Agriculture & Innovation 2025 30 Projects...a taskforce prepared a report to provide direction and...

Agriculture & Innovation 2025#AI2025

Agriculture & Innovation 2025

#AI2025

October 2015

30 Projects for Competitive and

Environmentally Aware Agriculture

Submitted by: Jean-Marc BOURNIGAL

François HOULLIERPhilippe LECOUVEY

Pierre PRINGUET

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30 Projects for Competitive and Environmentally

Aware AgricultureSubmitted by:

Jean-Marc BOURNIGALFrançois HOULLIER

Philippe LECOUVEYPierre PRINGUET

In response to a request by the French Ministers in charge of Agriculture and of Higher Education and Research in 2015, a taskforce prepared a report to provide direction and guidance for the future French governmental roadmap "Agriculture Innovation 2025". The taskforce was composed of four prominent figures involved in French agricultural and food research and innovation and this report presents an overview of their recommendations.

In the mission statement for this report, the Ministers recalled that agriculture is at the heart of the issues that concern all of society, and faces global challenges such as Climate Change, Food Security, Biodiversity Conservation, and the Digital Revolution. Specifically, the following themes were a focus of analysis to correspond to the report’s mandate:

• Agro-ecology in its integrative dimension;• Bioeconomy;• Biocontrol and its place in the strategies of integrated crop and livestock health management;• Plant biotechnologies in their diversity, integrating the related societal issues;• Agricultural equipment and the development of digital agriculture.


04 05

Priorities Thematic areas pages Projects

Agroecology

22

20

18

24

28

24

12

30

34

36

06

Bioeconomy

Digital agriculture

Genetics & biotechnology

Agricultural economics

Open innovation

Robotics

Plant & animal biocontrol

Training

Summary

Advancing soil biology researchImproving soil fertility and mitigating climate change Preparing for and adapting to climate change: developing and promoting integrated water management Preparing for and adapting to climate change: creating a portal for agricultural services Developing rapid health diagnostic tools for farm use

[Agroeco1][Agroeco2][Agroeco3][Agroeco4][Agroeco5]

12345

6789

1011

121314

15161718

192021

22232425

262728

2930

Promoting protein autonomy in France and Europe Expanding research on technology and process engineeringOrganising systems biology and synthetic biology research for bioindustriesOrganising research on and for the bioeconomy

[Bioeco1][Bioeco2][Bioeco3][Bioeco4]

Improving genomic selection in plant and animal breedingManaging new biotechnologyDeveloping the industrial potential of secondary metabolites Diversifying and broadening this potential Updating procedures and regulations to encourage new genetic developments and their adoption

[Gen1][Gen2][Gen3][Gen4]

Incorporating farm experience into innovation effortsMobilising agricultural RDI to meet social challengesCreating regional Living Labs to study agroecology and bioeconomyUpgrading research networks and farm observation networks

[Innov1][Innov2][Innov3][Innov4]

Creating an agricultural data portal for open innovation Organising research on digital technology in agriculture

[Digi1][Digi2]

Accelerating research and development in agricultural robotics Organising and supporting industrial activity in agricultural robotics Designing methods to test and certify agricultural robots

[Rob1][Rob2][Rob3]

Organising and supporting research and development on biocontrol for plant pests and diseases Supporting biocontrol in livestock systems to improve performance and animal healthAdapting procedures and regulations for assessing plant and animal biocontrol measures

[Bioc1][Bioc2][Bioc3]

Developing and disseminating multicriteria assessment tools for agricultural and food systems Diversifying sources of agricultural revenue and financingEstablishing an international competitiveness observatory on agriculture and agrifood

[Eco1][Eco2][Eco3]

Improving training and support schemes to match skill requirementsBuilding capacity to support change in agriculture

[Train1][Train2]

1Developing a systems approach and using agriculture to fight climate change

2 axes- 9 projects- 31 actions

Allowing for the full development of new technologies in agriculture

4 axes -12 projects - 45 actions2

2Bringing together all agricultural research and development stakeholders to foster competitiveness

3 axes - 9 projects - 22 actions

3



AGROECO

BIOECO

DIGI

ROB

GEN

BIOCH

INNOV

ECO

TRAIN

SUMMARY OF THEMATIC AREAS/PROJECTS/ACTIONS

06 07



Summary

Consequently, satisfying our economic, environmental, and social needs will require a high level of efficiency across agricultural production and supply chains. In today’s world, this means being more competitive, while giving due regard to sustainable development concerns. The search for sustainable competitiveness is what inspired this Mission and the action plans set out here, which were shaped by the conviction that innovation is essential.

2. An open and inclusive methodology The Mission’s methodology drew on dialogue with all stakeholders, including industry representatives, farmers’ unions, agricultural chambers of commerce, consumer organisations, research bodies, technical institutes, and universities. In total, more than 300 people were involved in the project. All interviews and workshops conducted as a part of the project were carried out with the aim of identifying concreate action plans. Once meetings were concluded, participants were asked to further develop their ideas in draft proposals. It was not possible, in the time given, to fully explore some of the issues identified. These would, however, merit further consideration, and recommendations to this end were put forward by the Mission.

The Mission purposefully chose a very broad spectrum, stretching from scientific research to innovation, and including their transfer and dissemination in the field, while also encompassing training and regulatory aspects where these seemed relevant. Studying the impact of agricultural research demonstrates that a variety of actions and partnerships are involved over timeframes lasting from one to dozens of years.(1,2)

The projects and actions identified varied in their substance. They included drawing road maps for particular issues, formulating and carrying out projects and programmes for research, development and transfer, creating research infrastructure, developing partnership agreements, training, and regulatory action.

The Mission sought to deal with those subject explicitly set out in its mission statement. Nevertheless, the scope of its recommendations covers the broader range of issues identified over the course of its work. The Mission endeavoured to fully incorporate the considerations and guidelines set out in France’s national research strategy.

The agrifood industry was not specifically mentioned in the mission statement. Additional work in this area would be of merit, given the input provided by various industry stakeholders and owing to the interconnected nature of developments in agriculture and agrifood. The Mission looked to guide and inform its work using three complementary analyses and approaches: benchmarking agricultural research strategies in other countries; an analysis of the future outlook for research, development, and experimentation in France, carried out as a part of the GIS Relance agronomique group on agricultural renewal; and an

1. Challenging circumstances Agriculture at the start of the twenty-first century faces a number of challenges: feeding humankind, with demand from emerging countries for animal protein constantly increasing; reducing its environmental impact; mitigating and adapting to climate change through agroecology transition; and making full use of biomass to supply resources suited to energy, chemical, and material uses.

