Suchergebnisse

Europe is about to redefine its Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) for the near future. The question is whether this redefinition is more a fine-tuning of the existing CAP or whether thorough changes can be expected. Looking back to the last revision of CAP the most notable change is, undoubtedly, the concern about EU and global food security. The revival of the interest in agricultural production already became evident during the Health Check as a consequence of climbing commodity prices in 2007/08. It is therefore no surprise that "rising concerns regarding both EU and global food security" is the first topic to appear in the list of justifications for the need for a CAP reform. Other challenges mentioned in this list such as sustainable management of natural resources, climate change and its mitigation, improvement of competitiveness to withstand globalization and rising price volatility, etc., while not new are considered worthwhile enough to be maintained and reappraised.

Traditional Iberian pig production is characterized for having a fattening period with a feeding based on acorn and pastures. During the previous growing period, the feeding is restricted to avoid undesirable weight gains. However, this procedure could cause feeding stress. The use of ad libitum diets based on olive by-products during the growing period may be an alternative to avoid this stress. Two diets based on olive by-products, one incorporating dry olive pulp in the feed (DD) and the other one incorporating olive cake in wet form (WD) were compared with a control standard diet group (CD). CD and DD diets were supplied once a day and WD diet was supplied ad libitum and supplemented with a specific feed given once a day. Comparisons were performed using ANOVA for: growth, backfat fatty acid profile, carcass composition, percentage of intramuscular fat (%IMF) and other quality meat traits (thaw, cook and centrifuge force losses, shear force, marbling, Minolta colours and myoglobin concentration). No significant differences between the treatment groups were observed for most of the traits. Although animals fed with DD and WD diets grew slower than those fed with CD during the growing period, no differences in the total average daily gain were observed. DD animals showed a higher carcass yield and less %IMF in loin. Olive-cake diets caused higher levels of unsaturation than CD one after the growing period. Lower centrifuge force losses were observed in WD than in CD. DD samples were paler and less red-coloured and has lower myoglobin content than CD and WD ones. Results (of this study within project TREASURE) suggest that WD diet could be a suitable feeding for growing period in traditional Iberian pig production since negative effects on growth, carcass and quality traits were not observed in the current study. Funded by European Union's H2020 RIA program (Grant agreement no. 634476).

Trabajo presentado en el 5th World Congress of Conservation Agriculture, celebrado en Brisbane (Australia) del 26 al 29 de septiembre de 2011. ; In the past, many relevant European Union (EU) documents made reference to the environmental problems caused by agriculture. In those papers, the concept of Conservation Agriculture (CA) as a possible solution was either omitted or timidly named, although sustainable agriculture was proclaimed as an objective of the EU in the Amsterdam treaty in 1999. EU's position regarding several worldwide environmental problems, i.e. climate change, water and soil threats, is well known. However, to which extent these positions will be reflected in EU agricultural and environmental policies and concrete and binding measures in all member states for the period of 2014-2020 is still an open question. Through its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) EU claims to address the main concerns of its agriculture and rural development. In this context, EU launched a Communication (COM (2010) 672 final) named "The CAP towards 2020. Meeting the food, natural resources and territorial challenges of the future". Based on this paper we analyse the deliverables that CA could provide to achieve the overall objectives established for the CAP in the horizon 2014-2020. ; Peer Reviewed

