TAIEX Worskshop on Agricultural Extension Services in EU
Organisational structure and practice activities of agricultural
advisory services in EU Member States - Italy
25-26 February 2016
Kiev-Ukraine
Sonia Marongiu
CREA – Council for Agricultural Research and Agricultural Economics Analysis
Rome
Unit: Politics and Bioeconomy
THE ORGANIZATION OF FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY
The Italian FAS is characterized by three components:
• Private: consists of private experts,
private firms producing input for
agriculture (fertilizers, crop protection
systems, etc.), animal feeding, etc.
• Public: connected with national and
regional institutions for agriculture,
having more general economic policy
aims.
Objective: keep/expand
their market share
Medium-large farms
Objective:
promote
the
development of agriculture
in rural territories
Medium-small farms
• Farmer based organizations
Historically, the development of Italian agriculture has been determined mainly by the
private producer of inputs thanks to which the agricultural farms have experienced the
modern mechanization, the innovation and the most advanced agronomic techniques
(since the postwar period until now).
The advisory service coming from the public sector contributes more to the promotion
of the technic and economic knowledge in the small and medium farms and helps
farmers in the implementation of the new European agricultural policies.
THE ORGANIZATION OF FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY
Delivering of advisory services in
Italy
Methods:
•
Information activities (informative
materials, conferences, seminars)
•
Technical meetings, laboratory tests,
field visits
•
Advice for small groups or individual
advices
THE PRIVATE FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY
The private Farm Advisory Services are provided by:
1. Upstream industries
2. Downstream industries
3. Experts and professional advisors
4. Information system
1. Varietal innovations,
fertilizers and crop
protection sytems,
mechanic innovations,
management of livestock
systems, etc.. The AS is
carried out by
agronomists, biologists,
engineers and veterinaries
that offer their technical
assistence and training in
agricultural farms and for
retailers
2. The food industries sign
commercial agreements
with farms (contract
farming) defining quantity
and quality of the
production. The farmer
receives training, advisory
services and technical
assistence from the food
industry (i.e. in Italy:
granivore farms-meat
industry; beet producerssugar industry, etc.).
3. Mainly agronomists and
veterinaries: they offer
their assistence in the
preparation of specific
projects (irrigations,
greenhouses, etc) or
administrative documents
to apply for European or
National aids.
Many of them are involved
in the contract farming
and operate on behalf of
food industries.
4. Farmers are informed
by magazines (edited by
private companies or
research bodies,
professional organizations,
etc.) or by national and
international fairs and
exhibitions (mechanical
sector, irrigation, fruit,
vineyards, etc.).
THE PRIVATE FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY: UPSTREAM INDUSTRY
The upstream industry includes the producers of seed, fertiliser, pesticide, veterinary medicines,
machinery, irrigation and animal feed. They have an important role in the diffusion on innovation to
farmers and are also involved in R&D activities with high potential market returns.
The upstream industries operates with a network of retail and wholesale stores and technicians
working on the ground directly with farmers, giving them technical support.
Almost 5,000 advisors work in upstream industries (est. 2008).
In Italy the suppliers of these kind of advisory are not concentrated but geographically spread in all
the Regions.
SOME EXAMPLES
COMPAG - National Federation of Agricultural
Products Traders
UNIMA - National Union of Agricultural
Mechanisation Companies
It is an association of private traders companies
involved in the supply of pesticides, fertilizers, seeds,
animal feed, cereal trade etc.
Farm Machinery: the advisory services are
provided by the sellers and the companies
processing under contract (i.e. UNIMA the,
represent more than 85% of agro-mechanical
companies).
Advisory activities: support the companies in the
organization of training for farmers, in the
realization of information system on the sustainable
use of pesticides, etc..
THE PRIVATE FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY: DOWNSTREAM INDUSTRY
The downstream industry provides advisory services to the farmers under contract farming (the
food industries sign commercial agreements with farms) with the aim to enable tem to meet specific
quantity and quality standards set by the purchaser.
•
39,249 farms unders contract farming with industrial companies
•
97,980 farms under contract farming with commercial companies
•
734 advisors work in the downstream industry (poultry, pig, meat, fruits and vegetable, sugar
beet, etc.)
The farmer benefits from technical advice, managerial expertise and access to technological
advantages provided by the contractors.
