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OekoTier

  • Intro (Pagebuilder-Pages): The joint project OeKoTier aims to develop a transparent and practical testing concept for animal welfare monitoring on organic farms.

Project
OekoTier

Research & Network

OeKoTier

Monitoring animal welfare in organic farming

The OeKoTier project aims to develop a transparent and practicable testing concept for animal welfare monitoring in organic farming. The testing and application of animal-related indicators are essential. Existing approaches to animal welfare monitoring by associations, labels, inspection bodies and existing farm data will be taken into account, as well as the requirement for self-monitoring on farms. The challenge of the project is to create, train and implement a standardized and applicable control system, including measures and sanctions.

In addition to the Thünen Institute of Organic Farming (overall coordination, sub-projects cattle and sheep/goat), the Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry of the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (sub-projects pig and data management), the University of Kassel Witzenhausen (sub-project poultry), the organic associations Naturland, Biokreis, Bioland and Gäa as well as the organic control bodies ABCert, GfRS and Kontrollgesellschaft are participating in the interdisciplinary project.

Duration: 2022 – 2025 (3 years)

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Funding

Funded by the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) as part of the Federal Organic Farming Program (BÖL)

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BEATLES

  • Intro (Pagebuilder-Pages): The EU project BEATLES aims at systemic and systematic behavioural changes towards climate-friendly agriculture and smart agricultural technologies,

Project
BEATLES

Research & Network

BEATLES

The EU project BEATLES aims at systemic and systematic behavioural changes towards climate-compatible agriculture and smart agricultural technologies that are in line with the ambitions of the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity Strategies as well as the new CAP at regional and EU level.

Agri-food value chains are viewed as a system of interconnected components whose interactions lead to systemic innovations. By targeting value chains across the EU and engaging multiple stakeholders in appropriate behavioural and experimental settings, the project will gain insights into the full range of 'lock-ins' and levers that hinder or trigger behavioural change, including individual, systemic and policy factors.

Five different food systems representing the main products in Europe (cereals, dairy, stone fruit, livestock, vegetables) in different EU regions (Western, Eastern, Southern and Northern Europe) will be studied.

Behavioural insights will be used to promote transformative pathways towards fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food systems. BEATLES will provide a set of strategies that provide a roadmap for a fair transition towards climate-smart agriculture based on assessments of environmental, social and economic sustainability. In addition, a set of policy recommendations and tools will be developed to promote behaviour-based policy design and implementation.

Naturland is particularly involved in the project together with the Berchtesgadener Land dairy and Naturland's expert advisory service on milk production in Germany.

Duration: 2022-2026 (4 years)

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European Commission

This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe programme for research and innovation under grant agreement No 101060645. This document reflects the views of the author and does not reflect the views of the European Commission. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of this document, the European Commission cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions, whatever their cause.

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FER-PLAY

  • Intro (Pagebuilder-Pages): The aim of FER-PLAY is to reduce the environmental impact of European agriculture by using alternative fertilisers made from secondary raw materials.

Project
FER-PLAY

Research & Network

FER-PLAY

The objective of FER-PLAY is to reduce the environmental impact of European agriculture through the use of alternative fertilisers made from secondary raw materials. In addition, the project aims to reduce the dependence on imports and to promote the further development of the circular economy. During the course of the project, the FER-PLAY consortium will evaluate alternative fertilisers to promote awareness of their multiple benefits and acceptance among key stakeholders. FER-PLAY is funded by the EU.

The use of conventional synthetic fertilisers has a negative impact on the environment, both during production and use. These fertilisers are based on finite, often imported resources and often require an energy-intensive production process. In this context, alternative fertilisers (fertilisers produced from secondary resources such as treated manure, municipal and industrial wastewater, biowaste, biological by-products, sewage sludge and digestate) offer a way to reduce the environmental impact of fertilisers during production and application. By closing the loop between domestically available resources and needed nutrients, alternative fertilisers enable a more efficient and competitive industry and contribute to a more robust and safe food system.

FER-PLAY facilitates the uptake of alternative fertilisers in the EU and demonstrates the potential and positive impact of these to encourage wider adoption. Many alternative fertilisers are already well-established in organic farming. However, many organic farms also have a negative nutrient balance, especially for phosphorus. As organic farming grows, therefore, as many resources as possible must be used from the cycle. The approval of struvite in the EU and Naturland standards is one step in the right direction. FER-PLAY examines seven fertilisers more closely in life-cycle assessments. Among them are the fertilisers permitted in organic farming: struvite, feather meal, organic compost, champost and biogas substrate.

Duration: 2022 - 2025 (2.5 years)

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European Commission

This project is funded by the European Commission in the framework of Horizon Europe in the programme "Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment" (project no. 101060426) with a total of 2 million euros.

© Header image: Naturland

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Organic Targets 4 EU

  • Intro (Pagebuilder-Pages): Joining forces with the EU for organic farming: OrganicTargets4EU develops scenarios for achieving the organic expansion target.

