As inter-institutional negotiations get underway on the EU’s contentious nature restoration law, EURACTIV’s network looked at how farmers across 10 member states are implementing nature-based solutions in agriculture.
Nature-based solutions involve harnessing the power of biology, rather than chemistry, to solve problems in the field. This includes strips of wildflowers for pollinators, practices to improve soil health, or planting trees for wind and soil protection.
These practices should, at least in theory, be supported by the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) via the eco-schemes.
But how many farmers have taken these up, and what impact has this had? What barriers remain to the uptake of nature-based solutions?
FRANCE
Ladybirds against aphids. Over the last ten years or so, Romain Planes, a cereal and protein crop farmer in the Aude region of southern France, has found an effective alternative to insecticides in the fight against aphids: crop auxiliaries.
After joining the DEPHY network – which consists of 2,000 farms in France experimenting with techniques to reduce pesticide use – the farmer began observing his plots and identifying the insects that naturally regulate pests.
An adult ladybird can consume between 50 and 70 aphids a day, their larvae up to 200 a day, and hoverflies 60 a day.
By letting the beneficial insects do their thing and only spraying when the aphids reach a ‘nuisance threshold’ (or when there are too few beneficial insects), he has considerably reduced the need for insecticides.
He is now down from four treatments to one for oilseed rape and from three to one for protein crops. Moreover, Planes is getting yields equivalent to before, and the reduction in insecticides – his biggest expense – has slashed his costs.
The farmer also realised that the reduction in insecticides increased the presence of beneficial insects the following year.
However, this approach requires a thorough knowledge of pests and beneficial organisms, as well as meticulous monitoring of the plot. According to the Aude Chamber of Agriculture, farmers and technicians are not sufficiently trained to recognise species and identify biological cycles.
In a 2021 survey, 69% of farmers said they use biocontrol solutions, such as insects, viruses, bacteria, and mites, across all crops and production methods. This compares with 44% in an equivalent survey at the end of 2018. (Hugo Struna | EURACTIV.fr)
GERMANY
Eco-scheme design stands in the way of farmers’ efforts. In Germany, even farmers willing and motivated to implement nature-based solutions find that the country’s catalogue of eco schemes confronts them with insurmountable barriers to participation in the measures.
According to preliminary data the agriculture ministry published in June, the eco-schemes fell through with many farmers and were taken up much less than expected. Some schemes, such as planting strips of wildflowers, were implemented on less than 1% of the number of hectares initially planned for, while agroforestry was only implemented on a total of 50 hectares across all of Germany.
“I am not participating in any eco-scheme,” Ottmar Ilchmann, a dairy and arable farmer in Northern Germany, told EURACTIV.
After going through the catalogue of eco-schemes, the farmer concluded that entry barriers for those measures applicable to his grassland-heavy farm were too high for a small business.
Even for permanent pasture, one of the eco-schemes most widely taken up in Germany, collecting the necessary proof to be submitted with the CAP funds application is costly and time-consuming, and the financial reward is insufficient to justify the extra investment, Ilchmann explained.
Especially for small farms, this means that the financial risk taken outweighs the potential reward, he added. “For me, many eco-schemes are not worth it because the risk of making a mistake [and thus not receiving the premium] is too high,” he said.
For the farmer, who thinks the CAP should move towards rewarding public services, the poor uptake and far-ranging criticism of the eco-schemes is bad news, not only for his own farm.
“If the situation is not remedied quickly and effectively, advocates of unconditional area-based payments will feel reassured in their position,” he warned. (Julia Dahm | EURACTIV.de)
AUSTRIA
Austria’s sustainable farming grazes to new heights. In Austria, many farms have seamlessly embraced the four eco schemes provided under the CAP strategic plan, encountering no major problems during their implementation.
“There are actually no hurdles as the measures are known to the farmers, and therefore many applicants take part,” August Strasser, head of the unit at the Styrian Chamber of Agriculture that manages payments and subsidies for farmers, told EURACTIV.
Especially the participation rates in greening and grazing measures have increased in the current period.
