Replacing external inputs with ecosystem services to produce lamb meat can increase exposure to ecosystem disservices

Few frameworks are currently available to assess the flows of ecosystem services (ESs) and disservices (EDSs) from and into livestock farming systems (LFSs). We estimated these flows using the Barn , a graphical tool designed to represent the integration of LFS into their surrounding landscapes. This tool uses bi-directional arrows to depict flows of multiple types of ES and EDS. Based on five contrasting lamb meat systems, we estimated that the flows of ES that support lamb meat production, such as the provision of forage and nitrogen fixation, were often associated with EDS, such as wolf predation or rodent outbreaks. These EDSs were particularly detrimental for the LFS that depended more on ES than on external inputs. We also observed that few operational indicators exist for quantifying EDS. The results show that deriving benefits from ecosystems implies interacting closely with the environment, which can generate disadvantages. This result also reveals a trade-off between ES and EDS, which has received little attention so far. This highlights the need to better assess and mitigate EDS, to prevent them from hindering the transition toward more sustainable practices that aim to reduce external inputs.