Meeting these concurrent challenges will require wide-scale change to the economics of agricultural production and supply chains, keeping in mind that:

• consumers are at one end, with a wide range of food product needs, from the most commonplace products through to haute cuisine, and also with a wide range of opinions about production processes (sourcing, animal welfare, social and environmental impact, etc.), at times in ways that may be contradictory. In all cases, consumers want products that meets their needs and expectations, with a strong emphasis on quality and safety, at an attractive price;

• farms and farmers are at the other end. Farms are incredibly diverse by nature, and are located around the world with different relationships to their local environments. As a result, there is no single model that farms follow but, for all, the ability to be sufficiently profitable is essential.

overview of mechanisms for financing agricultural research and development in France.

3. Proposals for projects Thirty draft proposals for projects constitute the core of this report. They identify, as clearly as possible, the issues involved, the actions to take, the stakeholders concerned, the sources of financing, a technological readiness level assessment (TRL)(3) where appropriate, project milestones, and a project calendar. Three major priorities were identified, based on nine thematic areas:

1 Developing a systems approach and using agriculture to fight climate change by:

Supporting and spurring agroecology transition [AGROECO]. This thematic area follows on from Marion Guillou’s 2013 report and from the 2014 French Law on the Future of Agriculture. There is a wide range of proposals for this thematic area, including research on soil, an action plan for mitigating climate change (4 per 1000 initiative), a portal for services and climate data for agriculture, integrated water management, and rapid health diagnostic tools designed for farm use.

Developing bioeconomy research and innovation [BIOECO]. Bioeconomy is the sustainable use of natural capital through the production, processing, and recycling of plant and animal biomass. Projects in this area address specific issues (protein autonomy in France and in Europe, as a follow-on from Anne Lauvergeon’s Innovation 2030 report), further engineering and technology research projects already funded by France’s “Investing in the Future” programme (PIA) (biorefineries, high-speed fermentation), leading-edge science (systems biology and synthetic biology for bioindustries), and, more broadly, the way bioeconomy research is structured (finalisation of an intragovernmental roadmap, creation of interdisciplinary research centres) and the need to develop more systemic approaches.

2 Allowing for the full development of new technologies in agriculture by:

Pressing forward with the digital revolution [DIGI]. This thematic area continues the work undertaken in 2014 by Jean-Marc Bournigal on agricultural equipment. Its scope is quite broad, spanning research programmes (decision-making tools, sensors) to economic development projects (creation of an open-access resource for digital agricultural data, new testing methods using digital technology).

Accelerating the development of agricultural robotics [ROB] This area is also a follow on from Jean-Marc Bournigal’s 2014 work on agricultural equipment. In this case, a very focused approach was adopted, namely adding a programme dedicated to agricultural robotics to France’s new industrial plan, developing public–private partnerships in this area, and creating an open facility for testing and assessment.

1. Colinet L., Joly P-B., Gaunand A., Matt M., Larédo P., Lemarié S., 2014. ASIRPA – Analyse des Impacts de la Recherche Publique Agronomique. Rapport final. Final Report. Prepared for INRA. Paris, France. 61 pages.

2. National Symposium on INRA’s research impacts, INRA, Paris, 28 September 2015.

3. Technology readiness levels (TRL) are a method of estimating a technology’s maturity through laboratory testing prior to its launch. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_readiness_level

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Mobilising genetic resources and biotechnologies [GEN]. This area is vital in terms of staying competitive. France has a very high level of research skill in this area, which is internationally very competitive, but has fallen behind in terms of experimental research and knowledge dissemination. GEN projects include genomic selection in plants and animals, improving new biotechnology, and making use of diversity in plant metabolisms. It also includes an element of regulatory control with regard to the development of approval processes for biotechnology-derived varieties (in coordination with France’s Higher Council on Biotechnology (HCB) and the European Union).

Supporting the emerging field of biocontrol [BIOC]. Here, it is necessary both to coordinate biocontrol research (creation of a public–private consortium on plant biocontrol) and to support its development and dissemination (launch of a number of integrated research–development–dissemination projects as a part of France’s Ecophyto Plan. One project is specifically addressing the development of animal biocontrol methods, and another is looking at processes to evaluate biocontrol products.

3 Bringing together all agricultural research and development stakeholders to foster competitiveness:

Encouraging open innovation [INNOV]. This is linked very clearly with experiments carried out at farm and landscape levels. This thematic area is aimed at the rapid dissemination of methods and tools to stimulate innovation, such as landscape-level “Living Labs”, system experiment networks, assessment tools, and sharing on-the-ground experiences.

Measuring multiperformance and innovating in agricultural economics [ECO]. The scope of this thematic area is the broadest. Proposals here included developing multicriteria assessment tools to measure performance in agricultural systems, innovative agricultural financing, improving responses to risk (climate, health, market), and the need for innovation at organisational levels.

Supporting training [TRAIN] in line with current developments, particularly in four key areas: digital for agriculture, agroecology, bioeconomy, and plant and animal genetics.

Together, these nine thematic areas form a single unit. They are not independent of each other, and thus they must be viewed holistically as a coherent whole in line with Agriculture Innovation 2025’s mission statement and which does not require the creation of corollary layers of organisation.

They do not, however, cover the full range of actions being carried out in research, development, dissemination, and innovation by scientists and specialists. They instead represent priorities.

4. The need for sustained effort The proposals put forward do not, of course, constitute an immediate response to the current agricultural crisis, which was not a part of the mission statement and was beyond the scope of the authors’ expertise. The proposals do not directly address France’s loss of market share to overseas agrifood players, but these difficulties in themselves could be seen as indicative of a lack of competitiveness in France’s agricultural and food industries.

It is the deeply held conviction of the authors that the proposals put forward under the nine thematic areas form the appropriate response for creating the conditions for sustainable competitiveness to 2025, both internationally and within France. Providing that the development and implementation of these project proposals can be supported, they will help to chart a course for French agriculture and to rebuild trust between agricultural industries and consumers.


011

Developing a systems approach

& using agriculture to fight climate change

1Priority


012 013



Challenges

Agroecology first appeared as a field of study in the first half of the twentieth century seeking to combine agriculture and ecology, and is associated with a range of practices and agricultural models. Agroecology views crop and livestock systems as ecosystems wherein the natural environment is transformed by agricultural practices that themselves are shaped by the local landscape. It seeks to understand the way these human-managed systems operate, how they use natural resources, and the web of interaction among its living organisms.Agroecology was incorporated into legislation with France’s Law No. 2014-1170 of 13 October 2014 on the future of agriculture, food and forests. It is an essential part of developing and implementing production systems that are highly productive, cost-effective, environmentally friendly, safe, and socially aware. The move towards agroecology is taking place against a backdrop of climate change that is already exacerbating disparities among European agricultural regions. Although these changes have generally had a net positive effect for northern Europe, changes in southern and central Europe have tended to be negative, and all European regions will be affected by increasingly severe climate fluctuation.This raises the question of the dynamics operating between agricultural systems, industries, and landscapes on one hand, and climate on the other. Climate change affects agriculture, but agriculture also contributes to climate change through greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The challenge, therefore, is to make agriculture a part of the solution. For example, it is possible to reduce methane and nitrous oxide emissions by 20% without reducing agricultural productions levels. (1)