Some 23,500 farms have embraced the ‘catch crop’ strategy – crops planted expressly to reduce nutrient leaching from the soil following the main crop – while 13,000 farms adopted the so-called ‘evergreen system’, namely incorporating trees into croplands and grazing lands.
As such, the grazing measures for cattle and horses are “significantly above expectations”, with more than 50,000 applications, the Austrian agriculture ministry told EURACTIV.
Based on the application data, it is assumed that the eco-schemes are fully implemented in Austria, the ministry added. The EU green subsidies framework applies as well to the erosion control measure for permanent crops, fruit, wine and hops, with 5,000 applications of this type arrived
These nature-based solutions would “not only have a positive impact on climate, soil, and animal welfare, but also applicants benefit from the compensation for services provided,” Strasser emphasised. (Chiara Swaton | EURACTIV.de)
SPAIN
Cover crops uptake is at risk due to drought. In Andalusia, Pepe Gilabert has used cover crops since 2014 in his Puerta de las Villas’ cooperative, where he grows olive groves in mountainous areas and sells olive oil.
Cover cropping is defined as covering agricultural soil with plants grown, either spontaneously or sown, so it does not remain ‘naked’. Cover crops are beneficial against erosion, they contribute to biodiversity and carbon storage. It is a voluntary solution for producers of olives, fruits or vineyards.
Cover crops are one of the nature-based solutions (NBS) within the eco-schemes of the Spanish CAP National Strategic Plan, with a budget of €307 million.
Gilabert farms organically and uses integrated pest management (IPM), and he is also active in an association of farmers involved in promoting IPM, which also support cover crops as a solution to the degradation of soil caused by herbicide and other synthetic plant protection products.
In his opinion, cover crops are profitable because farmers save pesticides, which will benefit all long-term.
However, the implementation of cover crops is raising concerns in Spain in the context of the country’s struggle against drought. According to the agronomist Manuel Candelas, cover crops “compete” with agricultural crops for water in dry areas, jeopardising production.
There are also questions about the practice’s profitability, which requires specialised machines. Farmers have asked for flexibility and more help in implementing this eco-scheme.
At least around 80% of the agricultural area with applications for CAP direct payments in Spain includes eco-schemes. Improving the soil structure is one of their main goals. (Mercedes Salas|EFEAGRO).
ITALY
Agroforestry at the edge of the city. Combining efficient agricultural production with biodiversity protection is the mission of ‘Soul Food Forest Farms Hub Italia’, a social enterprise of more than 200 volunteers carrying out an experiment in agroforestry on the outskirts of Milan.
One of the founders, Alessandro di Donna, describes the project as a “regenerative practice,” explaining that it consists of cultivating a polyculture of fruit plants interplanted with trees and shrubs typical of the local natural woodland flora.
Between the rows of willows, apple trees, and peach trees, therefore, there are jostaberries, currants, raspberries, blueberries, and other specimens of the local vegetation.
“With this layering, we maximise photosynthesis and CO2 capture, allow the soil not to be depleted, and protect the habitats of native species,” he explains.
Originating in South America, agroforestry is not yet widespread in Italy, but it is becoming better known and more popular, especially in the North. Its main goal is to give back space to the community and neighbourhoods.
“Citizens take care of the fields and harvest fruits and vegetables from them,” di Donna explains.
Since its inception in 2019, with a mere 10 hectares of abandoned land in Vettabbia Park, south of Milan, Soul Food Forest Farms has grown considerably. It now has an area of nearly 20 hectares, with more than 2,500 trees.
A separate project known as ‘POEMA’ (Ornithological and Entomological Agroforestry Monitoring Project) has been monitoring the Soul Food hub’s butterfly, dragonfly, and bird populations for four years, highlighting the differences in coexistence compared to conventional agricultural areas.
The University of Milan has partnered with the project to evaluate, with an interdisciplinary approach, contributions to communities and volunteers. “Facilitating the emergence of more complex and biodiverse agroecosystems is a guiding strategy for us to regenerate the margins of the city,” concluded Di Donna. (EURACTIV.it)
POLAND
‘Financial gratification’ is essential to take up green practices. As of 13 April 2023, 40,419 Polish farmers applied for CAP eco-schemes, 27.6% of all farmers in the country.
