The project will inform and support EU priorities relating to agriculture and the environment in order to promote the performance and sustainability of the combined rural system. At least 30 case studies will be performed in order to reflect the enormous variety in the socio-economic and bio-physical conditions for agriculture across the EU.
LIFT covers all production sectors (or types of farming) across its planned case studies, ranging from arable to livestock and mixed farming. The geographical diversity of the case studies in LIFT enables the consideration of farms specialised in field crops, dairy, beef cattle, goat and sheep, pigs and poultry, fruits and vegetables, permanent crops such as vineyards, orchards and olives, and mixed crop-livestock farming. In addition, multipurpose breed farms will be covered in specific case study regions: two regions in which farms breeding cows for dairy and meat will be considered, and two regions in which farms breeding sheep for milk and meat will be considered. Agro-forestry will also be covered, with the combination of olive trees and sheep breeding, as well as olives trees and field crops, in two case study regions.
The variety of LIFT’s case studies will also enable the inclusion of different production strategies such as economies of scale (e.g. in fully specialised farms) and economies of scope (e.g. mixed or agro-forestry farms).
Case studies will allow to identify a range of contract types (e.g. cost oriented, market segmentation, technology driven, risk management) and will help examine whether these help or constrain further adoption of ecological practices on farm.
Graphical presentation of case study areas in the LIFT project:
List of case study areas in the LIFT project
| Case study number | Name of the case study area | Geographical level | Possible production types* |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | Country | FC, FV, PC, D, B, BD, GS, P, M |
| 2 | France | Country | FC, FV, PC, D, B, MP, GS, P, M |
| 3 | Hungary | Country | FC, FV, PC, D, B, GS, P, M |
| 4 | Ireland | Country | D, B, M |
| 5 | Poland | Country | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 6 | Scotland, UK | Country | FC, B, GS, M |
| 7 | Sweden | Country | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 8 | Bavaria (DE) | NUTS1 | FC, FV, D, B, GS |
| 9 | Flanders (BE) | NUTS1 | FC, FV, D, B, GS, P, M |
| 10 | Auvergne (FR) | NUTS2 | FC, D, B, MP, M |
| 11 | Brittany (FR) | NUTS2 | D, MP, M |
| 38 | Nouvelle-Aquitaine (FR) | NUTS2 | FC, FV, PC, M |
| 12 | Eastern Scotland (Scotland, UK) | NUTS2 | FC |
| 13 | Highlands & Islands (Scotland, UK) | NUTS2 | B, GS |
| 14 | Lubelskie (PL) | NUTS2 | M |
| 15 | Podlaskie (PL) | NUTS2 | D, B |
| 16 | Areas in North Sweden (SE) | Several NUTS3 (FADN region) | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 17 | High Weald AONB (England, UK) | Several NUTS3 | FC, FV, PC, GS, P |
| 18 | Plain areas in South and Middle Sweden (SE) | Several NUTS3 (FADN region) | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 19 | Cluj (RO) | NUTS3 | M |
| 20 | Hadju-Bihar (HU) | NUTS3 | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 21 | Heraklion, Crete (GR) | NUTS3 | FV, PC, GS, MP, AF |
| 22 | Lasithi, Crete (GR) | NUTS3 | FV, PC, GS, MP, AF |
| 24 | Marne (FR) | NUTS3 | FC |
| 23 | North Kent (England, UK) | NUTS3 | FC, FV, B, M |
| 25 | Ravenna (IT) | NUTS3 | FC, FV |
| 26 | Salzburg und Umgebung (AT) | NUTS3 | D, MP |
| 27 | Sarthe (FR) | NUTS3 | FC, B, M |
| 28 | Steyr-Kirchdorf (AT) | NUTS3 | D, MP |
| 29 | Suceava (RO) | NUTS3 | D, M |
| 30 | Veszprem (HU) | NUTS3 | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 31 | Areas surrounding large cities (SE) | Municipalities | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 32 | Simulated hypothetical region (FR) | Non-administrative region | FC, D, B, P, M |
| 33 | Simulated hypothetical farm (FR) | Farm | D |
| 34 | Simulated hypothetical farm (DE) | Farm | FC |
| 35 | Simulated hypothetical farm (DE) | Farm | D |
| 36 | Simulated hypothetical farm (DE) | Farm | B |
| 37 | Simulated hypothetical farm (IE) | Farm | B |
Legend:
– The NUTS abbreviation refers to the The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics used by the European Commission (more information with current descriptions is available at Eurostat website
– Possible types of production investigated: FC – field crops; FV – fruits and/or vegetables; PC – permanent crops, namely wine and/or orchards including olives; D – dairy; B – beef; MP – multipurpose breed; GS – goat and/or sheep; P – pig and/or poultry; M – mixed crop-livestock; AF – agro-forestry.
Possible types of production investigated in the LIFT project case studies according to the country:
Legend: Possible types of production investigated: FC – field crops; FV – fruits and/or vegetables; PC – permanent crops, namely wine and/or orchards including olives; D – dairy; B – beef; MP – multipurpose breed; GS – goat and/or sheep; P – pig and/or poultry; M – mixed crop-livestock; AF – agro-forestry.