1. How can French agriculture contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions?: Abatement potential and cost of ten technical measures. Report, INRA, 2013

2. International Symposium on Agroecology and Research, INRA, Paris, 17 October 2013. http://institut.inra.fr/en/Events/International-Symposium-on-Agroecology-and-Research

AGROECO

Current assessment

To deliver goods and services – of which agricultural products naturally are a major component – agroecology engineering seeks to better align human activities with natural patterns. To do so, it draws on three key areas:(2)

• Biodiversity and biological interactions. Agroecology makes use of biodiversity by fostering both intraspecific genetic variation (populations, cultivar mixtures) and interspecific variation (intercropping, diversified crop rotations, long crop rotations, mixed grazing systems), and by combining various plant elements, for example through agroforestry practices. Biocontrol practices [Bioc1-3] and genetic resources [GEN1] must be given due consideration in this regard.

• Water and other major element (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus) cycles. When these cycles are too open, water, nutrients, organic soil matter, and energy are wasted and lost, while water, soil, and air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions increase. Agroecology practices support cycles that are more closed.

• The organisation and performance of agricultural landscapes in terms of managing the distribution of plots, production facilities, residual spaces, and environmental infrastructure, such as hedges, grassy verges, wetlands, and thickets). These elements are more effective when they are managed at landscape or drainage-basin levels. Landscape mosaics can be used to purify water and air, to store car

At system and landscape scales, these three areas often work in synergy [INNOV2-4]. Each area draws on recent scientific findings and involves acute observation and wide-scoped study (from farmed species to biodiversity, from plot to landscape, from fertiliser application to element cycles, and from seasons to multiyear perspectives). Farm work must be constantly managed to adapt decisions to current observations, a process that may take considerable time particularly during transition periods. Specific indicators and tools for training [TRAIN1, TRAIN2], multicriteria assessment models and decision-making tools [ECO1] are thus needed, as are new technologies to faci-litate observation and interpretation [DIGI1, DIGI2] and to save time when using more complex practices and techniques, such as seeding under crop cover, mixing species, and agroforestry [ROB1, ROB2, ROB3].

Priorities

Beyond research currently being carried out by various bodies dealing with agroecology transition,(1) and in addition to the other contributing priorities listed in other thematic areas as outlined above, the priorities described here will make agroecology more responsive to climate change. They focus on critical soil and water resources, climate change adaptation strategies, and the early detection of plant and animal pests and diseases:

AGROECO1: Soil plays a major role in plant and animal production ecosystems. It is also key to closing major element cycles. Leading-edge scientific findings and technology now allow biodiversity to be studied in profoundly new ways. It is important to take advantage of this opportunity to improve our understanding of soil and the mechanisms at work therein, and to develop new assessment and decision-making tools.

AGROECO2: The most significant opportunities in fighting climate change are likely to come from storing carbon in the organic soil matter of crop- and grasslands, and the restoration of degraded soil. If overall soil carbon stocks increased by 0.4% per year, it would be enough to offset the increase in atmospheric CO2 by doubling the continental carbon sink. The goal therefore is to pair, at international level, a large-scale research programme with an action plan focused on this target.

AGROECO3: In light of current climate change, managing water quality and quantity is of major concern for agriculture. The aim is to develop an integrated management approach to managing water resources at regional level.

AGROECO4: The fight against climate change calls for models and tools that can evaluate and weigh various options with regard to mitigating GHG emissions, predicting impacts and regional outcomes, and adapting to change, be it in short-term, crisis-response situations or for long-term strategies to shape productions choices or to manage risk.

AGROECO5: As shifts such as climate change become more marked, health and safety risks become more acute. New scientific findings can be used to develop new tools for early detection, diagnosis, and tracking plant and animal pests and diseases.

1

Agroecology Supporting and spurring

agroecology transition

Developing a systems approach & using agriculture to fight climate change

Priority

014 015



Challenges

Bioeconomy, as put forward by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2009, has become a vital sustainable development policy for promoting long term economic growth. Broadly understood, bioeconomy is the ensemble of economic, innovation, development and research activities that produce and use biological products and processes(1). This includes the production and processing of biomass into foodstuffs and animal feeds, as well as chemical and energy uses, and for the manufacture of biosourced products. The concept allows the traditional dichotomy of food and non-food uses to be sidestepped so that competition – and synergy – between food, energy, and chemical systems can be taken into account, as all three use biomass. Biomass and biomass lifecycle lie at the heart of the bioeconomy. Biomass is the aggregate of organic matter produced by living organisms – plants, animals, microbes – or by their derivatives, including agricultural, forest, and marine products, the byproducts and wastewater from processing organic matter, and other organic waste (municipal waste, sewage, household waste, yard waste). Renewing biomass is the primary feature that distinguishes bioeconomy from a fossil-fuel-based economy. The bioeconomy is expected to meet a number of challenges. These include, at European Union level, (1) moving towards autonomy in terms of protein (at present, more than half of the protein used in animal feed is imported), (2) contributing to energy sovereignty and diversifying the energy mix through the use of the region’s biomass, and (3) supporting reindustrialisation by creating new, biomass-derived products and associated industries. Consequently, the question of sustainability is an important one that must consider production, processing, and recycling systems in all their complexity (cradle-to-grave analysis,

1. http://www.oecd.org/futures/Bioeconomy/2030

2. https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/ki-01-15-295-enn.pdf

3. http://www.biomassforthefuture.org/en/

4. http://probio3.netcomdev2.com/en/

5. http://www.ifmas.eu/ (in French)

6. http://www.institut-pivert.com/

7. http://www.toulouse-white- biotechnology.com/en/

8. http://www.3bcar.fr/en/

9. http://www.iar-pole.com/infos-adherents/sinfoni-mise-a-disposition-des-3-premiers-gabarits-de-ches-techniques (in French)

10. http://www.improve-innov.com/en/

acknowledgement of regional differences, land-use pressures caused by competition and changing production patterns).

