farmer's experience, and on rural revival. Thus, we can understand their diverse visions as expressions of a common cast of mind. / Cette thèse traite des fondements, des idées ainsi que des activités des précurseurs et des nouveaux partisans du mouvement américain de "l'agriculture biologique". Elle met en évidence le fait que ceux qui pratiquent cette forme d'agriculture et leurs sympathisants sont préoccupés par "l'équilibre de la nature" et par le rôle que l'homme peut y jouer. Elle démontre également qu'aux Etats-Unis, cet idéal de la nature a été lié au "mythe du jardin", c'est-à-dire à cette vision d'une nation agraire et d'une ferme familial indépendante, notions qui ont fortement marqué les mouvements de réforme rurale en Amérique. Malgré les objectifs apparemment divergents qu'ils épousent, lesquels varient du désir d'un renouveau spirituel, de la poursuite d'une révolution politique, de la recherche de l'auto-suffisance à la constitution d'une nouvelle science, les partisans se trouvent unis par un même esprit de croisade. A la base de cette cause se trouvent les valeurs de la nature, l'expérience personnelle des agriculteurs et le renouveau rural. Ainsi peut-on entrevoir, parmi ces visions diverses, l'expression d'une attitude commune. fr

This diploma thesis is focused on utilisation of organic foods analysis in eating facilities in the region of statutory city České Budějovice. The surveys in eating facilities are replenished by consumers´ survey which considers customers´ opinions about organic foods utilisation in gastronomy. The partial aim of this thesis is to compare the situation in the Czech Republic with chosen countries in European Union. In the introductory part, there are described basic terms with the help of primary literature which are related to ecological production and eating facilities. The practical chapter is consisted of introduction of concrete eating facilities with organic foods offer and the results of survey between eating facilities with and without organic foods offer and the outcomes from consumers´ survey. In the conclusion, there is appraised the present state and probable future development of organic foods utilisation in gastronomy in the region of city České Budějovice.

Alors que les législations françaises et européennes fixent des objectifs ambitieux de protection de la qualité des eaux, les problèmes de pollution par les nitrates et les pesticides utilisés en agriculture persistent en France. Dans ce contexte, l’agriculture biologique qui n’utilise ni produits phytosanitaires ni engrais de synthèse, apparait de plus en plus comme une solution possible pour gérer ces problèmes « à la source ». Un objectif de développement de l’agriculture biologique dans les aires d’alimentation des captages en eau potable a ainsi été inscrit dans la loi Grenelle 1 en 2009. Cette thèse analyse pourquoi et comment l’agriculture biologique s’est trouvée convoquée pour répondre aux problèmes de pollution de l’eau. Elle repose sur une analyse multiniveaux des changements en cours, du niveau global de la conception des politiques publiques jusqu’à celui des agriculteurs, cible principale de cette politique en passant par le niveau territorial de mise en oeuvre de projets associant développement de l’agriculture biologique et protection de la qualité de l’eau. Dans un premier temps, l’évolution des politiques de l’eau et de l’agriculture et des référentiels sectoriels qui les sous-tendent est retracée afin de comprendre comment cette mise en relation entre « agriculture biologique et qualité de l’eau » a pu apparaitre dans l’action publique. Dans un second temps, une analyse de quatre projets territoriaux permet d’étudier comment les acteurs locaux se saisissent de cette convocation et s’engagent dans l’action. Une attention particulière est portée à l’analyse des réseaux d’acteurs impliqués et à celle de la diversité des échelles spatiales auxquelles les projets sont mis en oeuvre. Dans un troisième temps, ce sont les représentations qu’ont les agriculteurs de l’enjeu eau et de l’objectif de développement de l’agriculture biologique qui lui est associé qui sont étudiées. Notre discussion est consacrée aux apports des concepts et des méthodes de la géographie à la compréhension des dynamiques de développement territorialisé de l’agriculture biologique. Enfin, nous ouvrons des perspectives de recherche en termes d’analyse des transitions écologiques de l’agriculture, thématique qui a jusqu’ici été peu investie par les géographes. / The conservation of water resources is a major issue in France because of the increasing problem of water pollution by nitrates and pesticides used in agriculture. In this context, organic farming is seen as a promising solution to this problem because of its Regulation that prohibits the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides. In 2009, the Grenelle Law stated that priority should be given to organic farming in water catchment areas. This research aims at analysing why and how organic farming has been called in to tackle water pollution problems. It is based on a multi-level analysis. Firstly, the evolution over time of water and agriculture policies (as well as the sectorial paradigms that underly them) is analysed in order to understand how « organic farming » and « the protection of water ressources » came to be associated in public policies. Secondly, a case study is carried out to analyse how local stakeholders take up this idea in setting up projects aimed at developing organic farming toprotect water quality. Particular attention is paid to investigating the stakeholder networks andthe geographical scales at which the projects are implemented. Thirdly, social representations that farmers have of the water question and of organic farming are studied. To conclude, this work examines the contribution of geography to the understanding of an emerging feature: the place-based development of organic farming to tackle environmental problems. It creates new research perspectives related to the analysis of ecological transitions of agriculture, a topic that was so far largely ignored by geographers.