‘Connecting Smallholders to Markets’ is the title of policy recommendations negotiated on 8- 9 June 2016 in the Committee on World Food Security, the foremost inclusive international and intergovernmental platform deliberating on issues of food security and nutrition. Work on this extremely important topic has been underway since 2014. It...

Las Kuatras Marias farm is located in San Narcisso village, near Victoria City in Oriental Mindoro, Philippines, where rice monoculture is the main source of income for family farmers in the area. Applying an extensive knowledge of indigenous and organic practices, the farm is strategically structured in distinct components that...

The Europe 2020 strategy for growth and jobs called for a stronger role of financial instruments in 2014-2020. The European Council subsequently gave a mandate to the European Commission that the programming of the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) should be used to significantly increase the overall EU support...

Según la Fao las mujeres rurales son responsables por más de la mitad de la producción de alimentos a nivel mundial, pero en América Latina y el Caribe continúan viviendo en una situación de desigualdad social, económica y política, que se expresa en temas como el acceso al crédito y...

An Open Letter by the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food highlighting concern over the Regional Arusha Protocol for the Protection of New Plant Varieties by the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO)The letter highlights concern that the Arusha Protocol is inappropriate for the ARIPO region and the non-transparent...

Based on experience and lessons learned in 2014-15, Africa’s Regional Initiative 2 (RI2) (originally entitled “Integrated Management of Agricultural Landscapes in Africa”) has been revamped for implementation in 2016-17 to sharpen its focus and to make it more programmatic. It takes a food systems approach with two integrated components, namely...

A one-day ENRD seminar to look at the practical opportunities for promoting the Green Economy through the Rural Development Programmes. The event is designed for all those involved in the implementation of the Rural Development Programmes from EU, national, regional and local levels. The aim is to share experiences, provide...

The idea behind the approach of AgriSpin project is that all partners have their own experiences, ideas and approaches which are worth sharing with others. Nobody pretends to know best. A golden standard or silver bullet for stimulating innovations does not exist. Every partner is working in a context that...

On 6 December 2016 the second edition of Organic Innovation Days took place at the Representation of Emilia Romagna Region in Brussels. The event generated a great interest among the researchers, European regions, farmer organisations, companies and policy makers. The day started with a policy panel where Simona Caselli, Minister of...

On 6 December 2016 the second edition of Organic Innovation Days took place at the Representation of Emilia Romagna Region in Brussels. The event generated a great interest among the researchers, European regions, farmer organisations, companies and policy makers. The day started with a policy panel where Simona Caselli, Minister of...

A Unique Sense of Place - the Tarnava Mare area of South-eastern Transylvania is one of the forgotten jewels in Romania's crown. It is one of the Europe's most important natural and cultural landscapes, including some of the finest pristine wildflower rich grasslands – the result of centuries of good...

Only a small number of governments have established meaningful and effective farmer-centred measures for the implementation of access and benefit sharing of genetic resources. One reason is the highly complex nature of the international regulatory system. This special issue of Farming Matters magazine presents practical ways in which access and...

Improved standards for food safety and animal health should make Georgia’s agriculture sector more competitive. That is exactly the objective of a new US$5 million project launched recently by FAO and Georgia’s Ministry of Agriculture. The four-year project – financed by the Swiss Development Cooperation and the Austria Development Agency –...

The Seminar is part of the ENRD work on ‘Smart and Competitive Rural Areas’ where the main objective is to ‘To maximise the impact that RDPs have on supporting farms and rural firms in accessing emerging markets’. The main focus for the activity has been on cooperation and investments which increase...

V consulta sobre soberanía alimentaria realizada en Panamá los días 19 y 20 de febrero 2016. Organizada por la Alianza por la soberanía Alimentaria para América Latina y El Caribe.

This educational video presents Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) through practical examples and theory. It is illustrated by 4 PGS initiatives: “Nature et Progres” in France, “Rede Ecovida de Agroecologia” in Brazil, “Bryanston Organic and Natural Market” in South Africa and “Sabeto Organic Producers Association” in Fiji. The video is structured...

150 participants and volunteers from 25 countries gathered from Sept 16th -18th in Provoz Hlubina (Ostrava, CZ) for the 3rd European meeting on CSA. Participants unanimously adopted the European Declaration on Community Supported Agriculture which they will all take home to their respective countries.

This month's newsletter focuses on Operational Groups (OGs). Hear about some first experiences from people involved in OGs and discover a range of tools and information which are available for you to use on the EIP-AGRI website.

Public funding of agricultural science brings strong social benefits, experts said at last week’s international conference on the impact of research on agriculture in Europe. Participants in the conference, held at FAO headquarters in Rome, called for increased public spending to enable agriculture to respond to today’s challenges.

All over Europe, people are coming together to take control of our food systems, from production to distribution to consumption. We are building systems centered on our local communities. We are joining forces to achieve food sovereignty, by claiming our right to define our own food and agricultural systems. The time is ripe to address...