Biodiversity accounting and natural capital in the Mexican agro industrial sector
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63688/desarrollo.v3.i1.26Keywords:
biodiversity, natural capital, environmental accounting, agribusiness, sustainability.Abstract
Objective: To analyze the relationship between biodiversity and natural capital accounting practices and the sustainability of the Mexican agribusiness sector, considering the identification of natural assets, the valuation of ecosystem services, the recording of environmental impacts and the use of ecological information in decision-making. Methodology: A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional and descriptive-correlational research was carried out with a sample of 180 participants linked to agro-industrial activities in Chiapas, Veracruz, Michoacán and Yucatán. The information was collected through a 24-item questionnaire with a Likert-type scale, validated by specialists and with an overall reliability of 0.93 according to Cronbach's alpha. For the analysis, descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation and multiple linear regression were applied. Results: Natural capital accounting reached a medium level, while agro-industrial sustainability presented a high level. A positive, high and statistically significant relationship was identified between both variables. The incorporation of environmental information in decision-making was the dimension with the greatest explanatory capacity, followed by the valuation of ecosystem services. Limitations were also evident in the monetary valuation and accounting record of impacts on biodiversity. Conclusions: Biodiversity and natural capital accounting contributes to the strengthening of the environmental and productive sustainability of the Mexican agro-industrial sector. Its application allows us to recognize dependencies, risks and ecosystem benefits; however, it requires standardized procedures, technical training, and greater integration of environmental information into enterprise accounting systems.References
Obst C, Hein L, Edens B. National accounting and the valuation of ecosystem assets and their services. Environmental and Resource Economics. 2016;64(1):1–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10640-015-9921-1
Remme RP, Edens B, Schröter M, Hein L. Monetary accounting of ecosystem services: A test case for Limburg province, the Netherlands. Ecological Economics. 2015;112:116–128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2015.02.015
Sumarga E, Hein L, Edens B, Suwarno A. Mapping monetary values of ecosystem services in support of developing ecosystem accounts. Ecosystem Services. 2015;12:71–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2015.02.009
Keith H, Vardon M, Stein JA, Stein JL, Lindenmayer D. Ecosystem accounts define explicit and spatial trade-offs for managing natural resources. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 2017;1(11):1683–1692. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0309-1
King S, Vardon M, Grantham HS, Eigenraam M, Ferrier S, Juhn D, et al. Linking biodiversity into national economic accounting. Environmental Science & Policy. 2021;116:20–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2020.10.020
Grondard N, Hein L, Van Bussel LGJ. Ecosystem accounting to support the Common Agricultural Policy. Ecological Indicators. 2021;131:108157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.108157
Houdet J, Ding H, Quétier F, Addison P, Deshmukh P. Adapting double-entry bookkeeping to renewable natural capital: An application to corporate net biodiversity impact accounting and disclosure. Ecosystem Services. 2020;45:101104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2020.101104
Fleming A, O’Grady AP, Stitzlein C, Ogilvy S, Mendham D, Harrison MT. Improving acceptance of natural capital accounting in land use decision making: Barriers and opportunities. Ecological Economics. 2022;200:107510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2022.107510
Fleming A, Ogilvy S, O’Grady AP, Green I, Stitzlein C, Horner C. Designing natural capital accounting for agriculture: Perceptions of farm accountants. Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal. 2024;15(7):85–105. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-04-2024-0356
Campos P, Álvarez A, Mesa B, Oviedo JL, Ovando P, Caparrós A. Total income and ecosystem service sustainability index: Accounting applications to holm oak dehesa case study in Andalusia-Spain. Land Use Policy. 2020;97:104692. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104692
Arcos Severo M, Ruiz Rosado O. Valoración de los servicios ecosistémicos en agroecosistemas de huertos familiares del centro de Veracruz, México. Madera y Bosques. 2025;31:e312643. https://doi.org/10.21829/myb.2025.312643
Hernández-Martínez G, Manson RH, Contreras Hernández A. Quantitative classification of coffee agroecosystems spanning a range of production intensities in central Veracruz, Mexico. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2009;134(1–2):89–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2009.05.020
Gordon C, Manson R, Sundberg J, Cruz-Angón A. Biodiversity, profitability, and vegetation structure in a Mexican coffee agroecosystem. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2007;118(1–4):256–266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2006.05.023
López-Gómez AM, Williams-Linera G, Manson RH. Tree species diversity and vegetation structure in shade coffee farms in Veracruz, Mexico. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2008;124(3–4):160–172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2007.09.008
Soto-Pinto L, Perfecto I, Castillo-Hernández J, Caballero-Nieto J. Shade effect on coffee production at the northern Tzeltal zone of the state of Chiapas, Mexico. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2000;80(1–2):61–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8809(00)00134-1
Soto-Pinto L, Anzueto M, Mendoza J, Jiménez Ferrer G, de Jong B. Carbon sequestration through agroforestry in indigenous communities of Chiapas, Mexico. Agroforestry Systems. 2010;78(1):39–51. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-009-9247-5
Lara-Pulido JA, Guevara-Sanginés A, Torres-Rojo JM, Núñez-Hernández JM, Riojas J, Pérez-Cirera V, et al. Honey-Guacamole: Assessment of pollination environmental service in avocado production in Michoacan, Mexico. Acta Universitaria. 2021;31:e3083. https://doi.org/10.15174/au.2021.3083
Peeters LYK, Soto-Pinto L, Perales H, Montoya G, Ishiki M. Coffee production, timber, and firewood in traditional and Inga-shaded plantations in Southern Mexico. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2003;95(2–3):481–493. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8809(02)00204-9
Greenberg R, Bichier P, Sterling J. Bird populations in rustic and planted shade coffee plantations of eastern Chiapas, Mexico. Biotropica. 1997;29(4):501–514. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7429.1997.tb00044.x
Salazar-Barrientos L de L, Magaña-Magaña MA, Latournerie-Moreno L. Importancia económica y social de la agrobiodiversidad del traspatio en una comunidad rural de Yucatán, México. Agricultura, Sociedad y Desarrollo. 2015;12(1):1–14.
Salazar-Barrientos L de L, Magaña-Magaña MÁ, Aguilar-Jiménez AN, Ricalde-Pérez MF. Factores socioeconómicos asociados al aprovechamiento de la agrobiodiversidad de la milpa en Yucatán. Ecosistemas y Recursos Agropecuarios. 2016;3(9):391–400. https://doi.org/10.19136/era.a3n9.724
Orozco-Ramírez Q, Astier M, Barrasa S. Agricultural land use change after NAFTA in Central West Mexico. Land. 2017;6(4):66. https://doi.org/10.3390/land6040066
Pérez-Solache A, Vaca-Sánchez MS, Maldonado-López Y, Lopes de Faria M, Borges MAZZ. Changes in land use of temperate forests associated to avocado production in Mexico: Impacts on soil properties, plant traits and insect–plant interactions. Agricultural Systems. 2023;204:103556. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2022.103556
Mas AH, Dietsch TV. Linking shade coffee certification to biodiversity conservation: Butterflies and birds in Chiapas, Mexico. Ecological Applications. 2004;14(3):642–654. https://doi.org/10.1890/02-5225
Perfecto I, Vandermeer J, Mas A, Soto-Pinto L. Biodiversity, yield, and shade coffee certification. Ecological Economics. 2005;54(4):435–446. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2004.10.009
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Raquel Ríos Venegas, Samuel Iram González Roblero, Laura Patricia Rincón Meneses (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The article is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Unless otherwise stated, associated published material is distributed under the same licence.