Project
Organic Targets 4 EU

Research & Network

Organic Targets 4 EU

The European Union aims to become climate neutral by 2050 and halt species extinction, biodiversity loss and environmental degradation through the European Green Deal. The Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy are at the heart of this Green Deal. Both the Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy recognize the positive role of organic agriculture in achieving these goals. As a result, the goal is to have at least 25 percent of the EU's farmland managed organically by 2030 and also to significantly increase organic aquaculture.

OrganicTargets4EU (OT4EU) will first assess the drivers and barriers affecting organic sector development. In addition, farms in each country will be categorized. Based on this, a multi-actor process will then be used to develop scenarios for achieving the organic farming goals from the Farm to Fork strategy and so-called "Future Farm Types".

The project is divided into two fields: Production and markets on the one hand; and knowledge and innovation on the other hand. Through and in these fields, OT4EU promotes the expansion of organic farmland in the EU. In addition, the project analyses what (socio-economic) impact this has on primary production, value chains and markets. Building on the CORE Organic network (a network of European ministries and research institutions), the project expands and coordinates the research and innovation infrastructure for organic agriculture. The project also promotes policy dialogue between different stakeholders to make policy recommendations for, among others, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the EU Organic Regulation, the EU and national organic action plans, and Horizon Europe.

The project is carried out together with 19 partners from 12 countries. Within the project, Naturland contributes knowledge from practical experiences in Germany and is primarily responsible for researching drivers and obstacles in organic agriculture at the producer level.

Duration: 2022-2025 (3.5 years)

Project website

Your contact

Projects


European Union

OrganicTargets4EU is funded by the European Union (Grant No. 101060368) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (Grant No. 22.00155).

© Header image: Naturland

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FER-PLAY

Project
FER-PLAY

Research & Network

FER-PLAY

The objective of FER-PLAY is to reduce the environmental impact of European agriculture through the use of alternative fertilisers made from secondary raw materials. In addition, the project aims to reduce the dependence on imports and to promote the further development of the circular economy. During the course of the project, the FER-PLAY consortium will evaluate alternative fertilisers to promote awareness of their multiple benefits and acceptance among key stakeholders. FER-PLAY is funded by the EU.

The use of conventional synthetic fertilisers has a negative impact on the environment, both during production and use. These fertilisers are based on finite, often imported resources and often require an energy-intensive production process. In this context, alternative fertilisers (fertilisers produced from secondary resources such as treated manure, municipal and industrial wastewater, biowaste, biological by-products, sewage sludge and digestate) offer a way to reduce the environmental impact of fertilisers during production and application. By closing the loop between domestically available resources and needed nutrients, alternative fertilisers enable a more efficient and competitive industry and contribute to a more robust and safe food system.

FER-PLAY facilitates the uptake of alternative fertilisers in the EU and demonstrates the potential and positive impact of these to encourage wider adoption. Many alternative fertilisers are already well-established in organic farming. However, many organic farms also have a negative nutrient balance, especially for phosphorus. As organic farming grows, therefore, as many resources as possible must be used from the cycle. The approval of struvite in the EU and Naturland standards is one step in the right direction. FER-PLAY examines seven fertilisers more closely in life-cycle assessments. Among them are the fertilisers permitted in organic farming: struvite, feather meal, organic compost, champost and biogas substrate.

Duration: 2022 - 2025 (2.5 years)

Project website

Contact

Projects


European Commission

This project is funded by the European Commission in the framework of Horizon Europe in the programme "Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment" (project no. 101060426) with a total of 2 million euros.

© Header image: Naturland

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Organic Targets 4 EU

Project
Organic Targets 4 EU

Research & Network

Organic Targets 4 EU

The European Union aims to become climate neutral by 2050 and halt species extinction, biodiversity loss and environmental degradation through the European Green Deal. The Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy are at the heart of this Green Deal. Both the Farm to Fork Strategy and the Biodiversity Strategy recognize the positive role of organic agriculture in achieving these goals. As a result, the goal is to have at least 25 percent of the EU's farmland managed organically by 2030 and also to significantly increase organic aquaculture.

OrganicTargets4EU (OT4EU) will first assess the drivers and barriers affecting organic sector development. In addition, farms in each country will be categorized. Based on this, a multi-actor process will then be used to develop scenarios for achieving the organic farming goals from the Farm to Fork strategy and so-called "Future Farm Types".

The project is divided into two fields: Production and markets on the one hand; and knowledge and innovation on the other hand. Through and in these fields, OT4EU promotes the expansion of organic farmland in the EU. In addition, the project analyses what (socio-economic) impact this has on primary production, value chains and markets. Building on the CORE Organic network (a network of European ministries and research institutions), the project expands and coordinates the research and innovation infrastructure for organic agriculture. The project also promotes policy dialogue between different stakeholders to make policy recommendations for, among others, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the EU Organic Regulation, the EU and national organic action plans, and Horizon Europe.

The project is carried out together with 19 partners from 12 countries. Within the project, Naturland contributes knowledge from practical experiences in Germany and is primarily responsible for researching drivers and obstacles in organic agriculture at the producer level.

Duration: 2022-2025 (3.5 years)

Project website

Your contact

Projects


European Union

OrganicTargets4EU is funded by the European Union (Grant No. 101060368) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (Grant No. 22.00155).

© Header image: Naturland

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