Current assessment

In 2012, the European Commission took up notion of bioeconomy.(2)Other Western countries did the same in order to define their own industrial and science strategies. France’s first Investing in the Future (PIA) programme helped to organise research, development, and dissemination activities. A variety of projects were supported, including joint research programmes centred around certain plant species(3) and new production processes,(4) energy transition institutes led by the private sector,(5,6) and precommercial demonstration projects.(7)

One of 34 Carnot institutes, 3BCAR(8) is a national network of research facilities working in the field of transforming biomass into bioenergy, biomolecules, and biobased materials. 3BCAR is unique because it uses interdisciplinary approaches, ranging from plant biology to functional property analysis, and employs ecodesign practices, to encourage the use of renewable resources in energy, chemistry, and materials.Public–private partnerships are an essential promote bioeconomy across regions, with “competitiveness centres” playing a major role. One example is the SINFONI project,(9) which seeks to build a national supply chain for technical linen and hemp fibre for material uses by bringing together industrial, academic, and other experts across the value chain. IMPROVE,(10) a shared facility for innovation in plant protein, is another such example. A unique aspect of the bioeconomy is that it challenges the notion of exclusive links within the various stages of a transformation process (or production chain). There are two main reasons for this. The first is that most forms of biomass are interchangeable, through biorefining, to meet end-product needs. While sometimes glossed as a “circular economy”, the three drivers of bioeconomy – fractionation, conversion, and cascade use – must be studied as one integrated system (systemic analysis). The second reason is that relationships among stakeholders are often unstable because innovation and technology lead to continuous restructuring in these industries. A systemic approach, giving due consideration to interactions among regional food, chemical, and energy systems, encourages ecodesign, whereas the traditional product-based approach lacks a holistic perspective and the ability to see the needs to each group.

Priorities

There is a wide range of actions that can support the bioeconomy and help it meet the challenges it faces. The first step is to make better use of the biomass that is already being produced by introducing new extraction and processing technologies, and by improving the use of byproducts. Going forwards, next steps will address the quantity and quality of biomass produced. Possible ways to do this include increasing yields and cultivated land area by making use of land that is not suited to food crops, controlling the quality of biomass regularly

supplied to biorefineries, and applying new technology to facilitate the use of new, or improved, species. The priorities listed below are broad ranging. They complement the [ECO1] project, which is essential for adopting systemic approaches, and [GEN] projects dealing with plant biotechnology.

BIOECO1: The aim is for focused research and development to keep pace with the expected surge in demand for plant proteins. Key focus areas include improving our understanding of protein metabolism, developing new extraction technology, and making production more sustainable.

BIOECO2: This technology- and engineering-driven project seeks to improve processes and agents used in processing. Its primary aim is to support the development and interconnection of the tools described above that have proven effective.

BIOECO3: Green and white (or industrial) biotechnologies, and the innovation created by new findings in contemporary biology are vital catalysts. Here, emphasis is placed on one such major development, systems biology, and synthetic biology as a whole.

BIOECO4: The bioeconomy must be viewed in terms of a system, wherein all operations (production, processing, recycling) and all interaction are considered as a whole to understand the system’s overall efficiency. Creating an interdisciplinary bioeconomy research centre can draw on this unique aspect and will support future-oriented studies in this field.

1

BIOECO Bioeconomy Developing bioeconomy research and innovation

Developing a systems approach and using agriculture to fight climate change

Priority

016 017



017

Allowing for the full development

of new technologies in agriculture

2Priority


018 019



Challenges

Agriculture, like all other aspects of our economy, is moving into the digital age. As technologies develop to capture, store, and treat massive amounts data – onsite or offsite through supercomputers accessed via ultra-high-speed communication networks – the new era of big data for agriculture has begun. These advances will facilitate new discoveries, and can lead to new services and decision-making tools to increase precision and effectiveness in agriculture professionals’ choices. The capture and dissemination of essential data are major assets for meeting the global challenges facing agriculture, food, and the environment.

The agriculture of today and tomorrow must not only produce, but must produce more and better by being triply effective [ECO]. These changes will lead directly to agroecology projects [AGROECO]. As a consequence, people involved in agriculture will increasingly have to reconcile multiple goals. Complex decision-making situations require the development of new, integrated tools that draw on big data.

For France, these changes are strategic. At stake are its balance of agricultural trade – in a perilous position for certain products – and its balance of trade in agricultural equipment [ROB] – already in the red. It also raises the question of national economic, agricultural, and food sovereignty should French production come to rely on foreign data and services(1). This area is also an important emerging field for SMEs, French startups, and both large- and small-scale operators using wireless communication networks and connected devices.

1. Threat comparable to thatextra-national clouds, which led to the establishment of national cloud offerings, or GPS, which resulted in the European Galileo project.

2. http://www.fb.org/tmp/uploads/*PrivacyAndSecurity PrinciplesForFarmData.pdf

3. Yara, Veris, Geonics, Dualem, Geocarta, Geophilus, N-Tech, Topcon, Corhize, Hydromet, Fruition, Force A, Hiphen, Agri-esprit, Inozy, Exotic Systems etc.

DIGI

These measures bring significant potential for industrial renewal in France. Technological and organisational innovation surrounding “e-agriculture” will revolutionise traditional agricultural production, agricultural products and services, and even relationships among stakeholders [INNOV2].

Current assessment

Many multinational agricultural-supplies businesses, such as seed and agrochemical companies (Monsanto, Pioneer), and equipment manufacturers (John Deere, AGCO (Massey Ferguson), CNH Industrial (New Holland Agriculture)) are now positioning themselves in the “e agriculture” services market. In the United States, major players in the agricultural industry have recognised the value of, but also the attendant issues raised by, big data, and have put forward a Privacy and Security Principles of Farm Data(2) charter. In Denmark, a different approach was implemented, where farmers themselves took charge of developing databases (www.seges.com). Industry stakeholders in developing countries are also harnessing the power of open data through programmes such as Coherence in Information for Agricultural Research for Development (CIARD), created by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in 2008, and Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN), launched in 2013 as a G8 initiative.

Data capture is a critical part of the new digital agriculture. An increasing number of mobile and nonmobile connected devices and sensors are supplementing satellite information (weather, Sentinel programme) provided by suppliers and partners. Both in France and abroad, a number of companies, startups included, are starting to develop these types of tools.(3) .

Priorities

Two priority areas were identified for digital agriculture to contribute substantively to this shift for French agriculture while benefitting national information and communications technology (ICT) businesses as well.

DIGI1: Creating an agricultural data portal that will provide access to a wide range of data, including georeferenced open public data, health and safety data, economic data, and private data from farmers and other industry stakeholders. Data will be the catalyst to open innovation and will encourage the creation of new knowledge, new decision-making tools, new systems based on modelling and simulation, and new agricultural advisory and training services.

DIGI2: Digital agriculture is built on two key areas in particular: data capture and data processing. For data capture, multiple approaches are needed, for example through calls for projects to develop sensors to meet identified needs for agriculture and livestock. For data processing, modelling big data presents new challenges and requires new resources. This is one reason why is it particularly important to organise research

coherently, using an interdisciplinary approach bringing together mathematicians, computer scientists, data scientists who straddle the line between statistics and technology, and agricultural scientists, as well as sociologists and management scientists. Parallel research on processing big data for agriculture is equally as important.

These priorities are tied to the existence of broadband coverage at both high speeds (3G/4G) and low speeds (for connected devices, as offered by Sigfox). These must also be adequate in rural areas to allow the use of innovative technology and to connect to digital services.

