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Use of Indicators to Evaluate Sustainability of Animal Production Systems

Nahed Toral, José; García Barrios, Luis; Castel Genís, José María; Mena Guerrero, Yolanda

Abstract

SUMMARY – Few indicators for sustainability are used in studying animal production systems. Sustainability of these systems should be evaluated in a dynamic and multidisciplinary manner, and those indicators used should allow for detecting the systems' most relevant properties, as well as the tendency of those systems to change. Indicators proposed by FAO provide information regarding all attributes of sustainability, although in a manner which is overly focused on technical and economic indicators at the expense of social and environmental factors. In order to use these indicators to evaluate sustainability, it is necessary to: (i) integrate and reduce the number of indicators, balancing them for all sustainability attributes; (ii) generate indicators which show system sustainability in relation to the economic, environmental and social context; and (iii) design indicators which show system evolution and the influence of this process on that system’s sustainability.

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Use o indica o s o e alua e sus ainabili y o animal p oduc ion sys ems Nahed-To al J., Ga cía-Ba ios L., Mena Y., Cas el J.M. in Mena Y. (ed.), Cas el J.M. (ed.), Mo and-Feh P. (ed.). Analyse echnico-économique des sys èmes de p oduc ion o ine e cap ine : mé hodologie e alo isa ion pou le dé eloppemen e la p ospec i e. Za agoza : CIHEAM / FAO / Uni e sidad de Se illa Op ions Médi e anéennes : Sé ie A. Séminai es Médi e anéens; n. 70 2006 pages 205-211 A icle a ailable on line / A icle disponible en ligne à l’ad esse : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- h p://om.ciheam.o g/a icle.php?IDPDF=800024 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To ci e his a icle / Pou ci e ce a icle -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nahed-To al J., Ga cía-Ba ios L., Mena Y., Cas el J.M. Use o indica o s o e alua e sus ainabili y o animal p oduc ion sys ems. In : Mena Y. (ed.), Cas el J.M. (ed.), Mo and-Feh P. (ed.). Analyse echnico-économique des sys èmes de p oduc ion o ine e cap ine : mé hodologie e alo isa ion pou le dé eloppemen e la p ospec i e. . Za agoza : CIHEAM / FAO / Uni e sidad de Se illa, 2006. p. 205-211 (Op ions Médi e anéennes : Sé ie A. Séminai es Médi e anéens; n. 70) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- h p://www.ciheam.o g/ h p://om.ciheam.o g/ Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 205 Use o indica o s o e alua e sus ainabili y o animal p oduc ion sys ems J. Nahed-To al*, L. Ga cía-Ba ios*, Y. Mena** and J.M. Cas el** *ECOSUR, Ca e e a Paname icana y Pe i é ico Su s/n 29290 San C is óbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico **EUITA, Dp o. de Ciencias Ag o o es ales, Ca e e a de U e a km 1, 41013 Se illa, Spain [email p o ec ed] SUMMARY – Few indica o s o sus ainabili y a e used in s udying animal p oduc ion sys ems. Sus ainabili y o hese sys ems should be e alua ed in a dynamic and mul idisciplina y manne , and hose indica o s used should allow o de ec ing he sys ems' mos ele an p ope ies, as well as he endency o hose sys ems o change. Indica o s p oposed by FAO p o ide in o ma ion ega ding all a ibu es o sus ainabili y, al hough in a manne which is o e ly ocused on echnical and economic indica o s a he expense o social and en i onmen al ac o s. In o de o use hese indica o s o e alua e sus ainabili y, i is necessa y o: (i) in eg a e and educe he numbe o indica o s, balancing hem o all sus ainabili y a ibu es; (ii) gene a e indica o s which show sys em sus ainabili y in ela ion o he economic, en i onmen al and social con ex ; and (iii) design indica o s which show sys em e olu ion and he in luence o his p ocess on ha sys em’s sus ainabili y. Keywo ds:Goa and sheep p oduc ion sys ems, sus ainabili y, indica o s. RESUME – "U ilisa ion d'indica eu s pou é alue la du abili é des sys èmes de p oduc ion animale". Les indica eu s pe me an de ca ac é ise la du abili é des sys èmes de p oduc ion animale son peu dé eloppés. L'é alua ion de la du abili é de ces sys èmes doi ê e dynamique e mul idisciplinai e e les indica eu s u ilisés doi en pe me e de dé ec e les ca ac é is iques les plus impo an es des sys èmes e leu é olu ion. Les indica eu s p oposés pa la FAO se en à in o me su ous les a ibu s liés à la du abili é, mais d’une açon non équilib ée e op cen ée su le sys ème de p oduc ion. Pou end e possible l’u ilisa ion des indica eu s FAO en an qu'é alua eu s de la du abili é des sys èmes, il con iend a de: (i) édui e le nomb e d'indica eu s ob enus à pa i des données de l’exploi a ion, en che chan un équilib e en e le nomb e d’indica eu s qui co esponden à chaque a ibu de la du abili é ; (ii) géné e des indica eu s ep ésen a i s de la du abili é des sys èmes liés à l'en i onnemen , aussi bien physique, économique que social ; e (iii) c ée des indica eu s qui enseignen su l’é olu ion du sys ème e de sa du abili é. Mo s-clés : P oduc ion o ine e cap ine, du abili é, indica eu s. In oduc ion An animal p oduc ion sys em is expec ed o be sus ainable i i is capable o ep oducing i sel o a easonable leng h o ime and o changing in a imely manne , when condi ions demand, in o de o con inue unc ioning long e m. Fo his o occu , esou ces and ecological and social p ocesses cen al o i s unc ioning should be capable: (i) o ep oducing and sel - egula ing; (ii) o coo dina ing hemsel es o be mu ually compa ible; (iii) o abso bing he shock o ad e se dis u bances in a imely ashion; and (i ) o eo ganizing and adap ing hemsel es in he ace o in e nal and ex e nal s uc u al changes (Mase a e al.,1999). This e y gene al de ini ion helps us know wha we should e alua e when analysing sys em sus ainabili y. Howe e , a me hodology is equi ed in o de o make his analysis ope a i e. This me hodology o analysis, syn hesis, and e alua ion becomes a aluable planning ool as i : (i) allows us o know endencies o change p e ailing in p oduc i e sys ems and hei possible consequences; and (ii) con ibu es o de ining desi able scena ios and iden i ying one o mo e planned in e en ions o he sys em which could modi y undesi able endencies (Mojica,1991). In almos all me hodologies p oposed owa d his end, indica o s a e used o de ine sus ainabili y, in o he wo ds, sa is ying he needs o p esen gene a ions wi hou comp omising possibili ies o sa is ac ion o u u e gene a ions. Acco ding o Che alie e al. (1992), an indica o is a measu e o he obse able pa o a phenomenon which allows us o alue ano he unobse able pa o ha Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 206 same phenomenon. Fo his eason i becomes a p oximal a iable. Con en ionally, animal sys ems esea ch con empla es he use o limi ed a iables and indica o s, wi hou he e alua ion being o ganized in he con ex o , and wi h a pe spec i e o , sus ainabili y. This s udy analyses con en ional use o indica o s in animal p oduc ion, he basis o e alua ing sus ainabili y, and he possibili ies o using he FAO indica o s in o de o e alua e sus ainabili y o small uminan animal sys ems. Use o indica o s in animal p oduc ion Depending on he scope and objec i e o he s udy, many ypes o indica o s a e used in animal p oduc ion: e.g. om census da a, o da a on consump ion o concen a es pe animal pe yea ; o om an indica o aimed a egional le el decision making, o one o use in ope a ions managemen . Indica o s may be simple o complex, depending on he in o ma ion used and calcula ions made. Some indica o s a e simply aw da a while o he s a e esol ed by combining a numbe o di e en a iables de i ed om he p oduc ion sys em o he ma ke (Toussain , 2002). I we ocus on animal ope a ions and managemen , indica o s may e e o he sys em’s physical o economic aspec s, and hei u ili y will depend on p oduc i e op ions and managemen models (Moyano e al., 2004). In mos o he s udies which