Smart-AKIS has implemented a multi-actor innovation process following a bottom-up approach, integrating information gathered at the European level with the findings and insights gathered through surveys and workshops at the grassroots level in the project’s  Innovation Hubs.

As a result, a number of policy gaps and briefs have been elaborated by CEMA – European Agricultural Machinery, following a thematic approach that aims at covering the most relevant areas for policy development for the adoption and uptake of Smart Farming in the EU. Information based on the policy review on national and EU level together with the outcomes of the regional and innovation workshops realized during the Smart-AKIS project lifetime have been used to identify several policy gaps which should be addressed by the future Common Agricultural Policy, such as:

• Cutting red tape;
• Stimulating innovation;
• Meeting the sustainability goals (emission limits);
• Sustainable production (producing more and better with less);
• Improving social health and vitality in rural areas;
• Adapting smart farming schemes to the farm scale.

This report proposes and summarizes solutions to these gaps providing good practice examples on the European level, such as:

• Supporting farmers investment in SFTs through the CAP Second Pillar;
• Within SFTs, support Precision Agriculture tailored to farm size;
• Improve farmer’s digital capabilities through lifelong learning, education and training together with demonstrations;
• Research and innovation as support strategies for boosting agricultural innovation, emphasizing the importance of advisers.

Smart-AKIS vision for the new Common Agricultural Policy after 2020 should be to turn the policy (EARDF and EAGF) into an opportunity to make EU’s Agriculture smarter and greener, so to contribute to a more sustainable and competitive EU agriculture. In this sense, EU policy makers are called to promote and realize a holistic approach aiming at:

• Promoting solutions that are farmers-centred and that reward farmers; in particular rewarding farmers’ environmental performance;
• Supporting demand-side policies with stricter environmental and food safety regulations;
• Simplifying and improving the aid programmes’ management.

At the end of the deliverable, a series of 7 policy briefs has been listed comprising the main recommendations and highlighting the most important information to be used for dissemination purposes, covering:

1. Access to Smart Agriculture for all farms;
2. Modern and simple support for farm investment in the future of the CAP;
3. Setting the stage for advisory services of the future;
4. Demonstration and sharing of topical knowledge;
5. The Review and Update of Educational curricula;
6. Ensuring rural broadband connectivity;
7. How to Simplify, Innovate and Network the Funding Instruments.

You can read the full Policy Report in this link.

You can read the Policy Briefs in this link.