Foto del docente

Luca Falasconi

Associate Professor

Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences

Academic discipline: AGR/01 Agricultural Economics and Rural Appraisal

Research

Keywords: Food safety Development food loss and waste Food Security Food chain

 â€ The agriâ€food system and its inefficiencies. Management and sustainable valorization of food

waste.

- social agriculture.

- microcredit in agriculture.



†The agriâ€food system and its inefficiencies. Management and sustainable valorization of food

waste.

The research activity has resulted in the analysis of the agriâ€food chain, from production to

consumption, with the aim to frame the inefficiencies of the system and specifically to assess the

level and the reasons of wastage. The research also aims to assess the impacts that have food

waste in term of environmental, social, nutritional and economic impact. In particular the

environmental impact evaluation , provides the application of Life Cycle Assessment methodology

through the use of inputâ€output tables. From the social point of view, instead the goal is to assess

the impact that a potential recovery of food wastes with social purposes has in terms of relational

capital variation, and then social capital.

The objective of research is to obtain, for the first time in Italy, both in terms of scientific results of

quantification of wastes, that impact assessment, in order to:

a) direct the public decisionâ€makers in the fields of waste prevention, recovery of food waste for

the purpose of solidarity, efficiency of agriâ€food system

b) promote initiatives to combating food waste

†He has designed, implemented and promoted with Professor Segrè, the Last Minute Market

projects, whose aim is to reclaim food and non food unsold products and distribute them to

charity associations (www.lastminutemarket.org).

From 2010 he has been promoting with Professor Segrè, under the advocacy of the European

Parliament, the campaign Un anno contro lo spreco (A year against Waste) to raise Italian and

European public awareness on the causes and consequences of waste, on how to reduce it and

how to promote a sound scientific culture and civic principles oriented towards sustainability and

solidarity. Each year the overall theme of the waste is focused on a specific topic: food (2010),

water (2011) and energy (2012). Thanks to the campaign, the European Parliament has decided

that the 2014 will be the “European year against waste†(www.unannocontrolospreco.org)

†He has dealt for some time of social agriculture.

The aim of the research (DIANA Disability In sustainable Agriculture: a New Approach for training

of practitioners) was a training for the practitioners who work with mental or psychiatric disabled

employed (or available to be employed) in agriculture. Throughout the development of innovation

in the training addressed to tutors, trainers and practitioners, this research aims at filling a serious

double gap: the lack of technical competencies of the trainers / tutors with psychological or

educational background; the lack of educational and psychological competencies of agricultural

technicians. DIANA has tried to fill in both these lacks. Thus, it is one of the first example of

integrated training for teachers, trainers and tutors working in the VET addressed to

disadvantaged (and notably disabled) people.

To fill this gap is extremely relevant because social farming has positive effects for social inclusion

and protection of environment and already offers extraordinary possibilities of training and jobs

for large groups of disadvantaged persons.

†He has dealt for some time of microcredit in agriculture.

Microcredit and microfinance are now recognized as one of the most effective instruments for the

economic development of the poorest. Confirmation of the effectiveness of this tool in the fight

against poverty came in 2006 with the award of the Nobel Prize for the Peace to Muhammad

Yunus, the acknowledged father of modern microcredit. Microfinance and microcredit therefore

play a key role in the fight against poverty, but we must not fall into the trap of giving them an

exclusive role. Infact the credit alone is not a tool that can help alleviate "poverty of most poor".

In rural areas and in particular in the agricultural sector, the microcredit went to meet, over the

years, a steady decline, and then, in the last decade, review revalued the opportunity to use this

instrument in agriculture.

The research, conducted with field surveys (Serbia, Senegal, Malawi, Bangladesh), has sought to

highlight the major obstacles and the elements that have reâ€launched its spread in the last

decades.

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