Innovation

In the preparation of the future National Strategic Plan (NSP) for the CAP 2021-2027, after carrying out an exhaustive preliminary study of the starting situation in Spain, the improvement of access to land has been identified as one of the main needs of young farmers.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) has promoted the formation of this Focus Group of experts on “Access to Land” which has studied, debated and analyzed in depth the current situation in Spain, the complex state of affairs where numerous conditioning factors of diverse nature intervene (social, economic, legislative, affective, cultural, etc.).

The objectives of the Land Access Focus Group are:

• To analyze the current situation of access to land in Spain, approaching it from different perspectives.
• Identify the barriers and obstacles that young and new farmers encounter in accessing land.
• Explore possible practical solutions that, from the point of view of access to land, contribute to generational renewal and the establishment of young and new professionals in the agricultural sector, supporting and maintaining the family farming model.
• To carry out a collaborative reflection that helps to develop a document that can support the dialogue between the competent administrations in the development of the “CAP Strategic Plan”.

Working documents

• Study on Access to Land - GFAT Final Document

More information

Within the framework of the European Innovation Partnership for Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-AGRI), the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has decided to launch a focus group on AKIS (Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems) due to its growing importance within the future Common Agricultural Policy. A focus group is a multidisciplinary group of experts who, over a defined period, compile and endorse studies, reports, and best practices on a specific topic. Its objective is to clarify the current situation, identifying potential solutions to existing problems or opportunities.

The current draft CAP Regulation presented by the Commission in June 2018 includes as a cross-cutting objective “modernizing the sector by fostering and sharing knowledge, innovation and digitalization in agricultural and rural areas and promoting their adoption.” To modernize the sector, farm advisory services will play a leading role and “should be integrated within the interconnected services of farm advisors, researchers, producer organizations and other relevant stakeholders in agricultural knowledge and innovation systems.”

Furthermore, when describing the elements that will guarantee the modernization of the CAP, emphasis should be placed on the elements of the CAP strategic plan that support the modernization of the agricultural sector and the CAP, and it should include, in particular, a description of how the advisory services referred to in Article 13, CAP research, and networks will work together within the framework of the AKIS, and how advisory and innovation support services are provided. The first meeting of the group will be held in Madrid. The National Rural Network will support this meeting of the new AKIS Focus Group by managing the travel expenses of Focus Group members who require it, up to the budget limit. Call for applications for the selection of experts to participate in the Focus Group on “ADVICE ON AKIS”

Within the framework of the European Innovation Partnership for Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-AGRI), the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has decided to launch a focus group on digitalization and big data in the agri-food and forestry sector and in rural areas.

As various recent studies and reports demonstrate, the future of the economy in general lies in digitalization, and the challenges of rural areas and the agri-food and forestry sector must be addressed through digital transformation if we want them to continue to be, respectively, a vibrant and populated environment and a competitive and economically, socially and environmentally sustainable sector.

In the agricultural and agri-food sectors, the use of technology is essential to maximize crop yields and resource utilization, increasing productivity and creating a more environmentally friendly activity adapted to climate change. Likewise, the development of a true Food Industry 4.0 that interacts with consumers and offers attractive products and services is fundamental to maintaining leadership in marketing and exports, generating wealth, employment, and added value.

• Call for applications for the selection of experts to participate in the Focus Group on “digitalization and big data in the agri-food sector and rural areas”
• GF DBDA Application form for participation as an expert GF
• Preliminary report on GF work, March 20
• Focus group on digitalization and Big Data in the agri-food, forestry and rural sectors. Reflections on the challenges of digitalization
• Focus group on digitalization and Big Data in the agri-food, forestry and rural sectors. Ideas for a strategic approach to digitalization

This is the second focus group promoted by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment (MAGRAMA) as part of the EIP-AGRI development process in Spain. The aim is to bring innovation to the forestry sector while simultaneously improving the sector's capacity to organize, structure, and cooperate in implementing new models for the harvesting, transport, and marketing of forest products.

