Portal de Cartagena
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Europe wants to rethink the model of intensive farming and monoculture that has driven its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the past and has commissioned the Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (UPCT) to lead a community project for the implementation of crop diversification And sustainable agricultural practices.
The Research Group on Management, Utilization and Recovery of Soils and Water (GARSA) of the Polytechnic will be directing the Diverfarming project over the next five years, involving universities, research centers, administration, agrarian associations, farmers and companies Of the agro-industry and logistics of nine countries.
In total, 26 partners, including UPCT, CEBAS-CSIC, Asaja Murcia and Disfrimur Logística.
The project, which will start in May, has a funding of 10.5 million euros from the Horizonte2020 program.
"The Region of Murcia will be taken as an example for the southern Mediterranean area," says project coordinator Raúl Zornoza.
"Although the overall objective is the same, to improve the sustainability of European agrarian systems, the recommendations of case studies with similar climatic, edaphic and socioeconomic characteristics will be extrapolated for each region", adds the researcher.
Murcia has a very diversified agriculture, outside of what is normal in Spain, where monoculture of cereals and olive trees abounds, for example, but the idea is to increase the diversity in each agricultural plot, with rotations and simultaneous cultivations, to diminish the Risks to farmers in case of pests or falling prices, "says Zornoza, who, however, points out that in recent years crops have also disappeared in the region, such as the purple carrot or the alpaca.
One of the measures proposed will be to introduce horticultural, herbaceous or aromatic crops among woody plantations, occupying the space between the rows of trees, in order to expand the business model and reduce soil erosion and degradation.
"The CAP favored intensive monoculture, which has increased agricultural production, but to the detriment of environmental quality, biodiversity and the sustainability of agriculture itself, because crops, flora, fauna and associated microbiota have been lost, which also contributed to avoid Pests and diseases and to improve the health of agro-ecosystems, "says the teacher of the School of Agronomists.
The project also seeks to introduce sustainable agricultural techniques that can save costs and environmental risks, reducing the consumption of energy, water, fertilizers or machinery, with significant economic and environmental benefits, in any case maximizing crop production and quality.
"In the management of intensive cultivation the Region of Murcia is also an example, but negative, as seen in the Mar Menor, by the impact and degradation of soil and surface water and groundwater by the massive use of inorganic nutrients and Phytosanitary measures, which should be used in a more rational way to guarantee the long-term sustainability of agricultural models, "recalls Zornoza.
Studying the agricultural value chain, from production to the consumer, is also another objective of the project, which counts on agribusiness and logistics companies to optimize routes, reduce intermediaries, reduce negative environmental impacts and save costs both for the Farmer and consumer.
The title of the project is' Crop diversification and low-input farming across Europe: from practitioners' engagement and ecosystems services to increased revenues and value chain organization - Diverfarming 'and its code, 728003 (Call H2020-RUR-2016-2017).
Source: UPCT
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