NEUROPUBLIC to Boost Sustainable Avocado Farming in the Farmtopia Project

The EU project Farmtopia, running from 2023 to 2026, aims to make digital technologies accessible to all, including small- and medium-sized farmers.

To transform farming practices across Europe, Farmtopia addresses the underdeveloped existing Agricultural Digital Solutions (ADSs), while also spotlighting regionally important crops, through 9 Sustainable Innovation Pilots. One of the Pilots happens to be tied to Greece, as NEUROPUBLIC, a pioneering ADS provider, which also coordinates the project, is set to launch activities that tackle sustainability and cost-effectiveness challenges of the organic avocado sector and could lead to a 15% reduction in water consumption and 10% reduction in production costs in the sector.

Path to a Solution for Small-Scale and Medium-Scale Farmers

Smaller farms are operating on fragmented land parcels with limited financial resources, leading organic avocado farming to face significant sustainability hurdles and high expenses. With an increasing demand for irrigation, there’s an urgent need to mitigate environmental impact and reduce input costs.

With the technological infrastructure ready and the challenges mapped, NEUROPUBLIC together with GAIA EPICHEIREIN, representing and engaging farmers in this Sustainable Innovation Pilot 1 (SIP1), aims to leverage the Farmtopia software modules to enhance the gaiasense Smart Farming solution. This enhancement will provide farmers with low-cost, high-quality advice on irrigation and fertilization, crucial for optimizing resource usage and maximizing yield potential.

The key components of SIP1’s strategy include establishing a regional-wide infrastructure of IoT weather stations installed in 7 different parcels, leveraging economies of scale to ensure accuracy in data collection. The strategy also includes combining various data types of different spatial and temporal analysis, as to provide farmers with precise insights, empowering them to make informed decisions. Finally, SIP1 will facilitate the controlled exchange of sensor recordings, farm advice, and regional data among farmer cooperatives, well-connected local agronomists, and food companies.

Vasilis Papaspiliou, Leader of SIP1 activities on behalf of NEUROPUBLIC in Farmtopia

By implementing its innovative solutions, SIP1 aims to achieve a 15% reduction in water consumption, a 10% reduction in fertilizer use, and a 10% reduction in production costs.

Farmtopia’s Open Call for Innovation in 2024

While 9 SIPs have been pre-selected, more will be chosen later, with the Farmtopia Open Call beginning this year. The forthcoming Open Call will facilitate the collaborative development and testing of intelligent solutions tailored for small farms by 9 newly established Sustainable Innovation Pilots (SIPs). These initiatives will leverage Farmtopia’s reusable software modules. A total funding of €900,000, amounting to €100,000 per SIP, will be allocated for this purpose.

EU Project Farmtopia: Cultivating Community

Farmtopia’s inclusive strategy will unite a wide array of stakeholders across the agricultural value chain, including farmers, ADS providers, farm advisors, scientists, policymakers, AKIS (Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems) actors, and other essential contributors. Together, they will actively contribute to the project’s overarching mission.

The Farmtopia project (GA No.: 101083541) has received funding by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme. All the information is available on the project’s website, as well as Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and YouTube.