Economic and Environmental Impact Analysis of Pasture-Based Agriculture: A Review of Economic Modelling Approaches
- Rural Economy and Development Programme (REDP), Teagasc, Athenry, Ireland
- J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economics, Ireland
Figures
Conceptual framework of pasture-based agriculture.
PRISMA Flow Diagram.
Temporal distribution of modelling studies published Annually between 2000 - 2024.
Geographical distribution of modelling studies (Panel A) and production system coverage by region (Panel B).
Distribution of production system by geographical region.
The drivers in modelling literature for economic and environmental impact analysis of pasture-based agriculture.
Drivers that motivated modelling choice.
The frequency of modelling approaches used in economic and environmental impact analysis of pasture-based agriculture.
Shows the distribution of modelling approaches across geographical regions.
Applications of modelling approaches across sustainability domains.
Show the distribution of modelling approaches by unit of analysis.
Data sources by modelling approach in sustainability assessments of pasture-based agriculture.
Software by modelling approach.
Modelling behaviour by scale of application: Panel A reports share of behaviour types across all studies; Panel B shows their distribution across spatial scales applied.
Validation strategies adopted in the reviewed studies (share of studies, %).
Distribution of impact domains across modelling approaches (row-normalised shares).
The distribution of sustainability impacts assessed across reviewed studies.
Shows the distribution of policy instruments modelled across production.
Tables
Search strategy of the review showing databases, strings and exclusion criteria.
| Database | Search Field(s) | Search String | Filters Applied |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scopus | TITLE-ABS-KEY | ("livestock production systems" OR "pasture-based agriculture" OR "grass-based livestock" OR "ruminant farming") AND ("model*" OR "microsimulation" OR "bio-economic model*" OR "input-output model*" OR "CGE model*" OR "system dynamics model*" OR "stochastic model*" OR "simulation") AND ("economic impact*" OR "profitability" OR "economic sustainability" OR "farm income") AND ("environmental impact*" OR "GHG emissions" OR "biodiversity" OR "land use change") | Exclude: Conference papers, Subject areas: Agri, Econ, Env Sci |
| Web of Science | TS (Topic: Title, Abstract, Keywords) | TS=("livestock production systems" OR "pasture-based agriculture" OR "grass-based livestock" OR "ruminant farming") AND TS=("model*" OR "microsimulation" OR "bio-economic model*" OR "input-output model*" OR "CGE model*" OR "system dynamics model*" OR "stochastic model*" OR "simulation") AND TS=("economic impact*" OR "profitability" OR "economic sustainability" OR "farm income") AND TS=("environmental impact*" OR "GHG emissions" OR "biodiversity" OR "land use change") | Document types: Articles, Review; Subject areas: Agri, Econ, Env |
| Google Scholar | Full text (title, abstract) | ("livestock production systems" OR "pasture-based agriculture" OR "grass-based livestock" OR "ruminant farming") AND ("model*" OR "microsimulation" OR "bio-economic model*" OR "input-output model*" OR "CGE model*" OR "system dynamics model*" OR "stochastic model*" OR "simulation") AND ("economic impact*" OR "profitability" OR "economic sustainability" OR "farm income") AND ("environmental impact*" OR "GHG emissions" OR "biodiversity" OR "land use change") | Manual screening; Sort by relevance; Year range; Exclude patents & citations |
Conceptual classification of economic and environmental modelling approaches applied to pasture-based agriculture.
| Model Type | Distinctive Applications | Strengths | Weaknesses or Limitations of the approach | Key References and Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Farm-level simulation and microsimulation |
|
|
| Taylor et al. (2020); Vogeler et al. (2017); Hynes et al. (2009); O’Donoghue, 2017; Haydarov et al. (2024); Richardson et al. (2014); Reidsma et al. (2018) |
| 2. Optimisation or Programming Models |
|
|
| Moraes et al., 2012; Addis et al. (2021); Finneran et al. (2012); Kamilaris et al. (2020) |
| 3. Econometric or Statistical Models |
|
|
| Hanrahan et al. (2018); de Oliveira Silva et al. (2017); Cillero and Reaños (2023); Haydarov et al. (2024); Mehrabi et al. (2020) |
| 4. Agent-Based Models |
|
|
| Ryan et al. (2018); Bolte et al. (2007); Mooney et al. (2024) |
| 5. Input-Output or Bioeconomic IO (BIO) |
|
|
| Jin (2023); Zehetmeier et al. (2014); Breure et al. (2024) |
| 6. Computable General Equilibrium |
|
|
| Cillero and Reaños (2023); Li and O’Donoghue (2012); van der Linden et al. (2020) |
| 7. System Dynamics 8. Integrated Assessment Models |
|
|
| Lieffering et al. (2016); Benavides et al. (2023); Stürck et al. (2018) |
| 9. Machine Learning 10. Hybrid Approaches |
|
|
| McVey et al. (2023); Maseko et al. (2024); Sonea et al. (2023) |
Data and code availability
The search strategy, databases used, and inclusion criteria are reported in the article, allowing replication of the review.