The concept of sustainable development has evolved from a mere movement for the protection of the environment, to other multidimensional approaches. Indeed, today it calls for a holistic approach, seeking to preserve and improve not only the environment, but also to achieve social equity and economic sustainability. In Europe, society demands quality and safe products, not only in the industrial sector but also in agriculture. According to FAO, sustainable agriculture development is a key element of the new global challenges to meet human food security needs at 2050. Unsustainable practices based on intensive soil tillage and agro-chemical applications have increased agri-environmental risks. Whereas world's food needs are expected to increase by 70% by 2050, agricultural land in Europe will also have to face environmental, economic and social challenges related to sustainable agriculture. As a result, in the EU 2020 Strategy, it is expressed that the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is required to contribute to smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, enhancing social well-being, providing ecosystem services, managing resources sustainably while avoiding environmental degradation. There is broad consensus within the scientific sector that human actions generate a large portion of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, causing global warming. Certainly, Kyoto Protocol states it. According to the European Environmental Agency (EEA), there has been a decrease of 17% in GHG emissions between 1990 and 2009. However, EEA also stressed the importance of the agricultural contribution to total emissions (10.3%). The fossil fuel used in agricultural field operations, along with increasing CO2 emissions from soil through tillage, are considered to be one of the main direct sources of GHG emissions from agriculture sector. Increased inputs required to sustain conventional agriculture also adds significantly to total GHG emissions. Therefore, intensification of production through tillage, agro-chemicals and heavy machinery, which characterizes conventional agriculture in Europe, strongly contributes to increased net GHG emissions instead of mitigating global warming. Sustainable agricultural soil management is crucial for mitigating climate change, especially for the restoration of lost soil organic carbon. In fact, "Agricultural soils management" is recognized as one of the 15 most promising technology options for reducing GHG emissions in the COM (2005) 35 final "Winning the battle against global climate change." The Green Carbon Conference aims to show sustainable management of agricultural soils can help to agriculture mitigate and adapt to climate change, being compatible with the objectives of environmental protection, enhancing biodiversity and supporting farmers' welfare along with many other environmental, economic and social benefits. Over the last decade, Conservation Agriculture has become known as a set of interlinked agricultural practices, of no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance, maintenance of soil mulch cover, and diversified cropping system, capable of: (a) overcoming several of the severe sustainability limitations of conventional agriculture; and (b) raising productivity, enhancing resilience, reducing degradation and increasing the flow of ecosystem services. The discussion around both the Soil Thematic Strategy initiated in 2002, and the JRC SoCo (Soil Conservation) project clearly recognized the potential of Conservation Agriculture in mitigating and even reversing the problems of soil erosion, soil organic matter decline, soil compaction, loss of biodiversity, climate change vulnerability, among others. Whereas Conservation Agriculture is now practiced successfully on more than 125 million hectares worldwide, Europe has shown to be reluctant with regard to its adoption, despite many promising results confirming its suitability in Europe. Therefore, this European Conference on Green Carbon provides an opportunity to take a leap forward in terms of sharing farmers experiences on Conservation Agriculture across Europe, reviewing the recent progress made in knowledge generation regarding Conservation Agriculture, and to disseminate the outcomes of the currently running LIFE+ Agricarbon (LIFE08 ENV/E/000129). The slogan of 'Green Carbon' chosen for this Conference attempts to clarify and highlight the indivisible yet vital link between soil organic carbon and the role that soil health plays in the sustainability of agricultural production and in the flow of ecosystem services. Nevertheless, the topics addressed by the Green Carbon Conference are not only related to the importance of soil organic carbon for the overall soil quality and health, but also include other sustainability issues intimately related to the role of soil carbon such as landscape scale ecosystem functions and services, climate change mitigation and carbon offset, and economic aspects. This Conference also seeks to alert and inform EU policy stakeholders and technical officers of the urgent need to adopt sustainable soil and production practices of Conservation Agriculture to contribute to the objectives of Europe 2020, the EU's growth strategy for the coming decades.