2

Digital agriculture

Data: new knowledge

and new services


Priority

020 021



Challenges

New practices – some of which may require the development of entirely new kinds of agricultural equipment – are needed as agriculture moves towards a multifunctional approach for economic, social, and environmental sustainability. Together with developments in sensor technology, robotics offers breakthrough opportunities to support, or even to shape, changes in agricultural practices and systems. Highly autonomous machines make it possible to better leverage human inputs over space and time, and to work more precisely. The success of milking robots in France(1) proves that farmers are interested in innovative technical solutions that are reliable, increase their bottom line, and improve their working conditions. It is highly likely that developments in agricultural robotics will bring about major changes to agricultural practices. Consequently, it is not a simple matter of introducing robots into existing production systems, but rather one of creating new production systems that use robotics. To do so, the robot and the agroecosystem must be designed in tandem, for example, in terms of the size and layout of orchards, the interrow distance in market gardens, and the design of livestock buildings, in the way that milking robots led to new dairy farming practices. The aim for robotics, from a social point of view, is to improve comfort and safety for their users and to lighten their physical and mental workload, thereby freeing time for tasks with higher added value, such as monitoring crops, managing the farm, buying and selling, and so on.

Beyond the social and environmental interest in agriculture, there are considerable economic returns in the field of agricultu-

ROB

ral robotics as well. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), agriculture is the second largest market for in-dustrial robots. In 2013, worldwide sales of agricultural robotics reached USD 817 million, a figure that is set to rise to USD 16.3 billion by 2020 (WinterGreen Research). Investing in a national agricultural robotics industry in France is thus a strategic deci-sion that would involve multinationals, startups, and SMEs alike, which are currently very involved in this emerging market.

Current assessment

Agricultural robotics is involved in a very wide range of situations. Automated milking systems, feeding robots, and automated greenhouses systems, designed to work in relatively closed and structured environments, are already well established. Cobotics – collaborative robotics – are designed to aid the user complete physically demanding tasks and may prove highly useful in the agrifood industry (for avoiding musculoskeletal disorders) and in areas that may be dangerous to humans. Automated mobility technology will take many forms and will become available at different points in time. Assisted driving technology will come online in the near future, while the medium term will see assistance robots that work together with human operators, and longer term will see autonomous robots carrying out a wide range of tasks, including monitoring, hoeing, spraying, and even harvesting. Although robotics challenges in recent years, such as DARPA,(2) have shown progress with regard to autonomous mobility in open environments (primarily on roads and in urban environments, which are more structured than fields), autonomous robots generally remain in development stages at present. There are a number of issues that need to be resolved in terms of science and technology, performance (precision, autonomy, perception), reliability, security, costs, as well as with regard to regulations (allowing robots to be used in open environments), and their level of acceptance by society.

France is well set to rise to the challenges of this field. It has a number of companies involved in producing commercial robots, ranging from startups to multinationals. Available educational resources are excellent, both in engineering schools and in universities. It has considerable research capacity; public research in robotics in France currently brings together more than 1,300 researchers and engineers across 58 laboratories(3) conducting research in various fields (manipulation, humanoid) and with various applications (defence, automotive, humanoid robots, healthcare, outer space). Agriculture is not well represented, mostly because its potential is not recognised. Internationally, around 20 laboratories currently work in agricultural robotics,(4) with a primary focus on harvest (United States, Israel, Japan, Netherlands).

Priorities

There are a number of avenues to explore in support of developing and disseminating agricultural robotics. They are grouped across three priority areas.

ROB1: To encourage research and development in agricultural robotics, specifically focused programmes must be established to bring together researchers and the private sector and combine skills in pure robotics with those in outdoor robotics. Work in the following areas is foreseen: (1) mobility, particularly with regard to replacing large machines with lighter, cooperated robots, (2) modular robots with interchangeable tools, and (3) robots to perform activities with high human risk, such as crop spraying.

ROB2: Industrial policies supporting the development of agricultural robotics. France, through its multinational agricultural-equipment, automotive, and aerospace companies, its many agricultural equipment specialist SMEs, and its pro-innovation and startup policies, has the potential to lead the way in this economic growth area.

ROB3: Designing methods to test and certify agricultural robots will be necessary to support growth in this area. Agricultural robots are profoundly different when compared to traditional agricultural machinery. As they become more widespread, it is imperative to develop methods to assess and guarantee their performance and reliability. It is crucial that we are proactive, anticipating this need and ensuring that adequate measures are in place from the moment demand appears so that market access for new technologies is not impeded.

2

RoboticsFast, precise, and safe agricultural equipment


Priority

1. In 2013, France’s Livestock-breeders’ Institute recorded more than 3,800 farms with at least one milking robot.

2. An American advanced research agency for defence projects that organises on- and off road challenges for autonomous vehicles.

3. http://www.gdr-robotique.org/

4. As reported by the IEEE Technical Committee on Agricultural Robotics and Automations. See: http://www.fieldrobot.com/ieeeras/Community.html

022 023



Challenges

Plant and animal genetics are vital to the fight against food insecurity. While they are not the only avenue to explore, they certainly play a major role in increasing competitiveness and sustainability in French agricultural and agrifood industries. This field is undergoing profound and rapid change.

• Many factors are pushing for more broad-based research objectives in animal and plant breeding and improvement, including the transition to agroecology, the multiperformance objectives set out in the 2014 Law on the Future of Agriculture, and the fight against climate change, as well as the new opportunities from the bioeconomy and the changing demands of consumers and markets. Wider objectives should consider species (for crop diversification, for example), characteristics (such as disease resistance, reduced need for pesticides or drugs, drought and heat resistance, robustness in animals for better sustainability, and quality levels consistent with end use as food or in bioindusties), and the interaction of genetics–environment–farming-practices to develop plants and animals adapted to local conditions.

• Digital developments in the field of science have had knock-on effects leading to the emergence of high-throughput biology and biotechnology. Sequencing complex genomes and the ability to “edit” them in targeted ways are major technological breakthroughs.

• The field is going through a period of massive change. This includes consolidation in the rapidly growing seed industry

GEN

(worth slightly less than USD 60 billion globally in 2012), increased competition in animal breeding industries, and challenges to the French livestock industry model, based largely on agricultural cooperatives. Managing genetic resources is a major issue in terms of protecting biodiversity and intellectual property rights, and a strong policy framework is developing, both at national (Law No. 2011-1843 of 8 December 2011 on plant breeders’ rights, Seeds and Sustainable Development Action Plan) and international levels (Convention on Biological Diversity, International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), Nagoya Protocol).

Genetics and biotechnology are experiencing tectonic shifts, often happening at the same time, and with fierce levels of scientific and economic competition. This creates tension, but also leads to cutting-edge developments. Some of the technology that has been developed has been fiercely debated in the public sphere and provoked conflict that will require, at the very least, the creation of mediation mechanisms that bring together all stakeholders.