SOME EXAMPLES
Barilla engaged a project «High quality durum wheat»
promoted by Emilia Romagna and involving the entire supply
chain. Producer Organizations and Consorzi Agrari sign
contractual agreement with farmers providing technical
assistance and advisory services for the enhancement of durum
wheat quality, following the plan of Barilla.
Aim: improving the quality of production
THE PRIVATE FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY: PRIVATE PROFESSIONAL ADVISERS
In Italy, the system of private consultants and advisors includes agronomists and veterinarians that
must be registered with a professional order. In Italy (2010)
•
53,379 people enrolled in the agricultural professional order (agronomy and agro-technics)
•
27,891 in the Veterinary professional order
Usually medium and large farms have a private
advisor to rely for specific activities: soil
preparation, sowing, fertilising, disease and pest
control. In some sectors, such as wine production,
even the smallest companies has an enologist.
In recent years the demands of advisory
concerning the application procedure to obtain EU
funds is increasing.
The private advisors work individually or in companies. In the last programming period, the
participation to RD calls for advisory services has been extended to entities and not individidual
people. Because of this, the number of professional associations are increased in Italy.
One of them is FONDAGRI (Foundation for agricultural advisory services), a
network of advisors working in all the Regions with the main objective of
partecipating in the FAS measures of RDPs.
THE PUBLIC FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY (1)
In Italy, the only public institution involved in the promotion and
management of the Farm Advisory Services is the Region.
Every Italian Region:
• has its specific law
• decides about competences, roles and involved subjects
• defines the procedure to assign public funds
• has its production sector and territorial farm typologies
Italy does not have a «national» system but it is possible to highlight some
common points among the 21 Regions.
• Every Region regulates the FAS inside a wider system that include also
research and training (Extension Services: Agricultural Knowledge and
Information System – AKIS)
• Every Region adopts a decentralized organizative model, entrusting the
advisory services to third parties (publics and privates)
Role of direction and coordination
(Management Authoriti of RDP)
Regions
THE PUBLIC FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN ITALY (2)
Public bodies (direct)
Private advisors (selection)
•
Province or other local government
structures
•
Agencies of agricultural services:
metereological networks, chemical
laboratories, multimedia initiatives,
etc.
•
Often they manage public funds to
realize the call for tender and choose
the advisors to supply the service to
the farmers
•
Farmers professional associations
(trade
unions
or
agricultural
producers associations): the most
actives are fruit/vegetables and
breeder associations
The Regional Department of
Agriculture emanates a call or an
assignment of funds and the private
advisors must submit a project to
•
obtain public funds.
•
Agronomists,
specialists
veterinaries
and
Public resources: 33% technical
services; 32% basic services; 14%
specialistic services; 6% information
FARMER BASED ORGANISATIONS
Three types: farmers’ unions, farmers’ cooperatives and producers organizations
Farmers unions: Coldiretti, CIA and Confagricolura represent the economic,
social and civil interests of farmers. Historically the adhesion reflected a
specific political affiliation but actually this is not relevant.
Coldiretti and CIA: small and medium size farms
Confagricoltura: largest farms
The Farmers Unions provide several services to the farmers:
• Fiscal assistance (CAFs, tax assistance centers)
• Technical assistance (CAA, agricultural service centers): management of
EU subsidies, legal services, administrations
They are partly funded by public money and partly by the farmers through
their annual fee and paying the cost for services. Sometimes they offer
services free of charge.
FARMER BASED ORGANISATIONS
Farmers Cooperatives: in Italy there is an important farmers’ cooperative
tradition, especially in north and centre of the country.
In Italy there are almost 5,900 agricultural cooperatives including 993,400
farmer members with approximately 94,000 employees and more than 35
billion of revenues.
The service cooperatives are 1,827 with 246,500 members generating about
6 billions of revenues.
Farmers Cooperatives provide various services to their members: supply of
farm inputs, storage, selling products, research (analysis, experimentation,
etc), technical advisory, etc..
Historically a special kind of farmers Cooperatives, Consorzi Agrari, played a
very important role as consultants, especially as regard chemical fertilizers
and agricultural machinery. Actually they are federated in ASSOCAP which
provided agricultural advice through a network of 1,200 agencies spread all
around Italy.
FARMER BASED ORGANISATIONS
Producer Organisations: in Italy there are 195 non-fruit and vegetable
producers organisations and 297 fruit and vegetables producer
organisations.
Often they are farmers’ cooperatives.