The concept of sustainable development has evolved from a mere movement for the protection of the environment, to other multidimensional approaches. Indeed, today it calls for a holistic approach, seeking to preserve and improve not only the environment, but also to achieve social equity and economic sustainability. In Europe, society demands quality and safe products, not only in the industrial sector but also in agriculture. According to FAO, sustainable agriculture development is a key element of the new global challenges to meet human food security needs at 2050. Unsustainable practices based on intensive soil tillage and agro-chemical applications have increased agri-environmental risks. Whereas world's food needs are expected to increase by 70% by 2050, agricultural land in Europe will also have to face environmental, economic and social challenges related to sustainable agriculture. As a result, in the EU 2020 Strategy, it is expressed that the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is required to contribute to smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, enhancing social well-being, providing ecosystem services, managing resources sustainably while avoiding environmental degradation. There is broad consensus within the scientific sector that human actions generate a large portion of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, causing global warming. Certainly, Kyoto Protocol states it. According to the European Environmental Agency (EEA), there has been a decrease of 17% in GHG emissions between 1990 and 2009. However, EEA also stressed the importance of the agricultural contribution to total emissions (10.3%). The fossil fuel used in agricultural field operations, along with increasing CO2 emissions from soil through tillage, are considered to be one of the main direct sources of GHG emissions from agriculture sector. Increased inputs required to sustain conventional agriculture also adds significantly to total GHG emissions. Therefore, intensification of production through tillage, agro-chemicals and heavy machinery, which characterizes conventional agriculture in Europe, strongly contributes to increased net GHG emissions instead of mitigating global warming. Sustainable agricultural soil management is crucial for mitigating climate change, especially for the restoration of lost soil organic carbon. In fact, "Agricultural soils management" is recognized as one of the 15 most promising technology options for reducing GHG emissions in the COM (2005) 35 final "Winning the battle against global climate change." The Green Carbon Conference aims to show sustainable management of agricultural soils can help to agriculture mitigate and adapt to climate change, being compatible with the objectives of environmental protection, enhancing biodiversity and supporting farmers' welfare along with many other environmental, economic and social benefits. Over the last decade, Conservation Agriculture has become known as a set of interlinked agricultural practices, of no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance, maintenance of soil mulch cover, and diversified cropping system, capable of: (a) overcoming several of the severe sustainability limitations of conventional agriculture; and (b) raising productivity, enhancing resilience, reducing degradation and increasing the flow of ecosystem services. The discussion around both the Soil Thematic Strategy initiated in 2002, and the JRC SoCo (Soil Conservation) project clearly recognized the potential of Conservation Agriculture in mitigating and even reversing the problems of soil erosion, soil organic matter decline, soil compaction, loss of biodiversity, climate change vulnerability, among others. Whereas Conservation Agriculture is now practiced successfully on more than 125 million hectares worldwide, Europe has shown to be reluctant with regard to its adoption, despite many promising results confirming its suitability in Europe. Therefore, this European Conference on Green Carbon provides an opportunity to take a leap forward in terms of sharing farmers experiences on Conservation Agriculture across Europe, reviewing the recent progress made in knowledge generation regarding Conservation Agriculture, and to disseminate the outcomes of the currently running LIFE+ Agricarbon (LIFE08 ENV/E/000129). The slogan of 'Green Carbon' chosen for this Conference attempts to clarify and highlight the indivisible yet vital link between soil organic carbon and the role that soil health plays in the sustainability of agricultural production and in the flow of ecosystem services. Nevertheless, the topics addressed by the Green Carbon Conference are not only related to the importance of soil organic carbon for the overall soil quality and health, but also include other sustainability issues intimately related to the role of soil carbon such as landscape scale ecosystem functions and services, climate change mitigation and carbon offset, and economic aspects. This Conference also seeks to alert and inform EU policy stakeholders and technical officers of the urgent need to adopt sustainable soil and production practices of Conservation Agriculture to contribute to the objectives of Europe 2020, the EU's growth strategy for the coming decades.

The traditional Iberian pig production system is characterized by a final open-air fattening period (montanera), in which the animals are fed acorns and grass, preceded by a growing period where the feeding is restricted to avoid undesirable weight gain. New growing diets based on olive agro-industrial by-products could be an alternative to avoid this restriction. The objective of the current study (of TREASURE project) was to analyse the effect of two growing alternative diets on the gut microbiota composition from faecal samples collected before and after montanera. Three diets, one incorporating dry olive pulp in the feed (DD), one incorporating olive cake in wet form (WD) and a control diet (CD) were supplied to 45 animals (15 per diet) during the growing period (45 to 95 kg of body weight). The gut microbiota composition of each individual was evaluated at two time points: before transition to montanera (95 kg) and at slaughter (160 kg). Microbiota analyses were performed by re-sequencing the bacterial 16S gene (V3-V4) in an Illumina MiSeq. Bioinformatics analyses were performed by using Qiime's open-reference subsampled OTU calling approach. The effect of diets on microbiota composition and diversity was evaluated using the Vegan package in R. Bray-Curtis distances, NMDS and PERMANOVA analyses showed significant effects on microbiota composition. WD caused an increase in microbiota diversity. In the second sampling point, differences in composition and diversity could be also observed after acorn supplementation. Funded by European Union's H2020 RIA program (Grant agreement no. 634476).