Current assessment

Despite continued genetics gains, yields for a number of major crop species have stagnated, primarily due to climate change and agricultural practices. In addition, research – private sector research in particular – is increasingly focused on a small number of species, which is of major concern with regard to the diversification needed in agricultural systems.

In-depth understanding of genetic diversity, and the structure and evolution of plant and animal genomes, make it possible to use available genetic diversity to improve production traits such as product quality. Research is being carried out – in France notably – to obtain genetic durable resistance for such traits. New genotyping and sequencing technologies have made phenotyping and big data management and analysis major components of breeding programmes. Genetic resources are the key to these programmes. Identifying, using, and conserving these resources requires increased research capacities and infrastructure.

France has two collaborative groups bringing together public and private research with ambitious research aims, AGENAE and GIS Plant Biotechnology (GIS BV). France also participates in two European Union programmes, Animal Task Force and Plants for the Future. As a part of France’s PIA programme, a number of infrastructure projects were put in place (in genomics, metabolomics, bioinformatics, plant phenotyping, and animal genetic resources), and a cluster of biotechnology–bioresource projects on a few major crop species were likewise financed. While these efforts are laudable, they are not sufficient given the expectations of, and changes happening in, this field, and should be extended and given broader remits.

With new, more powerful and more precise – and controversial – biotechnology rapidly coming online, France has seen its former

leadership position weakened. Following public calls therefor, even research on the impact of contentious technology cannot be carried out to expected standards.

Priorities

Priorities for this thematic area do not cover the full scope of biotechnology research carried out in the public and private sectors. They do not include research related to industrial biotechnology or synthetic biology put forward in the [BIOECO] thematic area. They are focused on projects deserving of particular attention to achieve competitiveness and sustainability goals.

GEN1: Improving plant and animal breeding. Involve a larger number of species and traits, by developing the necessary technology and infrastructure, and by integrating them into existing techniques.

GEN2: Managing new biotechnology. New techniques, particularly with regard to genome editing, present a range of new opportunities for science and for their potential application. Being able to manage them will be a precondition for understanding their possible uses and limitations.

GEN3: Developing the industrial potential of secondary metabolites. Although they are involved in a very wide range of health actions, only a very small number of secondary metabolites have been described. Significant effort is needed to leverage the assets they may hold to increase competitiveness.

GEN4: Updating procedures and regulations to encourage new genetic developments and their adoption. Regulations and intellectual property rights are fundamental to innovation in the field of plant and animal genetics. These must be strengthened to leverage genetics and biotechnology in favour of innovation, competitiveness, environmental health, and safety.

2

Genetics & biotechnology

Mobilising genetic resources and biotechnologies

for plant and animal production


Priority

024 025



Challenges

For agriculture to be sustainable, it must effective across multiple axes: production, economics, social, environmental, health and safety. At present, crops, trees, and livestock animals are still largely protected through the use of high levels of synthetic pesticides and veterinary drugs. While these have offered highly effective levels of protection, it has come at a significant cost to the environment and to human health (soil, water, and air pollution, chemical residue in food products, drug and pesticide resistance, etc.).

French agriculture must find alternative and/or complementary solutions to becoming more innovation and competitive, and to create added technological, economic, social, and environmental value. This is a major challenge that can only be met with recourse to a wide range of diverse solutions whose effects may only be partially felt but that, when working in unison, will at least equal gains from synthetic chemistry.(1,2) Biocontrol of plant and animal pests and diseases is one solution with considerable potential. In addition to developing and encouraging the use of biocontrol products, it is necessary to incorporate biocontrol into integrated plant and animal health management systems. Biocontrol must find its place within new crop and livestock systems. Such systems will rely less on synthetic pesticides and veterinary drugs, but will be more challenging to design, implement, and manage.

Support for biocontrol research and innovation will drive economic growth and job creation in France in a dynamic industry where the creation, merger, and acquisition of specialist and mainstream companies are increasing internationally.

BIOC

Current assessment

France has many resources to help it make the most of biocontrol’s potential. These include a strong and internationally recognised research community, although the community is geographically and thematically diffuse and split among many institutions, committed agricultural institutes, although these are not well integrated into pure and applied upstream research structures or into downstream biocontrol businesses at present, significant research facilities that can be put to use to test biocontrol measures in a variety of situations [INNOV], and French and international companies with biocontrol research, development, and innovation (RDI) activities in France that are eager for rapid, worldwide progress in the field. The French public’s desire for crop and livestock systems that depend less on synthetic chemical inputs is strong. The following proposals draw on these resources while also addressing existing shortcomings in terms of the organisation, coordination, and management of the RDI community, developing targeted research in key scientific and technological areas to overcome the current approach which is too often piecemeal (one biocontrol product or agent for one agricultural product), long-term support for precompetitive projects of interest to all, or at least most, RDI stakeholders, and for targeted competitive projects on integrating biocontrol solutions into crop and livestock systems. There is also considerable government support for reducing the use of synthetic pesticides and veterinary drugs, notably through its Ecophyto and Ecoantibio programmes.(1,2) These programmes follow on from France’s Grennelle Roundtable on the Environment. They have contributed to tangibly reducing antibiotic use in livestock systems. Progress in reducing pesticide use has been less marked, hence the revision process currently underway, with the first draft of the new Ecophyto plan expected by the end of 2015. The proposals that follow build on these two plans to increase their effectiveness in terms of biocontrol measures. More broadly, these proposals also fall within the scope of agroecology [AGROECO].

Priorities

Three avenues for encouraging the development and dissemination of biocontrol measures in crop and livestock systems are have been developed across three projects.

BIOC1: Organising the RDI community around the public–private biocontrol consortium on plant pests and diseases that is currently being established. Efforts must ensure that groups working in this field are large enough and well connected with each other. Support will come from financing targeted research projects in key scientific and technological areas, and from integrated RDI projects on major crop systems.

BIOC2: Establishing an equivalent public–private biocontrol consortium for livestock, with the same aims of developing and disseminating biocontrol solutions for animal diseases. It will be organised in the same way around the RDI community and supported by long-term project financing. Projects will carry out the research needed to develop a range of solutions that act on animal flora (digestive track, skin, lungs), and create a new generation of more effective vaccines.

BIOC3: Adapting procedures and regulations for assessing biocontrol measures to make them more effective (in terms of making product available on the market more quickly), while maintaining rigorous safety standards.

