Swedish dairy farms are undergoing rapid structural change that not only affects how milk is produced but also the environment and rural areas generally. The project will improve our understanding of how structural change affects profitability of both smaller and larger dairy farms depending on how agricultural and environmental policy instruments are designed. Further, it will improve our knowledge of how biodiversity, the cultural landscape and emissions of nutrients and green-house gases are affected by structural change and policy framework. These aspects are crucial for the Swedish value-added model linked to environmental quality and animal welfare.

The project is in collaboration with three Departments at SLU: the Departments of i) Economics, ii) Clinical Sciences, and ii) People and Society; as well as VÄXA Sverige. It is financed by Stiftelsen Lantbruksforskning and coordinated by Ruben Hoffmann (SLU). The project will run for three years ending in 2024.