Among the main barriers for farmers, there are quite complicated procedures, including the need to prepare detailed documentation and cooperation with an advisor, according to AgroNews news outlet, EURACTIV.pl’s partner.
Most farmers that submitted their applications come from the Mazovian, Subcarpathian, Lublin, Łódź, and Lesser provinces – that is, from the central and eastern parts of the country.
The most popular eco-scheme among the farmers is carbon farming, although many applications were also filed for practices such as mixing straw with soil, winter catch crops and undersown crops, and mixing manure on arable land.
EURACTIV.pl talked to a farmer from central Poland who has submitted an application to a carbon farming eco-scheme involving winter catch crops and plans to apply to further schemes in the future.
“Eco-schemes benefit both agriculture and the climate. Financial gratification is an important compensation for potential increased costs related to implementing the specific practices,” the farmer told EURACTIV.pl.
“This makes farmers more eager to participate in pro-environmental activities. The money is an essential incentive, but the eco-scheme programme inspires more farmers to implement certain practices, even regardless of that reward,” the farmer said. (EURACTIV.pl)
ROMANIA
High-nature value farms provide local responses to global challenges. Romanian politicians and authorities do not frequently discuss nature-based solutions in agriculture, despite the country’s considerable potential for development. Nevertheless, some farmers in Transylvania have been applying these principles for many years.
High-nature value (HNVF) farmland represents around 30% of Romania’s usable agricultural land, most of which is located in the Transylvania region.
Here, the ADEPT Transylvania Foundation has been working for over 19 years to protect biodiversity through collaboration with small farmers from local communities to create nature-friendly business models. For Benone Mehedin, manager at the foundation, though HNV products are still a niche market, they can be local solutions to significant global challenges.
However, small and medium-sized farms producing food sustainably “struggle to remain economically viable”, explained Laura Chirila Pasca, marketing manager at ADEPT Transylvania.
“Although there are consumers interested in these products, they cannot purchase them either because they might not be aware of their availability, even though these products are sometimes in their immediate vicinity,” Pasca said.
To protect biodiversity and the farm, an organic farm in the village of Ciocănari in the Dâmboviţa county avoids chemical fertilisers, preferring the ‘green’ options, which, according to the farm coordinator Cristina Briziou protect the soil from sun or torrential rains.
However, these environmentally-friendly methods do come with a cost. “We face difficulties in obtaining quality manure at a more affordable price”, Cristina Briziou told EURACTIV.ro.
She added that a better organisation from both the local administration and animal farms to assure the availability of quality natural fertilisers for farmers “would significantly help reduce costs and especially to popularise this practice among farmers from neighbouring farms.” (Cătălina Mihai/Manuela Preoteasa | EURACTIV.ro)
BULGARIA
Bulgarian farmers rely on natural fertilisers and pasture rotation. A significant proportion of Bulgarian farmers use animal manure to nourish the soil, which is a good option for developing organic farming and a money saver for conventional farms.
This is especially important given difficulties accessing chemical fertilisers in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to the chairman of Bulgaria’s young farmers association Petar Petrov.
For Petrov, a livestock breeder with 13 years of experience in farming, the country’s best ecological practices are related to the rotational use of pastures and nourishing the soil with natural fertilisers.
However, the uptake of organic agriculture in Bulgaria is threatened by local specificities in land ownership, as small farms trying to implement these practices are bordered by bigger ones owned by agri-businesses engaged in conventional farming.
“You cannot have only 10 acres of land and grow 10 acres of organic tomatoes. Neighbouring farms may grow conventional crops, and when they use chemical fertilisers and pesticides there, it will affect your organic production as well,” Petrov said.
Meanwhile, Stoilko Apostolov from the Bioselena Foundation for Biological Agriculture pointed out that the largest number of areas in Bulgaria will be registered under the eco-scheme for diversifying cultivated crops – a scheme which Bulgarian farmers are familiar with and, for this reason, consider easy to implement.