men ion indica o s, hese a e g ouped as echnical, economic, o echnical-economic. Technical indica o s may be u he g ouped in o ep oduc i e ( e ili y, numbe o o sp ing pe p egnancy, in e al be ween bi hs, p opo ion o non- p oduc i e bi hs, ep oduce s pe male, % o eplacemen , e c.), p oduc i e (lambs o baby goa s p oduced pe emale pe yea , milk p oduced pe emale pe yea , e c.) and sani a y (% o abo ions, dea hs o ep oduce s, bac e iological quali y o he milk, e c.). Economic indica o s exp ess in mone a y e ms he le el o echnological and business e iciency in he ope a ions. They also measu e he esul s o managemen decisions, including income, cos s, a ia ion in in en o y, and g oss o ne ma gin. Technical-economic indica o s a e e y use ul, especially hose showing income o ma gin pe ep oduce , pe li e, o pe wo ke . These allow o esul s o ope a ions wi h e y di e en p oduc ion o ma ke condi ions. Examples o his ype o indica o a e: income pe ep oduce , ixed cos s pe li e, and ne ma gin pe ep oduce (Pé ez e al., 1998; Moyano e al., 2004). The use o a common me hodology o gene a e echnical-economic indica o s o small uminan animal p oduc ion sys ems has been one o he objec i es o he Sheep and Goa Subne wo k o FAO's P oduc ion Sys ems Ne wo k, c ea ed in 1994 wi h he goal o elabo a ing a ma ix o ollow-up o hese sys ems (Toussain e al., 1999). Ini ially, he Obse a o y analysed he e olu ion o sys ems o di e en egions in he Medi e anean wa e shed in ime and space. Mo e ecen ly, i s ac i i y has had wo ace s: s udy o he unc ioning o sheep and goa p oduc ion sys ems in hese egions and s udy o he en i onmen . Gi en he he e ogenei y o hese sys ems and o exis ing le els o in o ma ion in di e en zones o he Medi e anean egions, om he beginning he Obse a o y has had o de elop a common me hodology o ca y ou compa a i e ( ans e sal) analysis. A collec ion o indica o s has been cons uc ed o: (i) desc ibe he unc ioning o sheep and goa p oduc ion sys ems; as well as (ii) cha ac e is ics and e olu ion o hei en i onmen (Toussain , 2002). The indica o s o unc ioning a e classi ied in o ou le els. Le el 1 includes hose minimal desc ip i e elemen s needed o iden i y he sys ems´ s uc u e. These include land and labou use, p oduc s ob ained, and global economic esul s. Le el 2 includes he o me as well as mo e de ailed echnical, economic, and echnical-economic indica o s. Le el 3 includes indica o s which desc ibe he sys em’s unc ioning in mo e de ail and explain le el 2 indica o s. Le el 3 also includes di e en coe icien s ob ained om he quan i a i e indica o s, which may a y om one si ua ion o ano he . Finally le el 4 includes indica o s aimed a speci ic s udies, o which special da a is needed. The indica o s o cha ac e is ics and e olu ion o hei en i onmen which in luence sys em ope a ions a e s ill being s udied by he Obse a o y. A p elimina y p oposal (Toussain , 2002) classi ies en i onmen al indica o s in o wo le els, and le el 2 is u he di ided in o h ee sub-le els (A, B and C). Le el 1 includes a quali a i e desc ip ion o he geog aphic, economic, social, and poli ical con ex o he ope a ions. Le els 2A and 2B desc ibe hese ac o s quan i a i ely and le el 2C desc ibes hei e olu ion. Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 207 Founda ions o e alua ing sus ainabili y Sus ainabili y is a pa adigm which aims o comply simul aneously wi h p oduc i e, economic, social, cul u al, and ecological objec i es (Sa andón, 2002). In o de o add ess all hese dimensions, sus ainabili y analysis o animal p oduc ion sys ems should ocus on dynamic sys ems in a mul idisciplina y manne (Kau mann and Cle eland, 1995; Belche e al., 2004). Uni e sal pa ame e s and c i e ia o his app oach do no exis , and app op ia e ools and/o me hodologies a e s ill being de eloped. In o de o analysis o sus ainabili y o be ope a i e, he beha iou o an app op ia e numbe o ele an indica o s should be cha ac e ized. These should be adequa e o he objec i es and scale o he analysis, should in eg a e a