- Finnova is hosting the third meeting of the Smart and Digital Agriculture project from 12 to 16 April at its offices in Brussels.
- The consortium will meet with decision-makers from the European institutions and visit the Lavender Your Life lavender fields on 15-16 April.
Brussels, 11/04/2024. The Smart and Digital Agriculture (SDA) project financed by the European Commission through the Erasmus + programme is meeting in Brussels from 11 to 16 April to analyse the progress of the project and to finalise the final stretch of the project. Finnova has organised an agenda in line with SDA’s objectives to support youth employment in the agricultural sector through medicinal and aromatic plants with high value in agriculture and to reduce rural-urban migration.
From the consortium side, Turkish, Bulgarian, Spanish and of course Belgian partners will be represented, as Finnova will host this meeting. From the Turkish side, institutions from the Sarıcakaya district, representatives from Anadolu and Kocatepe University and the Turkish Cosmetics Manufacturers and Research Association will be welcomed. This event will also host representatives from Bulgaria, coming from the Department of Water Treatment Technologies of the University of Burgas and researchers from the Bulgarian Institute of Agricultural Economics. Finally, the Spanish sector of the consortium will be present at the conference through the Benaguasil City Council (Comunitat Valenciana).
The reception will be held today, Thursday 11 April, with a welcome dinner where Juanma Revuelta, CEO of Finnovaregio, will receive the aforementioned attendees. On Friday 12th, the progress made so far will be reviewed and next steps will be discussed at Finnova’s offices.
During the morning, the partners will visit the Committee of the Regions to discuss strategies for involving young people in digital farming, which is essential for the sustainable future of the agricultural sector. During the afternoon session, project representatives will present to the European Commission the results achieved so far and seek support for future phases of the project. Likewise, the political staff of the European Commission will present the work of the institution in the field of agriculture, rural development and youth.
The stay in Brussels will end with a visit on Tuesday 16 April to lavender fields in Sint-Gillis-Waas (Belgium). SDA members will have the opportunity to learn first-hand about the sustainable agricultural practices carried out by “Lavender Your Life” as a representation of the natural cosmetics industry in Belgium. This experience will provide valuable insights for implementing digital solutions in agriculture and an exchange of knowledge and sustainable best practices between different countries.
The meeting in Brussels represents a unique opportunity to assess the progress of the project that supports digitalization in agriculture and develops smart and virtual farming practices through the creation of a virtual laboratory. It will run a training programme, launch a virtual platform for e-learning, create the “Smart Greenhouse” application and develop a help guide to support the production of medicinal and aromatic plant raw materials.
About Smart and Digital Agriculture The European project Smart and Digital Agriculture is actively promoting digitalisation in the agricultural sector to address current and future challenges. Through innovative solutions, SDA aims to improve efficiency, sustainability and food production. With the leadership of Eskişehir Provincial Directorate of National Education (Turkey) and with the collaboration of Prof dr asen zlatarov university (Bulgaria) , Institute of agricultural economics (Bulgaria) , Finnovaregio (Belgium) , Benaguasil City Council (Spain) , Rural coalition kumanovo (Republic of North Macedonia), Anadolu University (Turkey), Saricakaya municipality (Turkey), Saricakaya District Directorate of Agriculture (Turkey), Association of cosmetic manufacturers and researchers (Turkey), the project has a total budget of 198.198,830 euros, funded by the Erasmus+ programme, and has a duration of 2 years.