In 2015, two global policy developments stood out, which are highly relevant for agriculture. Firstly, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were agreed, which seek to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture (Goal 2) by 2030 (UN, 2016). Secondly, the UNFCCC Paris Agreement was adopted...

This publication is designed to provide readers with a compilation of facts and figures about German farming, allowing them to form their own opinions about farming and farming-related issues. The aim is to promote readers’ understanding by describing modern farming methods without ignoring controversial issues.

Ministers of Agriculture from OECD countries and partner economies around the world will meet at OECD headquarters in Paris on 7-8 April 2016, to discuss Better Policies to Achieve a Productive, Sustainable and Resilient Global Food System. Ministers will explore the new policies needed to achieve this widely shared interest,...

Conservation Agriculture is practised on over 155 million hectares around the world, covering more than one tenth of the global annual cropland surface. The largest and most rapid expansion has been in North and South America, Australia/New Zealand, and some parts of Asia and Africa. Compared to this, the adoption...

Mapping the Local and Solidarity-based Partnerships in Mediterranean Basin is an extremely challenging task: it means dealing with a new and rapidly growing field. To date, to the best of our knowledge, there is has been no study that deals specifically with local food systems in the area as a...

A new study by German environmental NGO NABU (BirdLife Germany) shows how current funding could be used more economically and ecologically. Sixty billion euros. That’s roughly how much of the EU’s annual budget is allocated to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Almost 40% of the bloc’s coffers are spent on it....

In the period to 2020, the new CAP will invest around EUR 1.8 billion in Slovenia’s farming sector and rural areas, with additional co-financing from the Slovenian authorities. Key political priorities have been defined at European level such as: jobs and growth, sustainability, modernisation, innovation and quality. At the same...

Artisanal or small-scale fisheries (see definition in Box 9) represent an important share of the fisheries sector in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea and the considerable role that they play in the region has long been recognized. Small-scale fisheries have the potential to make a significant contribution to food...

Horizon 2020 Thematic Network - Smart AKIS ‘European Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems (AKIS) towards innovation-driven research in Smart Farming Technology.’ Smart-AKIS is a Horizon 2020 thematic network which aims to increase the adoption of Smart Farming Technologies by the European farming community. It strives to bridge the gap between the field...

Multifunctional forests offer diversified opportunities of sustainably optimising the usage of natural resources and creating rural development opportunities. That is why they play a key role in the successful implementation of the EU bioeconomy strategy. In order to explore innovative approaches in creating new values from multifunctional forests the EIP-AGRI network...

The aim of the project “Precision Agriculture and the Future of Farming in Europe” is to identify implications for legislative pathways for precision agriculture in Europe by mapping areas of concern around future developments.

Urgenci committed to strengthening partnerships with the various initiatives around the Mediterranean Basin and setting up programmes for experience-sharing and exchange of practice. The end objective of this is to create a real Mediterranean network of local solidarity partnerships. Our proposal is included in the Mediterranean Positive Agenda as one...

Data from October 2016. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database. Family farms dominate the structure of EU agriculture in terms of their numbers, their contribution to agricultural employment and, to a lesser degree, the area of land that they cultivate. There were 10.8 million farms in the...

All around the world there are millions of farmers who continue to farm and refuse to turn their land and resources into just another money making industry. They continue to fight for their autonomy and their fundamental right to grow clean and nutritious food for their local communities. Gerald Miles is...

A new fish hatchery and aqua feed production unit were inaugurated last week in the Issyk-Kul province of Kyrgyzstan – the first instance of support for aquaculture infrastructure since dissolution of the Soviet Union.  Financed by the Government of Finland, the facilities were built under an FAO project entitled, “Towards Sustainable...

The four-member family Petrovic from Prnjavor near the town of Sabac, has been growing raspberies for years, agriculture being the only source of income for the family. Jovan, his wife Gordana and two sons Milan and Ivan, college students, cultivate maize, soybean, wheat and clover on 3,3 hectares of their...

The Land for our Food is a documentary movie produced by the Access to Land network and directed by Julio Molina. The video takes us on the journey of Gavin Bridger, a grower from the Community Supported Agriculture project of Farnham Local Food in England, through various European countries in his...

Based on the success of the 1st edition, the Alpine Convention is organizing the Reading Mountains festival The “Reading Mountains” festival is an opportunity to celebrate the cultural diversity of the Alps – its many languages, different, yet similar cultural heritage and its arts in all shapes and forms. For this...

From London to sheep farming on Eigg

The existence of many farms in Germany is dependent on the level of economic pressure and competition brought by larger scale holdings. More and more small farmers are being driven into ruin and the environment is paying a hefty price