Competition between farmers and pests has been fierce in Moldova. As pests and diseases continued to affect agriculture, it became clear that farmers lacked the knowledge and capacity in crop and pest management to prevent and manage outbreaks. In response, FAO and Moldova’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry recently...

DK aims to double its organic agricultural land by 2020, which involves a shift of 18 000 ha/year, far from being reached. Organic agriculture improved during recent decades, but this knowledge has not always been passed on to agricultural schools and consultancies. The risk is that new generations taking over...

Soils contain the largest stock of organic carbon (C) in terrestrial ecosystems and changes in soil C stocks may significantly affect atmospheric CO2. A significant part of soil C is present in cultivated soils that occupy about 35 % of the global land surface. Agricultural intensification has led to practices that...

Despite the growing interest in Ecosystem-based Adaptation, there has been little discussion of how this approach could be used to help smallholder farmers adapt to climate change, while ensuring the continued provision of ecosystem services on which farming depends. Here we provide a framework for identifying which agricultural practices could...

Soils are a non-renewable resource on which 95% of our food supply depends. Short-sighted chemical fertilizer applications in conventional farming are depleting soils at an alarming rate. Instead of using potent chemicals that degrade soil, organic farmers continuously give back to the soil, maintaining soil health and fertility for future...

The real solution to our pest and weed problems lies in non-toxic, ecological methods of agriculture, not in pulling the pesticide trigger. In organic systems, farms are managed to maintain and build soil fertility, improving the overall health of microbes, plants and animals as one ecosystem. 

Provee de información básica necesaria para la capacitación en riego parcelario a las organizaciones de usuarios de agua con fines agrarios, especialmente acerca de los conceptos básicos para realizar el riego a nivel parcelario, lo cual se resume en tres aspectos fundamentales: la preparación del terreno, construcción de composturas y...

In semi-arid cropping regions of West Africa, fallow periods are getting shorter. As land becomes more scarce, farmers are not able to give their soils enough time to rest. This is leading to depletion of soil organic matter, severely threatening soil fertility and damaging soil structure. In the worst cases,...

Smallholder irrigated vegetable production in the Central Rift Valley region of Ethiopia is instrumental in ensuring the year-round availability of fresh vegetables in the local market in the country. However, a number of problems constrain irrigated vegetable production in the region. Therefore, asurvey was conducted with the objectives of assessing...

The objective of mulching is to protect the soil from the impacts of heavy rainfalls, storms, and droughts, while providing complementary benefits, such as the reduction of weed growth and water loss, and the increase of soil moisture, microbial action, organic matter and nutrient content. This practice helps in the...

Traditional farming systems have been abandoned to the favor of intensified agricultural practices, due to environmental, structural, economic, and sociopolitical constraints. Consequently, mountain landscape and biodiversity were seriously affected. The aims of this PhD thesis were to study the widespread of the abandonment phenomenon, in particular in the Alpine area,...

This report reviews a case study of farmers’ perceptions of policies and regulations to improve water security in the Jordanian Badia. The aim is to improve water management and conservation by engaging all stakeholders, in particular farmers and rural communities, in this common goal.

On 14 January 2014, DG AGRI and the EIP-AGRI Service Point organised a workshop, which focussed on the practical aspects of the Horizon 2020 calls for multi-actor projects and thematic networks related to agriculture and forestry. The workshop was kicked off by DG AGRI director Jose Sousa Uva who gave...

This publication provides guidance on the natural history of wild bees and their potential exposure to pesticides, as part of the GEF supported Project “Conservation and Management of Pollinators for Sustainable Agriculture, through an Ecosystem Approach” implemented in seven countries – Brazil, Ghana, India, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan and South Africa....

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), pigs are raised almost exclusively by smallholders either in periurban areas of major cities such as Kinshasa or in rural villages. Unfortunately, little information is available regarding pig production in the Western part of the DRC, wherefore a survey was carried out...

Documentaries on the Best Practices in Rural Development carried out by young farmers that have been granted support under EU Rural development policies.

Le présent document porte sur le compostage à la ferme

Having physical and economic access to food on their own are not sufficient to ensure that people are food secure and well nourished. It is essential that people understand what constitutes a healthy diet; in particular, what nutrition-related health issues affect their communities and how to address these through food-based approaches, and know how...

La presente cartilla técnica contribuye a la capacitación en agricultura urbana y ofrece un medio de consulta para los productores urbanos que ya están cultivando alimentos en sus casas y quieran mejorar sus huertas y sus hábitos alimenticios, contibuyendo a la seguridad alimentaria, a la economía familiar, creación de espacios...

This technology describes utilizing rooftop water harvesting facilities to increase the availability of water for domestic use and irrigation of backyard tomato gardens. This measure allows small-scale farmers to harvest rainwater from roofs and store it in tanks, ensuring tomato production also during the dry season, when it would be otherwise...