Knowledge ‘key to the future of agriculture’

THE future of European agriculture will depend on knowledge, a conference was told in Brussels.

European Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel pointed to GPS technology as an example of what can be achieved.

“In the air, a satellite detects which parts of a field of maize are becoming too yellow. It then guides a robot to apply fertiliser in just the right places. Our ancestors couldn’t have imagined this. Likewise, previous generations would have been impressed by what we can do with integrated farming systems – getting the best possible outputs but dramatically cutting down chemical inputs.”

Ms Fischer Boel said it is essential in farming to make informed choices. If this was true in the past, it’s all the more true following recent reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

“In this environment of greater freedom of choice, more than ever, the successful farmers will be the ones who understand clearly what options are open, make sound decisions about what to do, and find the best way of doing it.

“If we want to see these things happen – see the right choices made, and the right technology used – good research is indispensable. But not only farmers need access to a good level of knowledge. If we want a successful agricultural sector, so do policy-makers.”