Emanuele La Barbera and Alessandra Rabittiis, organic farmers in Umbria, Italy, have found a natural way of reducing the number of parasites causing suffering to their goats. Emanuele and Alessandra herd 70 camosciata delle alpi goats and produce milk and dairy products. Most of their farmland is dedicated to pasture,...

The programme aims to improve existing training and resources for CSA farmers, equipping them with the skills and tools to produce healthy sustainable food for local communities, and to encourage experience sharing with European countries where CSA is less established. The event took place over five days at Cascina Santa Brera,...

In the framework of its three years project “Mainstreaming small-scale low impact fisheries in the Mediterranean” funded by the MAVA Foundation, LIFE plans to reinforce its presence on the ground in order to provide increased support to the small-scale fishing communities in the region. Following a comprehensive interview process Prof. Iuri Peri was selected...

For years, the local fishermen have been enduring the effects of the financial crisis. The region’s banking system is limited to a few operators with strict constraints for attributing loans. Fishermen cannot necessarily provide a typical guarantee, making it difficult for them to obtain loans. Because fishermen do not always...

On February 24, 2017, Elisabetta Parravicini, Vice-President of Euromontana and President of member organization ERSAF (Ente Regionale per i Servizi all’Agricoltura e alle Foreste), presented Euromontana’s work and future objectives at a meeting on Italian mountains as driving forces for development. Elisabetta Parravicini began by recounting the history and outlining...

How the failure to properly recognise and regulate the EU’s fish producer organisations [POs] is failing the Common Fisheries Policy and smaller-scale fishermen and what should be done to resolve it.

In 2009 the Italian Association for Organic Agriculture (AIAB) launched the first bio-district in Italy. A bio-district is a geographical area where farmers, citizens, tourist operators, associations and public authorities enter into an agreement for the sustainable management of local resources, based on organic principles and practices, aiming at the...

Organic and eco-sustainable farming is particularly suited to farms situated within parks, because it does not harm local ecosystems as it does not use pesticides and promotes biodiversity, improving biological links and creating ideal habitats for animal life. It also promotes grants that reward farmers for acting as “guardians/stewards of...

Organic and eco-sustainable farming is particularly suited to farms situated within parks, because it does not harm local ecosystems as it does not use pesticides and promotes biodiversity, improving biological links and creating ideal habitats for animal life. It also promotes grants that reward farmers for acting as “guardians/stewards of...

Social farming, or care farming as it is also called, defines short or long-term activities that use agricultural resources such as animals and plants to promote and generate social services in rural areas. Examples of these services include rehabilitation, therapy, sheltered employment, life-long education and other activities that contribute to...

The project “Adotta un terrazzamento” [“Adopt a terrace” in English] aims at regulating and expanding mountain farming activities by giving any interested person the opportunity to adopt a terrace and provide direct or long-term support to the mountains of the Brenta Valley, in the Alps region in Italy.

“Adotta una mucca”, (“Adopt a cow” in English) is an Italian initiative from the Valsugana Valley in the Trentino province. Its objective is to introduce tourists, children and families to mountain life and culture. Adopters can visit various Alpine huts, learn how mountain products are made faithfully following old recipes...

Urgenci, the international network of Local Solidarity Partnerships for Agroecology between producers and consumers (LSPA) and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). As part of the 3-year mutual commitment, the Mediterranean network, including members...

Between November 22 - 25, 2017 Lebanon hosted the 2nd Learning Journey on LSPA: Local Solidarity Partnerships for Agro-ecology between producers and consumers. Around 20 facilitators from 11 Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Tunisia, Turkey, Syria) participated and shared their experiences through meetings and site...

Parasites in goats are common. They can have varying effects on the animals, but sometimes can be a serious problem. An organic farmer in Italy has found a natural way of reducing the effect of these – bringing in black laying hens to live alongside the goats. These hens help...

While much of the production of food in Europe depends on migrant workers, most people are not aware of the terrible working and living conditions that most of them have to endure. At the same time, the plight of small scale producers who must deal with the low prices imposed...

SOLMACC, an EU- LIFE funded project coordinated by IFOAM EU is about testing and sharing strategies for organic and low-input farming to mitigate and adapt to climate change. It wants to demonstrate that agriculture can be climate-friendly, but you need to apply a combination of optimised organic farming practices to...

The aim of this study is to promote cooperation and actions for the benefit of coastal communities on the Southern and Eastern shores of the Mediterranean region by adopting an approach that integrates environmental, economic and social dimensions. These areas are traditionally based on Fisheries, especially small-scale fisheries (SSFs), which...

Productores de 14 países demandaron políticas concretas para potenciar la producción ecológica y la alimentación saludable al cierre del VII Encuentro Latinoamericano y del Caribe de Agricultura Ecológica y Orgánica que tuvo lugar en Rurrenabaque, Beni. Más de 200 productores reunidos en el municipio beniano reclamaron a los gobiernos de la región...

The central theme of Terra Madre Salone del Gusto 2016 has a profound meaning: loving the earth is cultivating it, taking care of it, working it with love, preserving the environment and the planet that we live on. Loving the earth is what must define this moment in history, and...