**1.2 Research approach and design**

*Agricultural Economics - Current Issues*

**1.1 Problem statement**

tor to biodiversity loss [2, 3].

are weighing in more and more.

growth and sustainable use of resources.

planet's carrying capacity. To sustain humanity, we need to manage its biosphere within that carrying capacity, to maintain such services, and avoid regime shifts, mass extinction or repeating boom-bust patterns of earlier civilisations which were unable to manage their natural resources and regional carrying capacities [1].

Of Rockström's et al. [2] and Steffen's et al. [3] eight planetary boundaries, agriculture is by far the biggest contributor to defined limits of five of the boundaries; fresh water use, climate change, change in nitrogen and phosphate bio-chemical flows, land-use change as well as biodiversity loss. Agriculture also contributes up to 30% of CO2 emissions to climate change [4, 5] and is, due to feedback loops from nitrogen and phosphate bio-chemical flows and deforestation, also a great contribu-

Nelson et al. [6] suggest that due to climate change, global agricultural output is likely to decline between 10 and 15% in the next 60–70 years and even up to 50% in drier regions of Africa. Compared to the rest of the continent, arguably, much of South African (SA) agricultural land is located within such dry regions. With predicted changes, SA might need to consider whether its conventional farming (CvF) systems are appropriate going forward, while on the other hand evidence shows that alternatives, more sustainable farming systems such as CA, are comparably more climate resilient [7–9]. Arguments that farmers should adapt to such production systems in order to mitigate an output reducing impact due to climate change

Low tillage, a form of CA regularly practiced in KwaZulu-Natal (~60%) and the Western Cape (>70%), indicates that in two provinces good headway has been made in favour of CA; yet finds little to no adoption in other provinces [10]. CA is based on three principles, no-till, crop rotation, and cover crops (residue retention) to increase both soil organic matter, aggregate stability and water holding capacity, while reducing soil bulk density, erosion, carbon emission and exposure to drought and ultimately increased yield [11]. With rain-fed crops in dry climates, CA can significantly increases productivity [12]. Pittelkow et al. [12] also argue that this indicates that CA will play an important role in mitigating the impacts of climate change. Therefore, CA is one of many farming practices farmers can adopt to farm

Midgley et al. [13] argue that while South Africa's National Development Plan has identified agriculture as a primary economic objective, although not explicit, it is biased towards large scale, commercial and CvF practices, such as tillage and monoculture. South Africa's Integrated Growth and Development Plan [14], as well as the Agricultural Policy Action Plan [15], on the other hand, promote equitable

Food security is defined as having access to food of nutritional value at all times [16]. In this article we argued that CvF in a world of climate change poses a risk to food security, while a focus on more sustainable farming practices such as CA uses less water, requires less nitrogen and phosphate, sequesters CO2 and diversifies the ecosystems of farmland, with the ability to decrease soil erosion, increase soil life and fertility and other ecosystem services to the benefits of a farmer's long-term profitability [11, 13, 17, 18]. Its uptake, however, remains low in SA. We argue that CA has an important role to play in a transition and show why, from evidence of our

This leads to questions such as: why CA adoption rate remains low; what role agricultural VCPs can play to promote CA; and what institutions, policies, and VCPs are responsible for hindrances to adoption? What limitations do VCPs themselves

with less environmental impact, while preparing for climate change.

research, CA does not find support from SA food value chains.

**70**

Our study was undertaken as an ethnographic based research exploring business cultures and morals using qualitative semi-structured interviews. The questions for the research participants (VCPs) were not directed at any commodity in particular; however, because we also questioned silo owners and millers of maize, answers of some VCP often hinged around maize, also a main crop type in South Africa [19]. The choice of businesses interviewed was based on their involvement in the food value chain and their general size and importance they played and impact they had in their respective industries. Because of the sensitivity of the topic the interviewer needed to let go of any presumptions and assumed a less critical and more supportive attitude to attain more unbiased responses from the participant.

The interviews were then transcribed to attain primary qualitative data. For the coding and categorising, we used grounded theory as an inductive systematic methodology typically used in social sciences to analyse qualitative data and give it conceptual structure through categorisation of general themes emerging from the data [20–23].

Preceding the analysis and results of the research data, we reviewed literature to assess existing knowledge around the challenges facing existing economic and ecological farming systems and relate it back to CA.
