Modelos neuronales

LINA AL BITAR,MARIE REINE BTEICH,PATRIZIA PUGLIESE1

Structural aspects and trends

Organic statistics reported in this chapter were collected through the MOAN (Mediterrane- an Organic Agriculture Network) and refer to official data supplied by the Ministry of Agri- culture of MOAN countries. Alternative sources were used instead for (i) Bosnia and Herze- govina (BiH), for which only data for Republika Srpska were officially communicated and for (ii) Cyprus, Greece, and Portugal, which have not yet joined MOAN.

The Mediterranean countries are hereinafter divided in sub-regional groups: European Mediterranean countries (EU Med), Candidate and Potential Candidate countries to the EU (CPC) and Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries (SEM). Table 32 reports the organic land area (including with—“total area”—and without wild collection and pastures) and the number of organic operators in each country.

In 2009 in the Mediterranean region there were more than 6 million hectares organically managed by almost 150’000 operators, mostly located in the EU Med countries that, over- all, account for 65 percent of the total organic land in the region.

Between 2008 and 2009, on the whole, the Mediterranean region experienced an important increase of total organic land area of 1.2 million hectares, accounting for about 21 percent. This growth was particularly most significant in the CPC countries with an increase of 113 percent, due—besides access to new and more complete data for some specific countries— to a significant boost observed in Turkey and FYROM (Former Yugoslav Republic of Mace- donia), compared to the EU Med and SEM countries with 12 percent and 9 percent respec- tively. However, to get a clearer picture, data on total organic land, including wild collection, and data on organic agricultural land need to be analysed separately.

Spain (that has seen an important increase of about 300’000 hectares in the last year) fol- lowed by Italy and France in both cases and Tunisia and Turkey occupy mid-level positions. Morocco ranks fourth in the top ten list of total organic land area, due to a considerable share (about 600’000 hectares) of wild collection, while it does not appear in the top ten list of organic agricultural land where, instead, other Southern and Eastern Mediterranean countries (SEM), like Egypt and Syria are present.

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Table 32: Organic land area and organic operators in the Mediterranean countries 2009

Organic agricultural _{area 2009 (ha)} Total organic area(a) _{2009 (ha)} Number of organic _{operators 2009}

E U Med. Countri e s Cyprus (b) 3’816 4’076 732 France 677’513 677’513 25‘031 Greece (c) 326’252 326’252 n.a. Italy 1’106’684 1’106’684 48‘509 Malta 26.24 26.24 12 Portugal (d) 155’000 155’000 1700 Slovenia 29’388 29’388 2.182 Spain 1’333’105 1’602’871 27.627 EU Med 3’631’784 3’901’810 105‘793 Candidates & Potential candi dates Countrie s Albania 501 4’729 61 BiH (b) 580 220’580 27 Croatia (e) 14’194 14’194 817 FYROM 1’438 206’331 511 Montenegro 4’603 106’403 34 Serbia(e) 2’489 2’876 457 Turkey 325’831 501’640 36‘172 CPC 349’636 1’056’753 38‘079

Southern and Eastern Med.

Coun- tries Algeria 623 1’626 81 Egypt 56’000 56’000 790 Jordan (data 2008) 1’053 1’053 19 Lebanon 3’305 9’444 302 Morocco 3’800 622’300 200 Palestinian Authority 1’000 1’000 500 Syria 35’439 35’439 213 Tunisia 167’400 335’900 1‘911 SEM 268’619 1’062’762 4‘016 Total Med 4‘250‘039 6’021’325 147’888

Includes wild collection areas, permanent pastures and forests when present; (b) _{Source: FiBL-IFOAM survey;} (c) _{Source: Eurostat Database;} (d)_{Source: Ministry of Agriculture, personal communication;} (e)_{No official data} are available on wild collection and forests; BiH: Bosnia and Herzegovina; FYROM: Former Yugoslav Repub- lic of Macedonia.

Editors’ note: Some of the data provided by MOAN differ from those collected in the FiBL/IFOAM survey.

Opportunities and challenges of the new EU import rules: Highlights from the 5th MOAN annual meeting

Interesting opportunities but also important challenges may arise from the new EU import rules (EC No. 1235/2008) for EU and non-EU Mediterranean countries. The topic was widely discussed with the contribution of international experts by MOAN country repre-

sentatives in the framework of the 5th _{annual meeting held in Tunisia in June 2010. The}

full report of the meeting can be downloaded from the MOAN website (http://moan.iamb.it). Following are some of the main recommendations formulated by participants.

1. Equivalent control bodies’ (CB) and control agents’ (CA) list and inclusion in the “equiva- lent Third Countries” list are considered complementary tools and processes for the devel- opment of the national organic sectors in SEM countries.

2. For SEM countries still without national regulations (and action plans) for organic food and farming, an equivalent CB/CA list may represent an important intermediate step for the development of national organic systems. Such countries should not consider equiva- lent CBs/CAs list a “fast and easy” tool to seize export opportunities on EU markets and pursue a development path for the organic sector by exclusively relying on it.

3. Investments of time and resources in capacity building and development of organic na- tional regulations (and systems) are crucial for a balanced growth of organic agriculture in SEM countries. Working along these lines, with a long-term vision for the sector, produces important advantages in terms of:

- upper political level attention drawn to the sector over time;

- improved communication and transparency of national organic sector;

- establishment of a national identity in the field of organic agriculture, with multiple beneficial effects also on: relations with national and international organic operators, the development of domestic markets, and access opportunities to the sector for vari- ous stakeholders, including smallholders.

Investigating organic research in the Mediterranean: an outline

Research in organic farming within the Mediterranean region has important potentialities and good prospects despite the many limitations that still hamper its development.

To further investigate these aspects, the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CI- HEAM-MAIB) launched a survey in September 2009 to collect information on organic re- search in the Mediterranean, in the framework of the project “Promotion of domestic and international demand for organic products – InterBio,” financed by the Italian Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies (MiPAAF).

A survey questionnaire was circulated through MOAN country representatives, in collabo- ration with IFOAM-ABM in non-MOAN countries and SINAB (Sistema d'Informazione Nazionale sull'Agricoltura Biologica) in Italy. The questionnaire consisted of two parts in- vestigating both the national policies for research in organic agriculture and the different institutions involved.

The study covered twenty-three Mediterranean countries. It shed light on the state of re- search in organic agriculture and produced a directory of institutions and projects. The full document will be downloadable in February 2011 from the websites of InterBio (www.interbio.it) and MOAN (http://moan.iamb.it/).

Key strengths are identified in the high qualification of human resources engaged in organ- ic research, the availability of infrastructure in support of research, and the adequate trans- fer of results. The weaknesses are multiple and require serious commitment to overcome

them. Only a few specialized centers in organic research exist and research institutions still devote limited space to organic research. In most countries priorities are not officially iden- tified for organic research and there are no central bodies to coordinate activities.

Among the opportunities that could be exploited, it is worth mentioning the worldwide growing interest for organic agriculture as a tool for sustainable agriculture, the recent in- clusion of the Mediterranean diet in the list of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Equally important is researchers’ awareness of the need for North/South coop- eration and coordination to promote and develop the Mediterranean organic sector, con- sidering that one of the main threats to the development and progress of organic agricul- ture research in the region is the lack of communication and coordination between the different actors.

In conclusion, in order to build up a more efficient organic agriculture research system, joint efforts should be concentrated to boost networking and cooperation to exchange knowledge and experience and to better serve conditions specific to the Mediterranean.