FABulous Farmers

 The effect of some FAB-measures taken on the farm can be improved further by similar actions in the surrounding area. That’s why we work in pilot regions in which we cooperate with other stakeholders, e.g. landowners and municipalities, to come to an integrated FAB-landscape-integration plan. At the same time, the local community will be involved and engaged with educational materials, practical and fun activities and the use of citizen-science tools to help monitor the effects of the interventions. 

The pilot areas will serve as an axample for other pilot areas regarding to certain FAB solutions and by extension to the rest of the NWE region.

In crop rotation a diversity of crops enters the field one after the other and over the years, this in contrast to mixed crops where multiple crops co-occur at the same time on the field. By using different crops, the risks are spread for the farmer, but it also has a positive influence on the soil. Because the crops change every (few) year(s), the development of soil pathogens is limited. Diverse rooting ensures a better development of the soil life. Finally we also see a reduction of the weed pressure.

Some testimonials on crop rotation by farmers who implement these measure, are listed below:

• Farmer Kris Jacquemyn - De Merode (BE)
• Farmer Gert Van de Ven - De Merode (BE) - WOCAT file crop rotation in de Merode (BE)
• WOCAT file crop rotation (LUX)
• WOCAT file crop rotation Pays-de-la-Loire (FR)

When we think of field margins, in the first thing we think of are flowering margins that attract beneficials (insects that that eat pests, pollinators). A second important function of the field margins is the use as buffer strip. This is a strip between the field and the watercourse which is not fertilized and the use of pesticides is not allowed. Aim of the strip is to avoid the leach of nutrients or pesticides to the watercourse. 

Below you can find interviews with a farmers who have sown flower strips in between their crops and WOCAT file with information on field margins:

• Farmer Steven Dumortier - Pajottenland (BE)
• WOCAT file Field margin strips Hoeksche Waard (NL)
• WOCAT file Flower strips on paths  Brabant (NL)
• Farmer Steven Dumortier Pajottenland (BE) - WOCAT file Field margin flower strips - Pajottenland (BE)

Agroforestry is a cultivation system in which agricultural crops or cattle farm are combined with the production of trees at the same parcel. Different layers, above and under the ground, give a more efficient use of light, water and nutrients. The use of trees leads to a healthier soil, higher yields and homes for wildlife.

These farmers take about the pros and cons of agroforestry:

• Farmer Matt Swarbrick - Wales (UK)
• Farmer Joe Hope - Wales (UK)
• Farmer Pierre Gegu - Normandy (FR)
• WOCAT file Agroforestry SW England (UK)
• Farmer Michel Galmel - WOCAT file Agroforestry Normandy (FR)

With non-inversion tillage, the soil is not ploughed, but only loosened. This has a positive effect on soil life: there habitat is not disrupted every year. A stable soil life ensures a good soil structure, which leads to an airy soil and increases the water retention. Therefor the soil can absorb more water in wet periods and this water is longer available in dry periods.

Below you can find testimonials of farmers who minimise the use of tillage on their farms:

• Farmer Emmanuel Landeau - Pays-de-la-Loire (FR)
• Farmer Clive Bailye - SW England (UK)
• Farmer Pierre-Yves Brillant - Pays de la Loire (FR)
• Farmer Laurent Nourry - Brittany (FR)
• WOCAT file Reduced tillage Pays-de-la-Loire (FR)
• WOCAT file Reduced tillage (UK)
• Non inversion tillage (ZLTO, NL)

Organic matter input increases the sponginess of the soil: the higher the content, the better moisture can infiltrate in wet periods and the longer the moisture stays available in dry periods. It also has a positive influence on soil life. The organic matter content can be increased in several ways: working-in of harvest residues, use of farmyard manure, compost, woodchips…

More information on organic matter input, you can find below:

• Farmer Nicholas Corp - SW England (UK) - WOCAT file Organic matter input (UK)
• Farmers Peter and Richard Rijk - Zeeland (NL) (Dutch only)
• WOCAT file Increasing organic matter Zeeland (NL)
• FAB in fruit cultivation (NL)

The FABulous Farmers team wrote an EU policy paper to combine their recommendations towards European policy makers. Based on the project findings, seven policy recommendations have been formulated that will support the uptake of FAB measures by farmers and establish the policy conditions necessary to realize the agricultural, ecological and societal benefits of FAB.

You can find the full paper here. 

The EU policy paper was adapted for the policy context at national level of each country (BE, NL, FR, LUX, UK). These papers were presented at the policy makers at national policy events.

You can find the full papers of the different countries below:

• Belgium
• The Netherlands
• France
• Luxembourg
• United Kingdom

For scientific data gathered through the project, we are using WOCAT, a global network on Sustainable Land Management (SLM) that promotes the documentation, sharing and use of knowledge to support adaptation, innovation and decision-making in SLM. 

The FABulous Farmers partners have published some articles on WOCAT. These articels are based on knowledge the partners built in the past. In this way all information is collected in one place. The next step will be to bring all the knowledge (past and new) together on a technical sheet. You can see the data here:

• WOCAT files FABulous Farmers

One of the principle goals of the FABulous Farmers project is the implementation of FAB-measures on the pilotfarms and to evaluate these towards their ecological performance and economic profitability, with the aim of reducing the dependence on external inputs. Making a sustainability evaluation at farm level means “taking a picture” of the farm in a defined way and at a precise moment! The result of first sustainability evaluation at the project start could thus provide a baseline about the sustainability level on the farm and in the region. This allows to identify possible weak points on the farm and in the region as well as the comparison of regions in the project. On this basis, FAB-measures to be implemented in each region can be specifically adapted to the situation in the project region.

You can read the complete report here.

Within the FABulous Farmers project a report was made on the effects of the 10 FAB measures on the environment, on the farmer field as well as on the surroundings. The aim of this report is to:

• Review methods to measure the environmental performance of FAB solutions. The focus is on biodiversity, soils and water quality.
• Identify scientific approaches that could be used at the farm level and implemented by farmers or extension workers.
• Determine if and potentially how these measurement approaches could feed into and support regional or national monitoring.

You can read the full report here.

A summary of the project you can find in our flyer in Dutch, English, French and German.

Soil Association Exchange - United Kingdom

Soil Association Exchange is a new platform being launched in Autumn 2022. The vision for Exchange is that it becomes the industry standard for measuring and rewarding regenerative farming and forestry practices. The platform will enable farmers to

1. Measure
2. Improve and
3. Get financial rewards

for the ecological health of their farm.

Organisation: Soil Association, contact: JGridley@soilassociation.org

Belgium: Under construction

Organisation: Boerennatuur Vlaanderen

Yapla (Solenat) - France

The online platform Yapla offers diverse services to promote and fund associations and their projects of general interests (crowdfunding, newsletters, website, membership subscription, data management…). Solenat is a farmer association which is already animating Payment of Ecosystem Services schemes and that will take the opportunity to widen its offers online thanks to Yapla and the FABulous Farmers project. As a zero-cost platform Yapla will help limit the transaction cost of the schemes while remaining a highly customisable solution to develop an online identity for Solenat and its various offers (pollinators sponsorship, hedges carbon credits…).

Organisation: AC3A, contact: yann.mathias@ac3a.chambagri.fr 

By the end of 2023 the FABulous Farmers project ended. During the project period we were able to support 447 farmers and implement FAB-measures on an area of 22678 ha!