2

Plant & animal biocontrol

Organising research and supporting innovation


1. MAAF, Plan Ecophyto, http://agriculture.gouv.fr/ecophyto

2. MAAF, Plan Ecoantibio 2017, http://agriculture.gouv.fr/ministere/ecoantibio

Priority

026 027



027

3

Bringing together all agricultural research

and development stakeholders to foster

competitiveness

Priority


028 029



Challenges

French agriculture must target high levels of productive, economic, environmental, social, and health and safety performance across industries that are becoming increasingly interconnected. To do so, innovation in all forms will be the major driver, provided it is adapted and adaptable to the unique context of individual farms and agrifood business throughout France. The aim is to develop and support a wide range of practices and systems that are more sustainable and better adapted to local environmental and socioeconomic conditions. This will require adopting a holistic and collective approach that moves beyond the current fragmentation in research and development that is largely grounded in incremental innovation advances. As the future outlook becomes less certain, it will also be necessary to account appropriately for risk.

Research on change, transition, and innovation demonstrates that reduced segregation across fields of study, approaches, and stakeholders is needed. Agriculture must move towards open innovation that makes the relationship between knowledge producers and socioeconomic actors (business, markets, and, more broadly, society as a whole) central to the process of change. Given these market forces, open innovation sees that a business will be more effective when it joins its own research with other public- and private-sector research (possibly even from other industries) through a coordinated consultative process, and that this research responds to consumer and public expectations in an iterative way. Openness is also sought in public–private partnerships working in the field of multiperformance.

INNOV

This collaborative process to build collective knowledge can be well suited to agricultural industries and farms, which are at the confluence of many innovation processes. These processes come both from the continuum of research centres, networks, and technical institutes, and, more spontaneously, from stakeholders in the field acting alone or in groups to drive change.

This change in way innovation is carried out is supported by progress in digital technology, which creates new opportunities regarding accessing and sharing information, and creating new tools to capture and process data.

Current assessment

Innovation in agriculture has, for many years, been structured around farmers, their representatives (cooperatives, industry organisations, etc.), specialised technical institutes, research agencies, agricultural and veterinary schools, and training centres addressing various needs, and agribusinesses for the distribution and sales aspect of innovation. These stakeholders are supported by substantial research and testing infrastructure (more than 420 facilities across France), and by a range of observation and oversight networks. These networks have tools to take on risks in the place of businesses, and to combine different actions in various ways. Over the past 15 years, a number of partnerships bringing together a range of RDI stakeholders have been established at national level with government support. These include scientific interest groups (GIS), joint technology networks (RMT), joint technology units (UMT), collaborative stimulus projects, and regional development programmes (PSDR). These moves are welcomed as they encourage interdisciplinary and integrated approaches to knowledge.

Within the European Union, a number of initiatives have been introduced to support innovation among the people who are closest to real conditions on the ground, and to improve public opinion of innovation. This is a major goal of the European Innovation Partnership for Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-AGRI).

Priorities

Partnerships must be strengthened and supported so they can develop at true scale, test, and facilitate the adoption of innovation in the field, be it derived from farmers themselves [INNOV1] or from research bodies [INNOV2, INNOV3]. To make best use of available resources and data from research agencies and farm networks, information systems should be interoperable, and modelling should be used more to cover a wider range of real and hypothetic situations [INNOV4].

INNOV1: Cataloguing innovation in farms. Agricultural RDI organisations must make efforts to better integrate field experience from farms and farmers by identifying farm

level innovation (in a broad sense, including organisational innovation), cataloguing it, assessing it (using research methodology and testing), and facilitating its dissemination.

INNOV2: Implementing the conclusions and lessons learned from studies and reports. As a part of a project-based approach implemented over a sufficiently long timeframe (five years), government agencies must encourage and support public- and private-sector stakeholders to implement the key findings and lessons learned from studies and reports, given that implementing these measures will require investment in research and development.

INNOV3: Creating regional Living Labs. Living Labs use a systemic and specialised approach to study a small number of themes or activities in a geographically pertinent area. They are designed to incorporate extant local innovation and new technology while being open to a wide range of stakeholders.

INNOV4: Improving and harnessing synergy between research networks, farm observation networks, and modelling tools. This action includes a critical review of the pertinence of existing tools to take account of current and future challenges, which may see some tools terminated or have their focus shifted.

3

InnovationEncouraging

open innovation

Bringing together all agricultural research and development stakeholders to foster competitiveness

Priority

030 031



Challenges

French agriculture and agribusiness are becoming less competitive.(1,2) This is particularly notable with regard to the ongoing decline, since the late 1990s, of market share for French products relative to raw and processed agricultural products imported from outside the European Union, and even more marked relative to imports from other EU member states. Declining competitiveness is thus not a new phenomenon, with both agriculture and agrifood industries affected in interconnected ways. The trend can also be observed in agricultural revenues, which have stagnated for over a decade – at levels that are adequate, but that vary according product with, for example, meat producers earning less than winegrowers. Agricultural revenues are also subject to strong year-on-year fluctuation(3).

Current assessment

Despite continuing reforms to the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and to national agricultural policy, and many reports and studies on the subject,(4) French agriculture’s competitiveness continues to deteriorate for a number of reasons:

• At least some of the decline is not specific to agriculture and agrifood, but rather stems from external factors, including the persistent, very low levels of economic growth in France, disparate taxation and social welfare systems across the EU, and so on.

1. France Stratégie, 2015 (juillet). La compétitivité de l’agriculture et de l’industrie agroalimentaire françaises.

2. Butault J.P., Requillart V., 2011. L’agriculture et l’agroalimentaire français à la recherche de la compétitivité perdue. INRA Sciences Sociales 2001http://www.inra.fr/sae2/publications/iss/pdf/iss11-45-1.pdf (in French)

3. Terre-net, Revenus agricoles sur dix ans – infographie interactivehttp://www.terre-net.fr/actualite-agricole/economie-social/article/revenus-agricoles-2014-tous-les-chiffres-202-106351.html(in French)

4. See, for example, Rouault’s 2010 report on the agrifood industry as a whole, the CGAAER report on poultry (2010), Berger’s 2013 report on the pork industry, the CGAAER report on beef cattle (2015), Saf agr’iDées’ publication on beef (2015), and Saf agr’iDées and Fabrique de l’Industrie’s joint report on new growth models for

ECO

• Past recommendations have at times been contradictory and did not find their place within strategic, shared, visions similar to those in Germany, Ireland, and the Netherlands. Other factors to this end certainly include the complex ways agricultural industries are organised in France, the difficulty in adapting to changing markets, and the way added value is split among those involved.

• France applied successive PAC policy changes in a way that favoured (re)distributing financial support in a more balanced way emphasising equity. However, to make redistribution palatable to industry stakeholders, a number of concessions were necessary, continuing some of the inequality to the detriment of investment in farms and the implementation of strategic, pragmatic, and dynamic policy measures, which once again created disparity with other EU member states.

