Organic conversion tea farms can have comparable economic benefits and less environmental impacts than conventional ones-A case study in China

Huayang Zhen; Yuhui Qiao; Xuehai Ju; Fatemeh Hashemi; Marie Trydeman Knudsen

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162698

Organic conversion tea farms can have comparable economic benefits and less environmental impacts than conventional ones-A case study in China

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jun 15:877:162698. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162698. Epub 2023 Mar 11.

Authors

Huayang Zhen¹, Yuhui Qiao², Xuehai Ju³, Fatemeh Hashemi⁴, Marie Trydeman Knudsen⁴

Affiliations

¹ Beijing Key Laboratory of Biodiversity and Organic Farming, College of Resources and Environmental Science, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China; Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Blichers Allé 20, P.O. Box 50, DK-8830 Tjele, Denmark.
² Beijing Key Laboratory of Biodiversity and Organic Farming, College of Resources and Environmental Science, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China. Electronic address: qiaoyh@cau.edu.cn.
³ Rural Energy and Environment Agency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing 100125, China.
⁴ Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Blichers Allé 20, P.O. Box 50, DK-8830 Tjele, Denmark; Aarhus University Interdisciplinary Centre for climate change (iCLIMATE), Department of Agroecology, Blichers Alle 20, 8830 Tjele, Denmark.

PMID: 36914125
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162698

Abstract

Lack of experience concerning the organic conversion period and its associated challenges have made it difficult for conventional farmers to convert to organic farming. In this study, using a combined life cycle assessment (LCA) with data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach, we investigated farming management strategies, and environmental, economic, and efficiency impacts of organic conversion tea farms (OCTF, N = 15) compared to conventional (CTF, N = 13) and organic (OTF, N = 14) tea farms in Wuyi County, China for a year-round (2019). We found that the OCTF reduced agricultural inputs (environmental impacts) and applied more manual harvesting (increased added value) to pull through the conversion period. According to the LCA results, OCTF showed a similar integrated environmental impact index compared with OTF but significantly (P < 0.05) lower than CTF at both midpoint and endpoint levels. In terms of economic assessment, OTF showed the significantly highest total revenue (18.7 thousand $ ha^-1 yr^-1) and profit (13.7 thousand $ ha^-1 yr^-1) (P < 0.05) among the farm types. In contrast, OCTF and CTF did not show significant differences in relation to these economic indicators (P > 0.05). The total cost and cost-profit ratio did not show significant differences among the three farm types. Considering the DEA analysis, there were no significant differences in the technical efficiency of all farm types. However, the eco-efficiency of OCTF and OTF was significantly higher than that of CTF. Therefore, conventional tea farms can survive the conversion period with competitive economic and environmental benefits. In this regard, policies should promote organic tea cultivation and agroecological practices to enhance the sustainable transformation of tea production systems.

Keywords: Conversion period; Eco-efficiency; Economic performance; Life cycle assessment; Organic tea.

MeSH terms

Agriculture / methods
China
Dairying* / methods
Environment
Farms
Organic Agriculture*
Tea

Substances

Tea