# Better valorization of dairy products from permanent grasslands to balance ecosystem services, a review

J Sénécal, A Morvan-Bertrand, S Lemauviel-Lavenant

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J Sénécal, A Morvan-Bertrand, S Lemauviel-Lavenant. Better valorization of dairy products from permanent grasslands to balance ecosystem services, a review. Grassland Science in Europe, 2024, 29, pp.223-225. hal-05068556

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Submitted on 15 May 2025

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Better valorization of dairy products from permanent grasslands to balance ecosystem services, a review

J. Sénécal¹, A. Morvan-Bertrand¹, S. Lemauviel-Lavenant¹

¹Normandie Université, Unicaen, INRAE, UMR 950 EVA Caen, France.

Abstract

Grasslands provide many ecosystem services (ES), that depend mainly on farmers through their management, but do not all benefit the same stakeholders. Farmers mainly benefit from the production of fodder to feed animals, while the whole society benefits from the environmental services and the conservation of biodiversity. Policies such as the Natura 2000 network or natural reserves or parks have been put in place to protect biodiversity but only concern limited areas. For regulating services such as C storage and water quality, payment for environmental services (PES) schemes are developing in Europe. However, these farm-level solutions do not focus on grasslands. A paradigm shift from production to the search for cost-effectiveness could offer an opportunity to balance ES in grasslands. Livestock feeding based on less intensively managed grasslands, leading to lower productivity, reduces energy and fertilizer costs, and can improve biodiversity but also many other ES. Such a system can be encouraged when high quality products, such as cheese, are promoted through labelling and certification. This paper questions the role of the valorization of dairy products in the balance of ES provided by grasslands implied in the dairy production.

Keyword: Permanent grasslands, Biodiversity conservation policies, Payment for services, Labeled dairy products.

Introduction

Recognised for their biodiversity enhanced by extensive management over centuries, permanent grasslands provide many Ecosystem Services (ES) that are now threatened by land use changes (Henle *et al.*, 2008): intensification, land abandonment but also their replacement by more productive forages such as temporary grasslands (sown since less than six years) or maize. Dairy farming faces many environmental challenges such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving water quality and biodiversity conservation, as well as economic and social challenges such as animal welfare (Dumont *et al.*, 2019). These aspects are gaining increasing attention from consumers (Alonso *et al.*, 2020). Some solutions exist to protect permanent grasslands and promote the ES they provide, such as protected areas for biodiversity conservation, payments for environmental services but also certified dairy products that meet the societal demand.

The preservation of grasslands' ES through protection statuses

In Europe each country has implemented protection statuses such as nature reserves to protect specific grasslands (semi natural grasslands with high heritage value). However, they represent only small areas and their management, which aims to protect threatened species, for example by grazing hardy cattle (heritage breeds), is fairly disconnected from farmers in terms of management and production aims. National and regional nature parks, another protection status, which represent larger areas, act to protect biodiversity in consultation with farmers but often lack the levers for ensuring the other ES provided by grasslands. At the European Union scale, the Natura 2000 network aims to prevent biodiversity loss, but mainly
guides grassland management to allow bird nesting. Nevertheless, it appears that the conservation of biodiversity can also improve other ES. Grasslands with a favourable conservation status have a higher potential to supply regulating and cultural services (Maes et al., 2012). More specifically, grasslands within the Natura 2000 network contain more organic carbon (C) in their soils than adjacent grasslands outside the network (Hagyo & Toth, 2018). All these protection statuses are designed to protect biodiversity and the environment, but they do not take into account fodder production, which is essential to support the activities of livestock farmers.

## Payment schemes for environmental services

Various payment schemes have been developed in Europe to reward environmental services. They are financial incentives granted by a 'buyer' to farmers as 'service providers' to implement good management practices leading to the improvement of a well-defined environmental service (Capodaglio & Callegari, 2018). Although these payment schemes provide support for farmers, they only cover a few services, mainly C storage and water quality, and are based on basic indicators of farm management such as grassland area, agricultural inputs and hedge lines (Sénécal et al., submitted).

## Labelling dairy products for a better balance between ES?

Other solutions, which would pay farmers directly for their production, could help to preserve ES in grasslands. Less intensive management may reduce productivity, but it can also reduce production costs and improve biodiversity and ES. Encouraging such a system can be achieved through better financial valuation of high-quality products such as cheese through labelling and certification. Growing consumer interest in sustainable dairy production, including the limitation of greenhouse gas emissions, the preservation of biodiversity and animal welfare, has led to the development of quality labels (McGarr-O'Brien et al., 2023; Mol & Oosterveer, 2015). In France, regional nature parks have created their own certification 'Valeurs Parc Naturel Régional', thus contributing to local development while reconciling social and environmental aspects. These products have the advantage to correspond to 'local' food but are not available for all consumers. In Europe, a number of dairy labels have been established to improve sustainability in environmental, economic, social or/and animal welfare terms: Arlagården (Denmark/Sweden), Demeter Biodynamic (Germany), Origin Green (Ireland), Pasture for Life Association (UK), Red Tractor (UK) (Mc-Garr-O'Brien et al., 2023). However, to our knowledge there are no studies on the bundles of services (Raudsepp-Hearne et al., 2010) in grasslands involved in dairy labels. Such analyses would represent a relevant approach to integrate the balance between ecosystem services: environmental, agronomic, welfare that these agrosystems provide.

## Perspectives: a project to evaluate ES provided by grasslands involved in dairy PDOs

While many labels have emerged in response to consumers' demand, there have been little research on the ES provided by the grasslands that meet the specifications. The 'cAnOPée' project, which has just started, aims at developing multiscale approach to the services provided by a quality labelled dairy chain with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) in Normandy. As part of this project, we will assess a set of ES among (i) supporting services with floristic and functional diversity, (ii) provisioning services with forage quality, (iii) regulating services with C storage, water regulation, pollination and (iv) cultural services with landscape heritage value (Figure 1). The cAnOPée project will investigate how the PDO
cheese labels of Normandy, linked to management specifications that certify the quality of products, also contributes to balancing the ES between them.

<figure><img src="image_2.png" /><figcaption>Figure 1. Analysis of ES in grasslands involved in four PDO cheese labels in Normandy.

CDN: Camembert de Normandie, LIV: Livarot, NFC: Neufchâtel, PTL: Pont-L'Evêque.</figcaption></figure>

## Acknowledgements

We thank ANR for funding the ‘cAnOPée’ project and Nathalie Desmasures for the project coordination.

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Sénécal J., Couvreur S., Lemauviel-Lavenant S. and Faure P. Bibliometric analysis of the literature focusing on ecosystem services provided by grasslands. (Submitted EGF24).