Which dimensions of livestock farming systems shape social interactions around a farm? The case of two farms valorizing animal domestic biodiversity

ABSTRACT

To investigate the social dimensions of livestock farming using animal domestic biodiversity, we analyzed the social interactions surrounding farms, to identify the role of local breeds and the dimensions of the farming systems at play. We relied on case studies of two farms raising rare breeds in contrasted territories. We (i) identified the people concerned by the farm and its productions and (ii) characterized their interactions and their links with several dimensions of the livestock farming system. We discuss the role of domestic animal biodiversity as one dimension of livestock farming systems related to others.

KEYWORDS:

• Agroecology
• domestic biodiversity
• social interactions
• livestock farming systems
• proximity

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the farmers and other interviewees for their time and interest.

This work began in the framework of the SECOYA project (funded by INRA metaprogram ECOSERV) and (for the Raïole case study) continued in the framework of the PERFORM project (funded by Arimnet).

The first step in the analysis of this work was presented at the European IFSA symposium (Lauvie, Nozières, and Couix 2018).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. One of the farmers was identified through interviews conducted during a student internship in 2016 (Nozieres-Petit and Lauvie 2018), the other during workshops gathering local breeds’ farmers, conducted in 2017, in the framework of a project leaded by the Federation of Local breeds of Brittany (Fédération des races de Bretagne) and funded by the Fondation de France.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the SECOYA project (funded by INRA metaprogram ECOSERV) and PERFORM project (funded by Arimnet).