Economic efficiency of production of camelina and spelt wheat in organic intercropping systems

An intercropping system consists of simultaneous cultivation of two or more crop species on the same field in the same plant growing season in order to optimise the use of resources and to enhance yields. The economics of organic production is often on the verge of profitability or else is not analysed at all, which justifies the current study, the aim of which has been to make an economic analysis of the production of camelina and spelt in organic cultivation in two production systems, i.e. separately (solo) and intercropping. Including environmental external cost of organic farming production, crucial in any discussion about care of the environment, is a novel approach. The economic analysis comprised direct and indirect costs aggregated as internal cost. The analysis also took into account the external cost of the impact on the environment, which allowed us to determine the total cost of the cultivation of both crops. The revenue (gross income) from selling the seed yields and from subsidies was taken into consideration. The lowest cost was determined for camelina in the solo cropping system: direct cost was € 683.45 ha –1 , internal cost: € 715.67 ha –1 and total cost including external cost of the impact on the environment was € 1059.29 ha –1 . The revenue from selling crop yields together with the revenue from subsidies did not cover the cost of spelt production in the solo system. Camelina was profitable even without subsidies and generated a profit of € 1229.75 ha –1 , unlike spelt, which required subsidies to be viable. Considering the fact that the aim of organic farming is to produce high-quality yields while using natural resources, and to reduce its impact on the environment, it can be concluded that camelina is a profitable crop, suitable for organic cultivation. • The lowest cost was determined for camelina in the solo cropping system. • The direct cost of camelina production was € 683.45 ha –1 . • The total cost including external cost of camelina production was € 1059.29 ha –1 . • Production of camelina and spelt in the intercropping system was profitable. • Organic cultivation of camelina generated a profit of €1229.75 ha –1 .