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Organic farming is frequently associated with claims of more labour requirements than conventional. However, there is a fragmented knowledge about labour use on organic farms in terms of workload, nature and quality of employment provided. In the context of a growing organic demand and a need for more farmers to convert to reach policy targets set by many EU governments, it seems crucial to understand labour trends on organic farms and to what extent labour requirements may hinder the adoption of the organic methods. This paper presents a review of mainly European literature published since 2000. Studies presenting results by farm type usually indicate higher labour use per hectare on organic than conventional arable farms, whereas similar or lower labour use is reported on organic livestock farms, and the results are mixed for other farm types. We have identified in the existing literature two broad dimensions directly related with labour use, which need to be considered in comparative studies, namely farm structure (including farm type, but also farm size and diversification activities), and technical efficiency. These two broad dimensions give us insights into some more specific factors affecting labour use, and how labour is related with productivity and technical efficiency. Overall it appears that claims that labour requirements represent a concrete obstacle to the adoption of the organic methods need to be treated with caution, and more research is needed to understand the role of labour in farmers' decision to convert to organic farming. The review of the nature and quality of employment indicates positive health effects related to higher satisfaction and lower exposure to pesticides in organic agriculture as the most important advantages for farm workers. Overall, there is limited research on whether the organic sector provides better opportunities in terms of job prospects, wages and employment of women.

Organic farming is frequently associated with claims of more labour requirements than conventional. However, there is a fragmented knowledge about labour use on organic farms in terms of workload, nature and quality of employment provided. In the context of a growing organic demand and a need for more farmers to convert to reach policy targets set by many EU governments, it seems crucial to understand labour trends on organic farms and to what extent labour requirements may hinder the adoption of the organic methods. This paper presents a review of mainly European literature published since 2000. Studies presenting results by farm type usually indicate higher labour use per hectare on organic than conventional arable farms, whereas similar or lower labour use is reported on organic livestock farms, and the results are mixed for other farm types. We have identified in the existing literature two broad dimensions directly related with labour use, which need to be considered in comparative studies, namely farm structure (including farm type, but also farm size and diversification activities), and technical efficiency. These two broad dimensions give us insights into some more specific factors affecting labour use, and how labour is related with productivity and technical efficiency. Overall it appears that claims that labour requirements represent a concrete obstacle to the adoption of the organic methods need to be treated with caution, and more research is needed to understand the role of labour in farmers' decision to convert to organic farming. The review of the nature and quality of employment indicates positive health effects related to higher satisfaction and lower exposure to pesticides in organic agriculture as the most important advantages for farm workers. Overall, there is limited research on whether the organic sector provides better opportunities in terms of job prospects, wages and employment of women.

The report is part of the project 'Farm Accountancy Cost Estimation and Policy Analysis of European Agriculture' (FACEPA). The overall aim of this report is to contrast organic and conventional forms of commodity production in terms of costs and environmental performance. Specific objectives are to apply the General Cost of Production Model (GECOM) developed in the FACEPA project to organic farms, to compare GECOM results for organic farming to data from other national studies as part of a (quasi-)validation, to discuss production costs in organic farming in the light of the structure of the organic farming sector and the respective policy environment in selected EU Member States, and to explore the potential of FADN systems for deriving environmental impacts at farm level, calculating and comparing selected indicators for organic farms. The report is structured as follows: First, a short overview is given of the structure of the organic farming sector and the respective policy environment in selected study countries (Chapter 2). Chapter 3 provides a description and discussion of production costs in organic farming collected from various other national sources, paying specific attention to the impact of different methodological approaches used in the available studies. In Chapter 4, the GECOM estimations for fully organic farms of EU FADN are illustrated and compared to other national production cost data to provide a quasi-validation of the GECOM estimates. Chapter 5 presents a comparison of the GECOM estimates for production costs in organic and conventional farming. The final Chapter 6 then illustrates the potential of identifying environmental impacts based on FADN data.

Leaving the European Union will present significant challenges to the farming industry, and creative change is required for a new agricultural policy after the transition period. Many farms rely on public support and there is a need to review possible solutions that will replace and improve on the Common Agricultural Policy, for both the industry and wider society. In particular, could the resources currently spent on CAP basic and coupled payments be redirected to pay for the delivery of public environmental goods? This study aims to contribute to preparing the evidence for post-Brexit agricultural and environmental support in this context. The results are intended to provide a basis for discussion and an illustration of how various proposals for supporting agriculture and the environment after exiting the EU could be applied. The objectives of this study are to:  illustrate how the concept of public money for public goods could be realised across a range of farm types in Scotland;  using case studies, make a comparison of current agricultural support with alternative proposals for rewarding farmers for the delivery of environmental public goods;  assess the impact on farm income of the various proposals compared with current pillar 1 and pillar 2 payments on the selected farms; and  discuss the feasibility