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Democratizing digital farming through smart solutions for small farms

Project description

Empowering small-scale farmers with tailor-made and affordable digital solutions

In the past decade, agricultural digital solutions (ADS) sparked enthusiasm and encouraged investment towards enhancing the sector’s economic and environmental performance. However, adoption by small and medium-sized EU farmers has lagged behind due to cost constraints, compatibility issues, and resistance to change. The EU-funded Farmtopia project seeks to reverse this trend through a pioneering, synergetic farmer-driven approach that fosters the creation of cost-effective ADS tailored to the distinctive needs of small-scale farms. By engaging both farmers and ADS providers in the deployment process and introducing innovative business models, Farmtopia substantially lowers costs for both parties, rendering ADS adoption affordable and sustainable. This initiative prioritises strategic crops and livestock in 15 European countries, essentially contributing to digital transformation, resilience, and food security.

Objective

The last decade has seen an explosion of interest and investment in the use of Agricultural Digital Technologies (ADSs). The use of ADSs is seen by many as an opportunity to increase the economic and environmental performance of the agricultural sector. In spite of considerable public and private investment, uptake and use of ADSs by EU farmers has been limited, especially among small and medium farms. These farms require cost-effective DATs that help them increase their environmental and economic performance and cross the digital divide.
The overall objective of the Farmtopia project is to democratize digital farming by creating a paradigm shift in the way ADSs for small farms are created, deployed and paid for. This will be achieved by a) fostering co-creation of ADSs to ensure they will solve real problems and fit the needs of small farms; and b) lowering the cost for both farmers and ADSs providers, by creating a set of reusable software modules, a number of business and governance models, and identifying public provision of infrastructure that can enable scale-out of ADSs.
Using a multi-actor approach, Farmtopia will engage farmers, ADSs providers, farm advisors, scientists, policy makers, AKIS actors and other relevant stakeholders in 18 Sustainable Innovation Pilots (SIPs) in at least 15 countries across Europe, and guide them in co-creating, deploying and piloting innovative ADSs while designing, adapting and validating appropriate business and governance models to support them (such as the French CUMA model, which is embraced by >225.000 farmers). The focus will be mainly on specific crops and livestock for which current ADS provision is inadequate as well as on crops that are of regional importance, strengthening resilience, sustainability and food security across Europe. 9 SIPs have been pre-selected and 9 more will be awarded through an Open Call, enabling a dynamic response to a changing policy and technology landscape.

Fields of science

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Coordinator

NEUROPUBLIC AE PLIROFORIKIS & EPIKOINONION
Net EU contribution
€ 699 650,00
Address
METHONIS 6 KAI SPILIOTOPOULOU
18545 Peiraias
Greece

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SME

The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.

Yes
Region
Αττική Aττική Πειραιάς
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
Links
Total cost
€ 999 500,00

Participants (22)