International audience ; Unlike in modern breeds, the knowledge on performance and management of local pig breeds is very limited. These are key aspects to be developed for their successful exploitation that requires strategies adapted to their specific productive and metabolic characteristics, quite different from those of modern pig breeds, to ensure their preservation and future expansion, particularly for those more endangered. These are some of the challenges addressed by the project TREASURE. For this purpose, a series of experiments involving 11 European local breeds -differing in the level of development- have been carried out covering various and complementary aspects like nutritional requirements in different productive phases (Cinta Senese, Iberian), feeding practices involving locally available resources (Krskopolje, Schwäbisch-Hällisches, Turopolje, Mangalitsa, Bísaro, Iberian, Gascon), and innovative management and housing practices to enhance product quality or improve animal welfare (Cinta Senese, Alentejano, Bisaro, Iberian, Mangalitsa, Moravka, Krskopolje, Schwäbisch-Hällisches, Black Slavonian). All these activities have been designed to obtain essential information to develop future productive strategies for each of the involved breeds, taking into account to obtain local high-quality products, and seeking for optimum pig performance and high animal welfare conditions in the production systems under consideration. The information provided constitutes a unique and valuable set of data for the management of these breeds and the further development of local pork chains. In some cases it is the first available data for the breeds concerned. A general overview of the developed activities will be presented highlighting some of the achievements obtained. Funded by European Union's H2020 RIA program (Grant agreement no. 634476).

Unlike in modern breeds, the knowledge on performance and management of local pig breeds is very limited. These are key aspects to be developed for their successful exploitation that requires strategies adapted to their specific productive and metabolic characteristics, quite different from those of modern pig breeds, to ensure their preservation and future expansion, particularly for those more endangered. These are some of the challenges addressed by the project TREASURE. For this purpose, a series of experiments involving 11 European local breeds -differing in the level of development- have been carried out covering various and complementary aspects like nutritional requirements in different productive phases (Cinta Senese, Iberian), feeding practices involving locally available resources (Krskopolje, Schwäbisch- Hällisches, Turopolje, Mangalitsa, Bísaro, Iberian, Gascon), and innovative management and housing practices to enhance product quality or improve animal welfare (Cinta Senese, Alentejano, Bisaro, Iberian, Mangalitsa, Moravka, Krskopolje, Schwäbisch-Hällisches, Black Slavonian). All these activities have been designed to obtain essential information to develop future productive strategies for each of the involved breeds, taking into account to obtain local high-quality products, and seeking for optimum pig performance and high animal welfare conditions in the production systems under consideration. The information provided constitutes a unique and valuable set of data for the management of these breeds and the further development of local pork chains. In some cases it is the first available data for the breeds concerned. A general overview of the developed activities will be presented highlighting some of the achievements obtained. Funded by European Union's H2020 RIA program (Grant agreement no. 634476).

Unlike in modern breeds, the knowledge on performance and management of local pig breeds is very limited. These are key aspects to be developed for their successful exploitation that requires strategies adapted to their specific productive and metabolic characteristics, quite different from those of modern pig breeds, to ensure their preservation and future expansion, particularly for those more endangered. These are some of the challenges addressed by the project TREASURE. For this purpose, a series of experiments involving 11 European local breeds -differing in the level of development- have been carried out covering various and complementary aspects like nutritional requirements in different productive phases (Cinta Senese, Iberian), feeding practices involving locally available resources (Krskopolje, Schwäbisch-Hällisches, Turopolje, Mangalitsa, Bísaro, Iberian, Gascon), and innovative management and housing practices to enhance product quality or improve animal welfare (Cinta Senese, Alentejano, Bisaro, Iberian, Mangalitsa, Moravka, Krskopolje, Schwäbisch-Hällisches, Black Slavonian). All these activities have been designed to obtain essential information to develop future productive strategies for each of the involved breeds, taking into account to obtain local high-quality products, and seeking for optimum pig performance and high animal welfare conditions in the production systems under consideration. The information provided constitutes a unique and valuable set of data for the management of these breeds and the further development of local pork chains. In some cases it is the first available data for the breeds concerned. A general overview of the developed activities will be presented highlighting some of the achievements obtained. Funded by European Union's H2020 RIA program (Grant agreement no. 634476).