AEP is EUROCROP partner
One challenge for the agricultural sector is to increase or at least maintain the competitiveness of European arable crops and farming systems while maintaining high quality and safety standards within the overall framework of CAP reform (Luxembourg agreement, June 2003), and sustainable development.
The aim of EUROCROP (see inserts), a concerted action supported by the European Commission through the 6th RTD FP (*), is to bring together all concerned stakeholders and actors, to analyse the research required to improve European arable crop competitiveness, and propose appropriate action.
EUROCROP will assess the impact of CAP reform, define the possible scenarios for 2015 EU agriculture and the major indicators related to arable crop competitiveness, and propose research actions for consideration. The partnership includes both organisations providing research, innovation and extension services and those utilising the results of research such as crop chain organisations and farmers’ organisations. The Project Advisory Committee is made up of stakeholders in charge of indicating the major concerns to be addressed.
To meet its goals EUROCROP will have a two-dimensional approach, first in terms of the arable crops (cereals, oilseeds, sugar beet, fibre crops, potatoes, grain legumes and maize), and second in terms of the elements of competitiveness including technical aspects at the farm level, farm economics and production costs, outlets and markets, quality of agricultural products, environmental impacts and socio-economic issues. These topics will be addressed by specialists and invited experts in a series of workshops each with a common approach.
AEP is the EUROCROP partner responsible for the coordination of activities specifically related to the assessment of grain legume crops.
The main results of this concerted action will be (i) a strategic research plan and proposals submitted to policy makers, and discussed at an open conference, and (ii) the establishment of a European network of experts, to continue work beyond this action in order to set up RTD projects.
(*) in Priority 8.1 – Scientific Support to Policies of the 6th Framework Programme on Research, Technological Development and Demonstration of the European Union
