Project

“Crops for better soil” is an ambitious project that is going to cultivate in 400 hectares without irrigation in four different areas in Spain (Castilla la Mancha, Castilla y León, Aragón and Navarra). The aim is to demonstrate on a significant scale and with innovative measurement technologies that application of particular organic farming techniques can improve soil fertility by 20%. Meanwhile it will increase yields with the same percentage through optimal combinations of methodologies targeted to the specific soils and climatic conditions concerned.

Furthermore the project utilizes crop rotation, compost fertilization and re-introduction of traditional crops. During the project’s lifetime chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides are not used, neither genetic modified crops. The farmers that participate in the project will receive professional training about ecological production during and after the project’s lifetime.

The areas and farmers involved in this project will differentiate in:
- Weather and soil types
- Type of crops (cereals, forages, oil seeds for energy, etc)
- Type of agriculture machinery
- Farmers motivation for organic agriculture

The common element is that all farmers want to be different by offering better products with added value and without depending on the European subsidies; and on the other hand, they all concern about the importance of the carbon sequestration in proper laboured lands.
The implementation of this project will offer data that prove the suitability of these methods, and on the other side the agriculture profitability without the EU support. Furthermore, the monoculture problem and the inappropriate use of lands produce poor, dry and unproductive soils. This project restores the chemical and biological composition of the soils to make more productive lands in the future.