They adopt actions to improve the production quality and safety (such as
disciplinary, traceability, certifications, etc.) and offer expert advice to
farmers.
The POs role in innovation and knowledge transfer process could be crucial
but it is highly variable depending on the sector and geographical area.
ITALY: EXTENSION SERVICES CLASSIFICATION
First level services (target: farms and local territories)
Information
a. Technical magazines
b. Fairs and exhibitions
c. Conferences and seminars
d. Others
Basic and local services
a. Cultural services
b. Basic farm advice
c. Technical advice
d. Marketing advice
e. Customer advice
f. Other
Advanced level support services
a. Network of environmental monitoring
b. Specialized supports
c. Marketing promotions
d. Networks, database and multimedia
e. Other
Product specialized services
a. Test
b. Technical advice
c. Marketing advice
d. Farm advice
e. Other
Managerial services
a. Accounting
b. Managerial and financial advices
c. Support to implement policy
d. Other
Second level services (target: technical organizations)
a.
b.
c.
Planning and management advices
Analysis of innovation demand
Other
CASE STUDY: FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN TRENTINO
The Autonomous Province of Trento is located in the North of
Italy.
It is a mountainous area.
The agricultural economy is based on permanent cultivations
(apples and wine), berries and livestock. 60% of territory is
occupied by forests: wood is another important source of income.
Characteristic: a strong cooperative system in every productive
sector.
CASE STUDY: FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN TRENTINO
The FAS in Trentino is based on
•
Chain approach
•
Integration between advisory and training services
•
Sustainable management of the territory
Research and
innovation
system
Agricultural
system
The model of Agricultural Knowledge and Information System in
Trentino gives an important role to the research and innovation,
considered as instruments for the development of farm and territorial
competitiveness.
The research and innovation system is closely integrated with the
agricultural productive system with the aim to foster the innovation and
technology transfer process.
CASE STUDY: FARM ADVISORY SYSTEM IN TRENTINO
The Provincial Law 14/2005 regulates all the system of advisory and training
development.
The Edmund Mach Foundation
is the most important institution
in the field of research and
testing in agriculture, training,
farm technical assistance and
advisory services.
Activities
National
Park of
Stelvio
•
Second level
•
High vocational training in
agriculture, environment and
forestry (graduate and postgraduate)
•
Dissemination activities
•
Advisory services
Funded by the Province + RDP Funds (in 2007-2013) + other funds (collaborations
with companies and other institutions)
EDMUND MACH FOUNDATION
The Edmund Mach Foundation was an agricultural institute. It is located in San Michele all’Adige, 20 km
far from Trento. The Autonomous Province of Trento carried out its advisory service system entrusting
the management of all the activities to the EMF.
It is divided in three Centre
•
Education and training
•
Research and innovation
•
Technological transfer
Farm Advisory Services
Testing activities in agriculture, environment and forest
The Centre of Technological Transfer fosters the knowledge dissemination and
the technological transfer with the aim to improve the agricultural and forestry
system following a sustainable management of the territory.
The Advisory activity is carried out following a chain approach=involving all the
actors on cross-cutting issues involving all the productive sectors:
•
Integrated production and certifications
•
Soil analysis
•
Effects of agriculture on the environment
•
Sustainable management of the territory (agriculture in mountain areas)
EDMUND MACH FOUNDATION
In this system, the link between education and training and advisory services is
considered crucial, and very important for the development of knowledge and human
capital. FAS is realized mainly through the EMF with two kind of activities:
Vocational training:
Information
•
Vocational training for young farmers
•
•
Training for operators in agriculture and
forestry sector
Information activites for operators in
agriculture and forestry sector
•
Workshop for operators in agriculture and
forestry sector
Training activities for operators of agrifood
and environmental sector
•
At the beginning of RD programming period 2007-2013 the Education and Training Centre, in
collaboration with the Technological Tranfers Centre has concentrated its activities mostly on
the cross compliance and safety conditions at work.
Training and information activities  financed by RD funds (Measure 111: vocational
training and information). Measure 114 and 115 have been not applied in Trentino.
•
Cross compliance: advisors and consultants in all the province were the beneficiaries
•
Safety at work: in a first time only for technicians, then for all the farms (5,500 farms were
involved (27% of the total)
THE LOCAL APPLE CHAIN AND THE ROLE OF CONSULTANTS
Thanks for your attention
Sonia Marongiu – CREA
sonia.marongiu@crea.gov.it