A new four-year project founded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovative programme and coordinated by the James Hutton Institute was launched in April 2016. “Social Innovation in Marginalised Rural Areas” (SIMRA) seeks to advance understanding of social innovation and innovative governance in agriculture, forestry and rural development,...

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) cannot make sure that a strong policy will be useful and affordable for all farmers in all countries. That should be done on a national level, but the CAP should secure that there is a framework. This framework should make it possible and at the same...

International finance institutions and member state export credit agencies continue to invest in projects outside the EU involving cruel farm animal confinement systems banned in the EU. Better joined-up thinking is needed with regard to investment policy and animal welfare, writes Joanna Swabe.

Une fois n’est pas coutume, la France est en pointe en Europe dans le développement de circuits courts, qui associent agriculteurs et consommateurs pour des produits de qualité vendus au prix le plus juste pour chacun. L’agriculture biologique poursuit également son essor : 21 nouvelles fermes en bio se créent ou...

Unpublished field trials by pesticide manufacturers show their products cause serious harm to honeybees at high levels, leading to calls from senior scientists for the companies to end the secrecy which cloaks much of their research.

Entering Poland to European Union which resulted in accepting The Common Agricultural Policy caused a variety of changes in polish villages and countries. Previous problems of rural areas like fragmentation and low efficiency of farms, bad financial situation of inhabitants, high rate of unemployment, relatively low educational level and lack...

The POSEI scheme in the EU outermost regions* is vital to address their particular agricultural challenges, notably in bridging the difference in costs and prices relative to mainland Europe and in maintaining agricultural production, according to a new report published today. Looking at the scheme from 2006-2014 – at a cost...

La producción porcina ecológica permite la obtención de productos de alta calidad mediante la utilización de técnicas que respetan ampliamente el medio ambiente y el bienestar animal, y puede ser una alternativa viable para ganaderos que ven comprometido su futuro en el mercado convencional. Además, estas técnicas pueden ser interesantes...

The concept of added value in food and drink supply chains is not new, but it is re-emerging as a highly popular tool for promoting rural development. The value of a product or service can be increased at different stages of its production or delivery by the addition of features...

Europa está en el centro de un rápido proceso de cambio a nivel planetario, marcado tanto por las mutaciones económicas como por los desafíos medioambientales a escala global. Para responder a todo esto, muchos Estados optan por un fortalecimiento de sus políticas urbanas, considerando que las dinámicas económicas descansan en...

The Commission adopted the 2017 promotion strategy for EU agricultural products with a total budget of €133 million compared to the €111 million available for 2016. This amount will co-finance several programmes, most of which will target third countries and regions, including China, Middle East, North America, South-East Asia and...

A learning pack for teachers and young Europeans aged 11-15, about food and the importance of farming in our life. The teacher's pack contains a DVD, a usb key, worksheets and a map. This set can be a great help for geography, ecology and healthy nutrition lessons.

Learn about: making access to land, fisheries and forests more equitable, how to protect people's tenure rights, options to simplify the administration of tenure and make it accessible to all, how to ensure disputes are resolved before they degenerate into conflict  

Expanding rural markets means attracting more people to rural areas where they can then purchase local goods and services. This offers the potential for increased margins and improved returns for rural producers. The creation of ‘rural destinations’ can help brand rural areas to tap into trends around the ‘experience economy’ and...

If we want to fight climate change and contribute to global development, is the solution really as simple as becoming vegetarian or even vegan as is sometimes suggested? The answer depends greatly on where we live, and the truth is that the global consumption of meat, milk and eggs is much...

This chapter is an attempt to analyse the characteristic features of Mediterranean family farms, revealing their importance compared with other forms of agriculture. We go on to describe the challenges that they are or will be facing, and their strengths in helping to address these (in terms of food security,...

The international scientific conference will provide a venue for policy makers, top managers, academics and researches that deal with economic and management issues related to specific issues within the agri-food chains and natural resources management.

TE Lochhead and sons are a traditional dairy producer who in 2001, saw their herd of cattle wiped out by the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in southern Scotland. Rather than simply replace the herd, Gavin Lochhead and his family looked into opportunities to differentiate from other farmers. The farmer...

When water is scarce, irrigation scheduling and irrigation efficiency are especially important. New, innovative ways of obtaining real time feedback on irrigation management are currently being developed including digitally connected fruit measuring tools and online precise irrigation-scheduling algorithms.

The landscape in Sierra de Gredos was modelled largely by the livestock that traditionally grazed in mountain pastures in the summer and descended to the valleys when the snow came. In this video, one of the few goat farmers left in this Natura 2000 site explains their pastoral management and...