In Noord-Brabant, a region in South-West Netherlands, Govert van Dis and his wife Phily Brooijmans are running an organic arable farm of around 100 hectares. They run the farm together and actively follow innovations in agroecology. Crops are grown without the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, therefore crop rotation...

It has been known for centuries that nature and agriculture nourish each other. Before intensive agricultural practices became widespread throughout the world during the second half of the 20th century, agricultural areas represented not only food sources for the human population, but also areas thriving with a diversity of plant...

Supporting farm businesses is a key priority of the Rural Development Programmes (RDPs), notably through investments in physical assets (Measure 4) and farm and business development (Measure 6). Such investments can help farms to modernise their processes or diversify their activities, enabling them to survive in the modern economy by...

“NATURAL WATER RETENTION MEASURES (NWRMs) are multi-functional measures that aim to protect water resources and address water-related challenges by restoring or maintaining ecosystems as well as natural features and characteristics of water bodies using natural means and processes. The main focus of applying NWRM is to enhance the retention capacity...

Rural businesses can develop in very diverse sectors of activity. The local opportunities will usually depend on the specific characteristics of the territory. Targeted investments in areas of local opportunity can create jobs, increase spending power and create sustainable economic growth in rural areas. One growth area in recent years...

The theme of the development of organic farming in the EU and in Poland was taken up in the study, pointing out that organic production is an element of the EU agricultural product quality schemes. In this sense, organic production pursues the same objectives under the Common Agricultural Policy which...

Smart villages are the new concept of villages around Europe where the traditional services are improved by using new technologies. Mr Mario Milouchev, Director of DG AGRI for Rural Development Programmes1 and Pre-accession assistance, explains how digital solutions help those villages improve the economic performance of their areas but also...

Four decades of communism and an overnight transition from socialism to the free market caused dramatic shifts in food consumer – producer relationships across Eastern Europe. In the Czech Republic, a history of cooperatives and local food production contrasts with today’s situation, in which the country is almost entirely dependent...

While that number may seem small compared to the business generated by trade in the automotive or energy industries, the agri-food sector is of particular importance to the EU economy and, more importantly, the economy of millions of families. EU exports of agricultural and food products to third countries – not...

All the information from the EIP-AGRI Focus Group on Ecological Focus Areas at a glance

Organic and eco-sustainable farming is particularly suited to farms situated within parks, because it does not harm local ecosystems as it does not use pesticides and promotes biodiversity, improving biological links and creating ideal habitats for animal life. It also promotes grants that reward farmers for acting as “guardians/stewards of...

Roadside and farmland hedgerows in Normandy (France) were disappearing. Local inhabitants wanted to preserve this traditional landscape feature. So they decided to generate an economic value for the hedgerows and set up a short wood supply chain. Involving all local groups in this was essential.

The main objective of the Guidelines is to provide a non-binding complement to other guidelines and offer advice to RDP evaluation stakeholders on how to carry out the evaluation activities for answering the common evaluation questions related to innovation. Since the RDP’s effects on innovation in rural areas can be...

The development of short food supply chains where intermediaries between farmers and consumers are removed should result in fairer remunerations for farmers and higher quality local food products, supporters say. In 2015, 15% of farmers sold half of their products through these short food supply chains, according to a study carried...

Most European consumers are familiar with migratory species like salmon and sturgeon, and with farmed trout and carp. The long-term viability of these and other inland fish species is the focus of an FAO regional commission whose meeting opens here today. The European Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture Advisory Commission, established in...

The EU's farm sector and rural areas are major players in terms of the Union's well-being and its future. EU agriculture is one of the world's leading producers of food, and guarantees food security for over 500 million European citizens. The EU's farmers are also the first stewards of the...

Over the past few years, price volatility has become a central concern for European farmers and consumers due to changes in demand, supply and structural characteristics of the market. This has resulted in an increase in costs and debt by farmers, with 2.4 millions EU farms disappeared between 2005 and...

From the Med to the Atlantic, passing by the Black, Baltic and North Sea... one voice: Low Impact Fishers of Europe.

The European Rural Development Network (ERDN) integrates various European research institutions, which are involved in analysing the transformation process of rural areas particularly in Central-Eastern Europe. The main objectives are to advance international knowledge transfer and scientific cooperation in rural development and agriculture, as well as to share and promote...

The Bluefin tuna industry received a windfall in Marrakech, with proposed TAC increases over the period 2018 to 2020, culminating in the highest TAC ever set. What about SSFs?