L’agriculture familiale est le modèle d’exploitation le plus répandu en Europe. À ce titre, elle  assure depuis des siècles la prospérité du secteur. L’ambitieux cadre stratégique mis en place par l’Union européenne a été conçu pour tenir compte des différents modèles d’agriculture qui coexistent sur son territoire, en ce compris...

In order to bridge the knowledge-gap between sustainability awareness and the old world winegrowing culture, this research explores and analyses perceptions of key individuals in Portuguese wine industry regarding sustainability issues, uncovering intercultural trends, expectations and tensions. A grounded theory approach was used on collected nationwide data from semi-structured interviews...

Farming regions in Europe, particularly in the South, are increasingly feeling the effects of climate change due to factors such as drought, extreme weather events, and desertification, with severe consequences for food security and food sovereignty. Additionally, decades of rural mismanagement have left countless of these farming territories severely depressed...

Ricardo Soares, a Portuguese apple and pear grower, is a young innovator. He has brought many innovations to his farmer colleagues. As a young farmer, he also encountered some obstacles and found some solutions to overcome them.

As more youth move to cities, in Africa, but also in South Asia and Latin America, development experts worry about the future of rural communities. So, we can learn a lesson by taking a glimpse at a region where most youth left agriculture some three generations ago.

We’re back on the Montado do Freixo do Meio in Portugal, where exciting plans are afoot to have the community farm recognised as a Private Protected Area. Farmer and owner Alfredo Cunhal Sendim, a member of the Freixo do Meio Users Cooperative, explains their vision of a strong and organised...

Trees have traditionally been an integrated part of European farmlands and bringing them back could be part of an answer to some of our pressing environmental challenges. Asger Mindegaard and Celia Nyssens walk the readers through the forest of opportunities for more agroecological farming provided by agroforestry in Portugal. Herdade do...

Healthy soils are fundamental to the sustainable production of food, feed and fibre. In addition, healthy soils also provide many other functions that contribute to human well-being such as water filtering, carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling and biodiversity preservation. Soil health is affected by unsustainable management practices like frequent tillage, which...

In 2014 five herb producers joined forces in the organic herb farm ‘Under the Sun’, making them the biggest Portuguese exporter of aromatic and medicinal plants. To save energy costs for herb drying, Gonçalo Costa Martins, one of the farmers, cooperated with a local engineer. Together they created an innovative...

A APDEA – Associação Portuguesa de Economia Agrária, o GPP – Gabinete de Planeamento e Políticas e o INIAV – Instituto Nacional de Investigação Agronómica e Veterinária vão realizar um evento internacional e multidisciplinar, subordinado ao tema “A Agricultura e os desafios societais para o período 20-30”, de 15 a 18 de outubro, em Lisboa/Oeiras. Este evento...

O Colégio F3 da Universidade de Lisboa vai realizar um curso de formação teórico-prática para debater as questões do planeamento alimentar urbano com uma perspetiva de “bacia alimentar” nos dias 3 e 4 de maio no Instituto para a Investigação Interdisciplinar da Universidade de Lisboa. A frequência do curso é gratuita,...

O Decreto -Lei n.º 64/2018, de 7 de agosto, consagrou o Estatuto da Agricultura Familiar, distinguindo as especificidades desta nas suas diversas dimensões, reconhecendo e valorizando a adoção de medidas de apoio específicas, a aplicar preferencialmente ao nível local para atender à diversidade de estruturas e de realidades agrárias, bem...

Agriculture in the EU and worldwide has become increasingly dependent on the use of pesticides. Change is needed because the use of these chemicals can impact the environment and the health of animals and humans. Inspired by results in other member states, the Portuguese Operational Group HortInf is trying to...

Family Farming, represented by more than 500 million farms, produced about 80% of the World´s food in value terms, using reduced resources. It is fundamental to Food Security and Nutrition (FSN), fighting poverty, mitigating the impacts of climate change and preserving biodiversity and landscape. Family agriculture contributes directly to ten...

For five years, 1000 Portuguese farmers sowed biodiverse seed mixtures, rich in legumes, across 50 000 hectares. This was part of the Terraprima project which tackled multiple challenges including climate change, biodiversity and soil degradation. This nature-based technique offers a potential sustainable intensification solution, simultaneously increasing production and environmental services....

For five years, 1000 Portuguese farmers sowed biodiverse seed mixtures, rich in legumes, across 50 000 hectares. This was part of the Terraprima project which tackled multiple challenges including climate change, biodiversity and soil degradation. This nature-based technique offers a potential sustainable intensification solution, simultaneously increasing production and environmental services....

The Portuguese National Rural Network has launched a website dedicated to innovation for agriculture. It highlights innovation in Portugal and, more widely, in Europe that can contribute to more sustainability and productivity in agriculture, forestry and rural areas. The website also includes information on Operational Groups and other innovative projects that...

Family Farming and Sustainable Development at the CPLP

Mountain areas have difficult climatic and environmental conditions, but mountain people are used to adapting to these. Thanks to their great experience of innovation and adaptation, they have already started to tackle the challenge of climate change. This X European Mountain Convention will present a state-of-the-art of the situation in...

In the Mediterranean, the diversity of production systems and value chains is seen as an asset for sustainability. More than anywhere else, the Mediterranean zone boasts a wide range of sheep and goat farming situations, products and natural resources. This diversity of production systems has provided many different products, shaped...