Sweet chestnut and agricultural development: a farmers’ perspective for Northern Greece

Abstract

Agroforestry systems are traditional land-use practices in Greece occupying three million hectares. Despite the positive agro-environmental and cultural benefits, within the last decade, they are not considered economically profitable. The present study surveys the farmers’ attitudes towards agroforestry practices, and more specifically, the cultivation of chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.). With the assistance of different econometric models, we attempted to unveil the profile of chestnut growers, their opinion on the environmental impact of the crop adoption, the determinants of the criteria they considered for its selection, as well as the cultivation practices they apply in a purely agricultural region of northern Greece. Insight into these issues may well provide policy makers with tools to promote the adoption of chestnut and other forest species in agriculture, with the aim of ensuring protection of the ecosystem, as well as improvements in agricultural income and therefore incorporating the concept of sustainability in agricultural development.

Keywords

• agroforestry
• land use change
• risk perception
• castanea
• sustainable agriculture