Safeguarding our soils
| Geographical scope | European Union |
| Keywords | soil microbial biomass carbon content operational group soil-borne disease salinisation soil soil fertility soil organic matter (SOM) soil quality contamination |
The FAO’s World Soil Day is held every year on 5 December. It aims to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources.
Did you know the EIP-AGRI has done a lot of work on this topic? Browse the summary below.
EIP-AGRI Focus Groups
EIP-AGRI Focus Groups are temporary groups of selected experts focusing on a specific subject, sharing knowledge and experience. Several of them have worked on soil-related issues, click on each link below to find reports, factsheets and more:
- Fertiliser efficiency - Focus on horticulture in open field
- Grazing for Carbon
- IPM practices for soil-borne diseases suppression in vegetables and arable crops
- Moving from source to sink in arable farming
- Nutrient recycling
- Profitability of permanent grassland
- Protecting agricultural soils from contamination
- Soil organic matter content in Mediterranean regions
- Soil salinisation
- Water & agriculture: adaptive strategies at farm level
EIP-AGRI events
The EIP-AGRI holds workshops and seminars on specific topics. Click on each link to find reports, presentations and more from events related to soil:
- EIP-AGRI workshop 'Organic is Operational'
- EIP-AGRI Workshop: Connecting innovative projects: Water & Agriculture
- EIP-AGRI Workshop Cropping for the future: networking for crop rotation and crop diversification
- Agri-Innovation summit 2019
- EIP-AGRI Workshop "Small is smart" - Innovative solutions for small agricultural and forestry holdings
EIP-AGRI publications
As well from the Focus Group reports, the EIP-AGRI Service Point has produced the following relevant publications:
- EIP-AGRI Brochure Sustainable livestock farming
- EIP-AGRI Brochure Organic is operational
- EIP-AGRI Brochure Water and Agriculture
- EIP-AGRI Brochure Soil organic matter matters
- EIP-AGRI Brochure IPM for Brassica
- Agrinnovation magazine - Issue n° 6 - June 2019 (and previous magazines)
EIP-AGRI Videos
Watch these videos on examples of soil-related initiatives from the EIP-AGRI network:
- AGRI challenge: soil fertility through carbon storage
- AGRI challenge: crop diversification in grassland
- AGRI challenge: soil salinisation
- Agroecology clip (soon available)
Inspirational ideas from the network
Articles on examples of soil-related initiatives from the EIP-AGRI network:
- Looking after the soil to bring life and carbon back (Austria)
- Preserving soil organic matter and protecting water sources (Czech Republic)
- Agroecology for sustainable soils (France)
- A kit to improve soil biological activity (France)
- Cutting atmospheric carbon: a central role for soils (France)
- From great soil comes great food – a farmers’ story (France)
- Agroforestry- a win-win for nature and the farmer (Germany)
- Agro-industrial waste put to good use as biofertiliser (Italy)
- Biofertilisers to improve soil fertility (Italy)
- Nutrient spill overs for valuable fertiliser (Italy)
- Fertile Circularity (Netherlands)
- Crop diversification - multiple benefits for dairy farm (Netherlands)
- Precision farming- the right technology and sharing knowledge are key (Netherlands)
- Protecting soil organic carbon in Poland (Poland)
- A passion for permanent pasture (Portugal)
- A nature-based approach for Mediterranean ecosystems (Portugal)
- Finding new in the old, reviving former links between forest and agricultural land (Spain)
- Grazing management with a heart for soil health (UK)
Horizon 2020 projects
- iSQAPER - Interactive Soil Quality Assessment in Europe and China for Agricultural Productivity and Environmental Resilience: website - CORDIS
- LANDMARK - LAND Management: Assessment, Research, Knowledge base: website - CORDIS
- SOILCARE - Soil Care for profitable and sustainable crop production in Europe: website - CORDIS
- Diverfarming - Crop diversification and low-input farming across Europe: from practitioners engagement and ecosystems services to increased revenues and chain organisation: website - CORDIS
- DiverIMPACTS - Diversification through Rotation, Intercropping, Multiple cropping, Promoted with Actors and value-Chains Towards Sustainability: website - CORDIS
- FAirWAY - Farm systems that produce good Water quality for drinking water supplies: website - CORDIS
- WATERPROTECT - Innovative tools enabling drinking WATER PROTECTion in rural and urban environments: website - CORDIS
- BEST4SOILS - Boosting 4 BEST practices for SOIL health in Europe: CORDIS (Thematic network)
- EXCALIBUR - Exploiting the multifunctional potential of belowground biodiversity in horticultural farming: website - CORDIS
- SoildiverAgro - Soil biodiversity enhancement in European agroecosystems to promote their stability and resilience by external inputs reduction and crop performance increase: CORDIS
More relevant multi-actor projects and thematic networks here.
Other
- European Commissions's Horizon Europe soil mission
- DG AGRI’s AgriResearch factsheet on Soils which includes a number of funding opportunities
- EIP-AGRI Newsletter November 2019 which focuses on soils
- Soil search on the EIP-AGRI database of Operational Groups