iables, should be sensi i e o a wide ange o condi ions and changes o e ime, and should be eadily measu able, eliable, and easy o unde s and (Mase a e al., 1999; Sa andón, 2002). Indica o s should ha e he capaci y o de ec hose p ope ies mos ele an o he sys ems´ unc ioning and hei endencies o change. Such p ope ies o a ibu es a e necessa y o he sys ems o be sus ainable. Some basic p ope ies desc ibed by Conway (1987), Ma en (1988) and Kaine and Toze (2005) a e p oduc i i y, s abili y, eliabili y, equali y, esilience, and au onomy. In his con ex , Mase a e al. (1999) p opose a F amewo k o he E alua ion o Na u al Resou ce Managemen Sys ems (MESMIS in Spanish), which inco po a es sus ainabili y indica o s and in eg a es se en gene al p ope ies wi h which hose sys ems should comply in o de o be sus ainable. We p esen de ini ions upda ed by Ga cia-Ba ios and Pimm (in p ess) o he second edi ion o his me hodology: (i) P oduc i i y: This is he le el o goods and se ices (yields, p o i s, en i onmen al se ices, e c) which he sys em p o ides pe uni o ime and pe uni o inpu in es ed. (ii) S abili y: A p oduc i e sys em is s able i i has in e nal mechanisms which sel - egula e he s a e o i s c i ical a iables, in such a manne ha hey a e main ained a alues which allow he sys em o unc ion. A sys em is s able when one c i ical a iable ( o example, p oduc i i y) is modi ied by a dis u bance, and his e y change c ea es signals and sys emic in e ac ions which cause he a iable o e u n o i s p e ious s a e. (iii) Resilience: This is only p esen in s able sys ems, and is he a e a which he dis u bed a iable e u ns o i s p e ious s a e. I e lec s he e iciency o he sys em’s sel - egula ing mechanisms. (i ) Reliabili y: Dis u bances may cause a c i ical a iable o he sys em o each a s a e in which sel - egula ion mechanisms allowing ha dis u bance o be e e sed canno ope a e. Reliabili y is he p obabili y ha his does no occu . I depends on he equency o he dis u bance, on he esis ance which he a iable o e s o change, and on he ange o alues in which he change is e e sible. ( ) Adap abili y (o Flexibili y): A p oduc i e sys em is adap able i i is capable o eo ganizing i sel o con inue unc ioning when i unde goes i e e sible in e nal o ex e nal changes. ( i) Equali y: A p oduc i e sys em is egali a ian i i allows o ai dis ibu ion, wi hin and be ween gene a ions, in an app op ia e manne , o cos s and bene i s among he social agen s in ol ed. Equali y no only has an undeniable e hical alue, bu i is also a mechanism o social sel - egula ion which con ibu es o he sys em pe sis ing and e ol ing adequa ely. ( ii) Independence: The p e ious p ope ies la gely depend on he ex en o which beha iou o he sys em depends on i s own esou ces, in e ac ions, and in e nal p ocesses in o de o egula e i sel and e ol e, and o wha ex en i depends on condi ions, dis u bances, and ex e nal in e en ions which i does no con ol. F om hese gene al p ope ies, speci ic indica o s a e de i ed, based on echnical, economic, social, and en i onmen al a iables (Mase a e al., 1999). Impo an aspec s o conside o de elopmen and adequa e use o such indica o s a e: (i) Be o e choosing indica o s, one should gene ally cha ac e ize hose sys ems o be e alua ed, conside ing he a eas o e alua ion and pe inen spa ial scale(s). (ii) Tempo al scale o he e alua ion: The necessa y e alua ion pe iod o whe he an ag o- ecosys em is sus ainable on a sho o long- e m basis should ange om se en o wen y- i e yea s (Smy h and Dumanski, 1995). I in he de ini ion o sus ainabili y one speaks o sa is ying he needs o u u e gene a ions, he empo al ho izon should be a leas a gene a ion, o 25 yea s (Sa andón, 2002). Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 208 Acco ding oMase ae al. (1999), e alua ion o sus ainabili y should be ca ied ou compa a i ely. The e a e wo ways o doing his: (i) longi udinal compa ison, which s udies he e olu ion o an ag o- ecosys em o e ime, in a e ospec i e o p ospec i e manne ; and (ii) ans e sal compa ison, which simul aneously s udies one o mo e sys ems o al e na i e managemen . Pe inen in o ma ion may be ob ained h ough su eys wi h p oduce s, ield measu emen s, li e a u e e iew and analysis, s a is ical in o ma ion o a combina ion o he abo e. Once in o ma ion on he indica o s is ob ained, esul s should be in eg a ed h ough anspa en p ocedu es which can be consis en ly o ganized, analysed, and syn hesized. In he in eg a ion s age, i is no wise o y o con e a g oup o indica o s which a e di e se in na u e and scale o only one o jus a ew “a e age” indica o s in o de o compa e sys ems. A minimum numbe o indica o s necessa y o unde s anding he sys em’s beha iou should be managed simul aneously. Indica o s may be in eg a ed using one o se e al o ms o mul i-c i e ia e alua ion which has been de eloped o his pu pose (Ma ínez-Alie e al., 1998; Munda e al., 1998; Gal án, 2004). These allow o simul aneously unde s anding he po en ials and limi a ions o he beha iou o he e alua ed sys ems in o de o guide decision making on how o selec among sys ems and/ o in e ene in o de o achie e g ea e sus ainabili y. Possibili ies o using he FAO indica o s o e alua e sus ainabili y o small uminan animal sys ems Goa sys ems' sus ainabili y has been ecen ly analysed, based on he indica o s p oposed by FAO (Nahed e al., in p ess). In Table 1, hese indica o s a e g ouped by a ibu e o sys em(s) p ope ies. This esul ed om collabo a ion be ween esea che s o he Animal P oduc ion A ea o he Uni e si y o Se ille and esea che s o ECOSUR (Mexico), and om a p ojec o he Se ille esea che s in collabo a ion wi h he FAO Obse a o y in which a pilo p ojec was launched in o de o c ea e a zone o echnical-economic e e ences in Andalusia (Cas el e al., 2004, Mena e al., 2004). As compa ed wi h indica o s used in sus ainabili y s udies (e.g. As ie -Calde ón e al., 2002; Nahed e al., in p ess), FAO indica o s p ope ly conside p oduc i e and economic aspec s, bu only supe icially social aspec s, and poo ly cul u al and ecological aspec s. The e o e, new indica o s mus be de eloped o animal p oduc ion sys ems o a ying ex en s. The p oduc i i y a ibu e complies wi h he MESMIS me hodology (Mase a e al., 1999). This is logical, as i deals wi h echnical-economic indica o s. The a ibu es o s abili y, esilience, eliabili y, and adap abili y a e only pa ially conside ed, as hese a ibu es equi e ollowing he e olu ion o he sys em. Ins ead, hey we e app oxima ed by es ima ing how he sys em could e ol e o espond o a gi en change ( o example, % o adul mo ali y, p oduce age, le el o implemen ing milking echnology, e c.). The equali y a ibu e was only pa ially conside ed, while sel -su iciency was ully conside ed. Sus ainabili y is a dynamic a ibu e o a sys em. The e o e i equi es ollowing up on he mos ele an indica o s o se e al yea s. Wi h espec o his, he me hodology p oposed by FAO is qui e adequa e, as i is designed o pe iodic ollow-up o sys ems. Sus ainabili y may be e alua ed o a single sys em o by compa ing wo o mo e sys ems. Occasionally, due o lack o in o ma ion, ime o esou ces, e alua ion mus be ini ia ed using da a om only one yea , bu he u u e possibili y o b oadening he s udy ( e ospec i ely o p ospec i ely) should be kep in mind. Fig. 1 p esen s an ex eme example in o de o show he ad an ages and disad an ages o he di e en ypes o e alua ion. The ho izon al do ed line ep esen s he h eshold o lowes accep able le el o a c i ical indica o . In his heu is ic example, a ne minimum ma gin pe goa pe yea (50 €) is aken as a h eshold a which a goa sys em in Andalusia, Spain is abandoned. S1 and S2 a e di e en goa managemen sys ems. E alua ion o a single sys em (S1) may be ca ied ou in a ans e sal manne (e.g. in 2005), in a e ospec i e longi udinal manne (e.g. om 1995–2005), o in a p ospec i e longi udinal manne (e.g. om 2005-2015). The i s is easy o ca y ou , bu only allows us o begin o iden i y possible c i ical indica o s. The second speci ies his o ical da a wi h he ad an age o sugges ing possible u u e endencies. The hi d equi es mo e e o , bu is c ucial in con i ming endencies and hei consequences. Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 209 Table 1. Sus ainabili y indica o s o goa sys ems g ouped by a ibu e (adap ed om Nahed e al., in p ess) Indica o s Uni P oduc i i y 1. Concen a e/milk p oduced kg 2. Milk sold/goa and yea Li es 3. Fa in milk % 4. P o ein in milk % 5. Kids sold/goa and yea Heads 6. Ne ma gin/l milk p oduced € 7. Ne ma gin/goa and yea € 8. Ne ma gin/ amily wo ke and yea € S abili y, eliabili y and esilience 9. P esence o Payoya b eed o i s c osses % o a m 10. A ea owned/goa ha 11. Na u al pas u e a ea/goa ha 12. B ush a ea/goa ha 13. S ubble a ea/goa ha 14. Goa s p esen Heads 15.Goa mo ali y % 16. Kid mo ali y % 17. Goa eplacemen a e % 18. Bac e ia in milk Pe 1000 ml 19. Soma ic cells in milk Pe 1000 ml 20. Good ca aloguing o b ucellosis con ol % o a m 21. Milk p ice €/l 22. A e age kid p ice €/head 23. Cows/goa Heads 24. Sows/goa Heads 25. Sheep/goa Heads Adap abili y 26. Fa me ’s age Yea s 27. Succession con inui y % o a ms 28. Fo ma ion cou ses a ended by amily membe s Days 29. Milking echnology Deg ee o implemen a ion 30. In en o y a ia ion/goa and yea € 31. Rela ionship in es men /ne ma gin % Equi abili y 32. To al labo /100 goa s Annual wo k uni 33. Family bene icia ies wi hou occupa ion No. 34. To al amily bene icia ies No. 35. Ex e nal wo k o e s No. Independence 36. Ne ene gy ob ained om g azing % 37. To al a ea/goa ha 38. Cul i a ed pas u e/goa ha 39. Ren ed a ea ha 40. Concen a e/goa and yea kg 41. Fo age consumed in ough/goa and yea kg 42. P opo ion o amily wo k o ce in ela ion o o al wo k o ce/100 goa s % 43. Associa ions o which he a me belongs No. 44. Subsidies/goa and yea € Op ions Médi e anéennes, Sé ie A, No. 70 210 S1 and S2 may be compa ed in h ee di e en ways which p oduce di e en conclusions (Fig. 1): (i) T ans e sal: S1 and S2 a e compa ed only in 2005. I is concluded ha ne ma gin (NM) is g ea e in S1 han in S2. The e o e, S1 is p e e ed. (ii) Longi udinal e ospec i e: S1 and S2 a e compa ed om a pe iod p e ious o 2005 (1990- 2005). I is concluded ha NM o S1 was g ea e in 1990, bu ha i s ad an age has declined and in 2005 i s NM is almos equal o ha o S2. Now i is no so clea ha S1 should be p e e ed. (iii) Longi udinal p ospec i e: S1 and S2 a e compa ed in a pe iod s a ing in 2005 (2005-2015). I is concluded ha he p ocesses p e iously shown in he wo sys ems ha e in e ed he ini ial ad an age o S1 o e S2. Fu he mo e, S1 is nea ing he c i ical h eshold o he indica o while S2 is mo ing away om i . S2 should de ini ely be p e e ed. Fig. 1. Hypo he ical beha iou o ne ma gin pe goa in wo sys ems o e he cou se o 50 yea s. S1 and S2 a e di e en goa managemen sys ems. Conclusions Resul s ob ained indica e ha , as a i s app oxima ion o he s udy o sus ainabili y, he echnical- economic indica o s p oposed by FAO a e accep able, as hey p o ide in o ma ion on all a ibu es, al hough o di e en ex en s, and p ima ily ocused on he ope a ions le el. The e is a lack o in o ma ion on how he la e in e ac s wi h he la ge scale economic, en i onmen al, and social condi ions. I is necessa y o de elop a g oup o indica o s which e e o he b oade con ex . To be e conside he mul idimensionali y o he sus ainabili y concep , i is necessa y o u he de elop and be e g oup he indica o s by e alua ion a ea and by sus ainabili y a ibu es. I is also necessa y o de elop a plan o eco ding consis en long- e m da a on ele an indica o s acco ding o he objec i es o he e alua ion. In o de o make he FAO indica o s iable in analysing sus ainabili y o sheep and goa sys ems, se e al ac ions a e necessa y: (i) Reduce he numbe o indica o s o igina ing om ope a ions and keep only hose which a e ep esen a i e o each a ibu e, ying o balance he numbe o indica o s included in each. (ii) Gene a e new indica o s which show he sus ainabili y o sys ems in ela ion o hei economic, en i onmen al o social con ex . 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