On 26 and 27 November 2024, experts and researchers from 18 scientific and agricultural organizations across Europe convened in Madrid, Spain, to advance the OH-FINE project. This initiative seeks to collaboratively generate and share knowledge between European researchers and producers. OH-FINE aims to identify efficient, healthy, organic, and sustainable alternatives for food production on farms. The knowledge developed through the project will be widely disseminated and shared on a broader scale.
Building a pan-European learning community
One of the strengths of this project is to build on existing farmer capacity by designing and initiating a pan-European organic farming learning community, taking into account consumer needs and changes in the food market. This means that practical knowledge gained from field trials and case study farms will be collected, shared and disseminated in an accessible way to farmers and other stakeholders on topics such as cereals, oilseeds, protein crops and livestock management. The project will also develop a platform, which will include a decision support system for farmers, consumers and policymakers.
FiBL’s roles in the OH-FINE project
FiBL Switzerland is involved in the OH-FINE project with contributions from several departments. The Department of Extension, Training & Communication is leading efforts to disseminate the results and ensure wide accessibility and understanding of the project's findings. It is also responsible for the official project website. The Department of Crop Sciences and the Departement Suisse Romande (Lausanne) are involved in field trials.
FiBL Austria coordinates cross-visits fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange across regions and the creation of videos and technical documents. In addition, it contributes to field trial design and implementation.
Five case study areas across Europe
The methodology and tools developed by the OH-FINE project will be tested and validated in five case study areas across Europe: Bulgaria, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland and Spain. In each of these countries, there will be 20 participating farms. In addition, a virtual community of farmers and advisors will be created in each country, who will be part of the European learning community. All training and information materials will be made available in the languages of the project partners.
About the project
OH-FINE has a duration of 48 months and is funded by the European Union in the framework of Horizon Europe, the European Union’s Research and Innovation Programme 2021-2027, and by SERI, the Swiss Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation. The project is coordinated by the Institute of Natural Resources and Agrobiology of Salamanca (IRNASA), which is part of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).
Further information
Contacts
- Laura Kemper, FiBL Switzerland
- Barbara Schäfer, FiBL Switzerland
- Friedrich Leitgeb, FiBL Austria
Links
- oh-fine.eu: Project website
- fibl.org: OH-FINE in the FiBL project database
Project partners
- CISC - Spanish National Research Council, Spain, project coordinator
- Teagasc - Agriculture and Food Development Authority, Ireland
- Ofiset SL, Spain
- SGGW - Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland
- AFOA - Mieczysław Górny Ecological Agriculture Forum Association, Poland
- IPTP - Institute for Polish Culture, Poland
- Bioselena - Foundation for Biological Agriculture, Bulgaria
- LAMMC - Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry. Lithuania
- LEUA - Lithuanian Organic Farmers Association, Lithuania
- SEAE - Spanish Society of Organic Agriculture. Spain
- Mersetaria - Mesetaria Cooperative, Spain
- FiBL AT - Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, Austria
- ILVO - Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research, Belgium
- Inagro - Provincial External Agency in Private Legal Form, Belgium
- Hooibeekhoeve - Autonomous Provincial Company Hooibeekhoeve, Belgium
- Betania - Betania Legio SL, Spain
- ACN - Cittadinanzattiva APS
- FiBL CH - Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, Switzerland
Funding
- Horizon Europe, the European Union’s Research and Innovation Programme 2021-2027 under the call Innovative Governance, environmental observations and digital solutions in support of the Green Deal (HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01)
- SERI – Swiss Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, Switzerland