The theme chosen for the activities of the Focus Group on Forest Innovation is relatively broad, as it covers all aspects that can affect the economically sustainable use of all forest products, including wood in general, cork, resin, essential oils, game, and those currently marketed, as well as new forest products that could feed a market niche and are not yet being used and marketed.

This group does not cover industrial innovation applicable to the subsequent transformation of these products, once the raw materials pool has been transferred from the corresponding industries, although it could include a first transformation carried out prior to their entry into the aforementioned pool.

The nature of this group is technical, oriented towards promoting technological, organizational and commercial innovation in its field, leaving out aspects of a regulatory or forestry, energy or environmental policy to be developed by public administrations.

This focus group, like any other, must be guided by the EIP-AGRI Strategic Plan, which establishes its legal framework, and by EU Regulation 1305/2013, which governs the application of the EAFRD for the 2014-2020 period and co-finances these activities. Furthermore, this focus group must be fully coordinated with the actions planned in the Socioeconomic Activation Plan for the Forestry Sector (PASSFOR), approved in January 2014 by the Sectoral Conference, which defines the main innovation needs in the forestry sector.

• Expression of Interest Form
• Goals
• Relationship with the EIP-AGRI Strategic Plan
• Relationship with the EAFRD
• Relationship with PASSFOR
• Problems to solve and opportunities to seize
• Expected results
• Work dynamics
• Timeline and funding
• Evaluation of the work done
• FINAL REPORT. Socioeconomic diagnosis of the forestry sector
• FINAL REPORT. Priorities Document

October 2015-June 2016. Results available

This Focus Group is the first of its kind in Spain, contributing to the deployment of the European Innovation Partnership for Productive and Sustainable Agriculture (EIP-AGRI) in the country. It brought together scientists and technicians specializing in energy use for irrigation, consulting, and the management of irrigation community infrastructure, as well as farmers, companies in the sector, NGOs, and relevant government agencies, totaling 20 experts. It began in November 2015, held its final meeting on May 23, and concluded its work in the first half of June, making its findings publicly available.

Spanish irrigation has shown a growing dependence on energy, estimated to account for around 2.5% of national electricity consumption. This dependence has consequences for both the profitability and competitiveness of many farms, as well as for the environment. These aspects have formed the thematic focus of the Group.

With the help of both Group members and external collaborators, 75 different types of innovative initiatives have been compiled and documented, geared towards the Group's various objectives and areas: energy monitoring and auditing, energy optimization of the design of pressurized irrigation networks, pumping and canals, preventive maintenance, other systems for reducing the energy consumption of infrastructure, systems to reduce consumption on farms, systems to minimize the cost paid for energy, joint purchasing, alternative generation of renewable energy, reduction and absorption of greenhouse gas emissions, prevention of bird mortality on power lines, and prevention and eradication of invasive species that affect water and energy efficiency.

The innovations compiled are at different stages of development, ranging from R&D results and prototypes to established commercial solutions and those in the process of being disseminated. Typically, the end users potentially interested in these innovations are irrigation communities or farmers, but they can also be useful to technicians, consulting and construction companies, or relevant public administrations.

This Group has also aimed to foster connections among various stakeholders interested in establishing AEI-AGRI Operational Groups focused on drafting and implementing innovation projects related to energy use in irrigation. To this end, the Group has compiled a database of professionals who have expressed interest throughout its activities, encompassing a wide range of profiles.

Finally, the Group has also prepared recommendations on information, training and advice, as well as on R&D&I, always for the thematic areas of the group, with the intention of guiding the actions of the administrations respectively responsible for these matters.
The final results of the Focus Group activity can be accessed on the National Rural Network website, through the following links:

• Focus Group Design Document (November 2015)
• Context document, outlook and diagnosis of the Focus Group topic
• Innovative knowledge bank
• Research, development and innovation priorities
• Priorities in information, training and advice within the group