However, the eco-scheme for organic farming is considered the most difficult one to implement due to strict controls and the requirement to have an organic production certificate for animals and plots, despite having the highest climate and soil protection impact. (Antonia Kotseva, Krassen Nikolov | EURACTIV.bg)
GREECE
Regenerative Farming at ‘pilot’ level in Greece. Nature-based solutions in agriculture are not widely used or known in Greece. When they are used, it is mostly in organic farms as they are not yet applied in conventional agricultural crops at a large scale.
Nevertheless, an example of a recently launched pilot programme called ‘regenerative farming in Greece’ has been implemented in four conventional farms promoting regenerative farming – a type of nature-based solution.
The programme started in 2021 after the wildfires on the island of Evia and in the Attica region in that year’s summer.
In the face of grounds destroyed by fire and the economic collapse of a large part of the Greek agriculture sector, the start-up organisation ‘Southern Lights’ launched this initiative “to enable and support the transition of farming in Greece into a regenerative one, by sharing the knowledge (…) and building resilience facing climate change”.
Four pilot farms have participated, and according to the project‘s website, these farms “represent the most prevailing agricultural models in the Mediterranean”. The project is implemented in Larissa, Trikala, Sparta, and Scala regions.
Examples of nature-based solutions implemented in these projects include an agroforestry system at an almond pilot farm in Larissa, which consists of a mix of pecan, elderberry, and poplar trees interplanted with standard almond tree monocultures to increase water retention and boost soils fertility.
Meanwhile, at a pomegranate pilot farm in Sparta, existing tree lines were interplanted with figs and Eucalyptus trees, among other crops, for the same reasons. Similar practices have been implemented at the other two farms for olives, grains, and legumes, improving the environmental impact of their crops. (Marianthi Pelekanaki | EURACTIV.gr)
CZECHIA
Czech farmers sceptical of eco-schemes. In the Czech Republic, implementing CAP eco-schemes has seen mixed responses from farmers. While they offer an opportunity for farmers to adopt more sustainable practices, the challenges of complexity, bureaucracy, and insufficient compensation have hindered a widespread uptake.
To receive the ‘basic’ eco-payment, Czech farmers must fulfil several measures, such as leaving un-mown areas, crop diversification, or allocating a buffer zone along the watercourse. There is also an option to receive a ‘premium’ eco-payment for farmers keeping a larger share of areas unused for production.
As EURACTIV.cz learnt, 22,092 applications were submitted this year for the basic eco-payment and 50 for premium eco-payment. In total, around 30,000 Czech farmers applied for direct payments.
Regarding particular eco-scheme measures, only limited ones are applied in practice. According to Jan Štefl, vice-president of the Czech Association of private farming, most farmers opted for fallow lands and substituted some with protein crops, taking advantage of the EU’s temporary derogation.
One of the main obstacles farmers face is the insufficient financial motivation to implement other eco-schemes measures which would benefit nature – for example, landscape features, such as copses.
Czech farmers argue that low subsidy rates for establishing and maintaining such elements discourage their expansion. Moreover, the complexity and bureaucratic nature of the eco-scheme rules have deterred many farmers from participating fully.
“Good intentions have been devalued by imperfect implementation,” Vladimír Pícha from the Agricultural Association of the Czech Republic told EURACTIV.cz. He emphasised that rules for eco-schemes subsidies are too detailed and complicated, making them difficult to follow.
Czech organic farmers are also sceptical. Kateřina Urbánková, manager of the PRO-BIO association of organic farmers, see it as the EU’s “failed attempt”.
She stressed that in the Czech case, eco-schemes are “a kind of superstructure over the GAEC (Good Agricultural Environmental Conditions)”, and it brings “many problems for practice, often without any real environmental benefit”.
Despite these problems, some farmers – particularly those from small and middle range – are applying eco-friendly measures – however not motivated by the new eco-schemes. (Aneta Zachová, EURACTIV.cz)
[Edited by Gerardo Fortuna/Natasha Foote/Alice Taylor]