11 March 2024.- An international seminar held on 8 and 9 March addressing the future of conservation agriculture has gathered 13 partners from 8 Euro-Mediterranean countries (Algeria, France, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Spain and Tunisia) participating in the CAMA research project (Conservation Agriculture in the Mediterranean Area).
The seminar has marked the end of a four-year EU PRIMA project, aimed at understanding and overcoming the obstacles that prevent widespread adoption of conservation agriculture in the Mediterranean Basin.
Organised by CIHEAM Zaragoza together with the Spanish partners of the project: the Experimental Station of Aula Dei of the Spanish National Research Council (EEAD-CSIC), and the University of Lleida (UdL); the seminar has attracted interest from researchers and representatives of farmers’ associations specialising in conservation agriculture, as well as regional and national administrations from several countries.
During the opening session, guest speaker María Dolores Gómez, from Cartagena Polytechnic University, presented the current situation of carbon farming in the Mediterranean.
The experts involved in CAMA presented the results of their research, which measured the positive effects of conservation agriculture on soil properties, soil conservation, water use efficiency, and crop development. Additionally, they shared the conclusions reached over the four years of the project regarding factors related to farmers’ adoption of this cropping system.
The seminar also served as a forum to discuss the role of public policies in the transition towards a model of sustainable agriculture from an economic, social and environmental point of view. In this framework, the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture presented the experience of the Eco-schemes of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2023-2027 focusing on elements such as direct seeding and crop rotations, aimed at encouraging the use of techniques that will benefit the climate and the environment.
Seminar participants also discussed how to enhance the adoption of conservation agriculture through farmers’ organisations in the Mediterranean Basin. From Spain, the Aragonese Association of Conservation Agriculture (AGRACON) presented the work they have been conducting for over 20 years to promote this sustainable crop production.
The second day of the seminar was dedicated to a technical visit to farms practising conservation agriculture in semi-arid rainfed and irrigated cropping systems within the region of Aragon.