Data for: Social assessment of miscanthus cultivation in Croatia: Assessing farmers’ preferences and willingness to cultivate the crop

Social aspects of miscanthus cultivation have been investigated in a limited way in the scientific literature. Adopting existing frameworks for Social Life-Cycle Assessment enables assessments to include numerous social aspects; however, the relevance of these aspects depends on the local context. This study aims to identify the most relevant social aspects from the farmers’ perspective using a previously proposed framework for the assessment of the stakeholder 'farmer'. It is based on a case study of miscanthus production in Sisak Moslavina in Croatia. The existence of abandoned lands in Croatia presents an opportunity for the cultivation of miscanthus as a potential source of biomass for the production of bio-based materials and fuels. The study seeks to assess the feasibility of cultivating miscanthus in the region, taking into account potential challenges and opportunities, as well as the farmers’ willingness to adopt the crop, and to understand the reasons behind land abandonment. We conducted a survey among 44 farmers in the region and used a scoring method to identify the most relevant social aspects. The aspects most valued by the farmers were: health and safety, access to water, land consolidation and rights, income and local employment, and food security. Responses to the question of whether they would adopt the crop highlight the importance of an established market, good trading conditions and profitability of cultivation. The survey also enabled an understanding of farmers’ preferences with respect to the production conditions of crops. The farmers regarded the provision of subsidies as one of the main factors that render a crop attractive. Opportunities for the adoption of miscanthus cultivation include high yields and low input requirements. Barriers include land conflicts and land availability. Despite the opportunities for miscanthus development in the region, there are important challenges to consider for successful implementation of the crop.

现有科学文献中，关于芒草（miscanthus）种植的社会层面研究较为有限。采用现有社会生命周期评估（Social Life-Cycle Assessment）框架虽可将诸多社会维度纳入评估范畴，但这些维度的相关性需结合当地具体情境而定。本研究旨在依托此前提出的针对利益相关者“农户”的评估框架，从农户视角识别出最具相关性的社会维度。本研究以克罗地亚锡萨克-莫斯拉维纳县（Sisak Moslavina）的芒草种植为案例展开。克罗地亚国内存在的闲置耕地为芒草种植提供了发展契机，芒草可作为生物质原料，用于制备生物基材料与生物燃料。本研究旨在评估该区域种植芒草的可行性，综合考量潜在挑战与发展机遇，同时调研农户对种植该作物的意愿，并探析耕地撂荒的背后成因。本研究针对该区域44名农户开展问卷调查，并通过评分法确定了最受关注的社会维度。农户最为重视的社会维度包括：健康与安全、用水可及性、土地整合与权属、收入与本地就业，以及粮食安全。针对“是否愿意种植该作物”的调研结果显示，成熟的市场体系、良好的交易条件与种植收益性是农户关注的核心要素。本次问卷调查还助力我们明晰了农户对作物生产条件的偏好倾向。农户认为，补贴政策是提升作物种植吸引力的核心因素之一。推广芒草种植的机遇包括：单位产量较高、生产投入需求较低。而推广面临的阻碍则包括土地权属冲突与耕地可得性不足。尽管该区域具备芒草产业发展的潜力，但要实现该作物的成功种植与推广，仍需应对诸多关键挑战。