Dairy farming systems and environment in mountainous areas

For several decades, the practice of farming in mountain areas has played a key role to the proper management of the landscape, the conservation of the biodiversity as well as the soil protection. Moreover, it has significantly contributed to the protection of those areas from avalanches and fires, while at the same time it keeps reinforcing the local economy, thereby acting as a counterweight to abandonment. The mountain animal husbandry is by definition multifunctional and multidisciplinary. In fact, mountainous farming consists of a complex and dynamic system. The harmony and the balance between human activities and nature requires some of the most precious human skills, like patience, self-abnegation, endurance to handiwork and frugality, to name some, but above all, love for mother nature. These are characteristics that ensure continuity and vitality of the mountain for both humans and the surrounding nature. In Italy, almost half of the total land is classified as mountainous (47.5%). Nevertheless, farmers in mountainous regions (representing 30.9% of the national total) face several limitations. These limitations, linked to the existence of natural handicaps, cannot be easily overcome with investments. For example, in mountains the average temperatures are lower, resulting in shorter vegetative period. Moreover, the excessive fractionation, the major gradients and roughness of the lands and at the same time the lower fertility of soils, create the need for special machinery (often more expensive than those used in mainland farms) as well as increased labor and extra inputs for the farms. These factors can lead to a lower land (and consequently farm) productivity, which can be translated into a limited competitiveness of the mountain farms, compared to mainland. In addition, the difficulty of access and the distance of individual dairy farms from the lowland as well as the fewer processing facilities and their small size, create higher transportation costs and lower economies of scale. Thus, the overall ...