Solutions therefore do not lie solely with research and development, and thus may fall outside the ambit of Agriculture Innovation 2025’s research mission. The research was carried out without prejudice to the wide range of agricultural models and, in particular, did not seek to oppose cost competitiveness and productivity gains with other systems that draw on “low tech”, differentiation through quality, and short supply chains. The chosen approach is based on research in economic, environmental, social, and health multiperformance for farms and, accordingly, there can be no single solution or model.

Priorities

The proposals put forward in this report must give France the tools it needs to compete with rivals in key innovation fields while at the same time reducing the environmental impact of its agriculture ([INNOV], [GEN], [ROB], [DIGI], [BIOECO]). [AGROECO] and [BIOC] projects are focused primarily on reducing the use of synthetic chemical inputs, but because they seek to develop the most effective alternatives, they also form part of measures to increase competitiveness.

The three projects described below focus specifically on competitiveness and fall within the scope, expertise, and timeframe of the research mission. The projects will also contribute to stated aims for the move to agroecology [AGROECO]) and developing the bioeconomy [BIOECO].

ECO1: Developing research on multicriteria analysis. The goal is to create a shared research facility able to measure performance (productive, economic, environmental, health and safety, social) across various levels (farm, industry, region), and to assess the impact of changing practices and of technology on this performance. Such a facility would serve the aims of the shift to agroecology [AGROECO] and the development of the bioeconomy [BIOECO]. It could be used to assess the economic and environmental performance of different types of agriculture, the impact of various organisational and operational schemes within an industry or of the introduction of new products on the market, and so on.

ECO2: Improving and diversifying sources of revenue and financing for farms, in particular through remuneration for environmental and landscape services and access to new sources of financing.

ECO3: It is not currently possible to get a full, comprehensive picture of competitiveness in French agriculture and agrifood. This project focuses on creating a comparative competitiveness observatory on agriculture and agrifood in France and its main competitors abroad. Its work could inform public policymaking and decision-making by economic stakeholders, as well as develop new research methodology for measuring the factors that determine competitiveness and agricultural revenues, and modelling their effects.

Projects with broader scopes than the Mission’s must complement these proposals

The various proposals put forward through the Mission do not seek to alleviate the crisis situation currently facing the livestock industry in 2015. Alone, they are not enough to reestablish long-term competitiveness in French agriculture and agrifood industries. They can, however, make contributions to this end, and are therefore needed. These projects would merit being further developed in relation to at least three other thematic areas beyond the scope of the Mission and the capacities of research and development alone.

• Similar to strategies implemented by other EU member states, France must first develop a strategic plan for agriculture and agrifood to 2025. The plan must bring together all agribusiness stakeholders, from farm producer to end consumer, as well as regional stakeholders (rural, peri-urban, urban) with, at its centre, the needs of local, national, European, and international markets. The aim is to move from a supply-driven system to a demand-driven system, which includes demand for food and non-food agricultural biomass, and the demand for environmental and landscape services. It will not be possible to satisfy everyone; compromise will be necessary, and it preferable that this compromise happens transparently.

• The second stage involves starting work on the post-2020 CAP to ensure it supports this strategic vision, but also to justify appropriate levels of budgetary support. Securing CAP funding is particularly important given the fact that is fundamental to the viability of a very significant majority of French (and European) farms, but that many countries will nevertheless call for such funding to be cut. Restoring credibility in the CAP will require work in four areas: (1) reducing year-on-year fluctuation in farm revenues and its attendant negative impacts by separating crisis situations from more commonplace volatility (the two situations require separate approaches); (2) moving from a system based on subsidies to one based on remuneration for specific services [ECO2]); (3) reducing negative outcomes (diffuse agricultural pollution, loss of biodiversity, agricultural GHG emissions);

3

Agricultural economics

Multiperformance & innovating in agricultural economics


Priority

032


033

(4) facilitating these changes by increasing support for sustainable practices, systems, and innovation in the same way that emerging industries are supported.

• The third stage will develop resources to support exporting French products, as many agribusinesses are too small to invest in foreign markets. Many avenues are worthy of being developed in this regard, including creating a shared export development resource, establishing an agrifood equivalent to the luxury industry’s Comité Colbert, increasing the presence in international standard-setting bodies of French companies promoting French interests, and creating export tax credits. It is important to first determine the relative effectiveness of these measures.


034 035



Agriculture in France is changing, pushed by the need to adapt and be increasingly competitive, environmentally aware, and provide a better work environment

(agroecology project), and pulled by the possibilities afforded it by new technology – digital and biotechnology in particular. These rapid changes also affect a wide range of stakeholders, including, most importantly, farmers, but also farm advisors, educators, and suppliers (inputs, equipment). Farmers have increasingly high levels of training and are more connected than ever. All agricultural stakeholders are being called upon to implement approaches that are progressively more systemic and complex.

As agricultural industry stakeholders adapt to – and even drive – these changes, it is fundamentally important to support them in building the capacities and skills they need to develop agricultural professions for the future. Basic training across various levels and ongoing professional development are necessary for innovation and its dissemination across the agricultural industry, from production through processing and distribution. When the OECD looked at innovation policy in France in 2014, it underscored the fact that higher education “can offer a solid training to large numbers of young people in order to increase the economy’s capacity for innovation and provide future researchers, engineers and entrepreneurs with the capacity for initiative”, and develop “attitudes and competences that are conducive to innovation”.(1) New technology often requires a paradigm shift in professional practices, as was case with information and communication technology. The ability of human capital to adapt to these changes is a deciding factor in whether innovation can realise its

1. OCDE 2014 : http://www.oecd.org/fr/sti/inno/innovation-france-ocde.pdf

TRAIN

full potential and be a springboard to new innovation. To meet these challenges, it is essential that people coming into the agricultural workforce in the future (as specialists working in industry organisations, cooperatives, businesses, and technical institutes, service providers, educators, etc.) have the necessary skills to develop, implement, maintain, and adapt the services, practices, and approaches that will flow from technological advances (digital, robotics, accelerated breeding systems using genomics, etc.). The continued progress of digital technology in agriculture will not take place unless the most effective use of these new tools is supported. Interdisciplinary teams will be needed to process big data, to develop new kinds of sensors, and to integrate ICTs such as web services and the use of smartphones. These teams will include professionals with specialised training skills in applied computer science and mathematics (notably through Ministry of Education and Research training) or with twinned expertise in agriculture and computer science (notably through Ministry of Agriculture, Agrifood, and Forestry training). People with this twofold skillset will also be in high demand to help support farmers through these transitions. In line with recommendations made in France’s National Research Strategy (SNR), specialised statistics courses in training programmes for agricultural engineers – who have traditionally been the repository for these skills – are particularly important. Such specialised courses would contribute to training data analysts to manage and process data, and knowledge scientists to develop and manage knowledge. This point is already being addressed by certain agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agrifood, and Forestry.

Priorities

Given that specialised training in these fields will require relatively costly technical infrastructure, which will need continual updating, it is important to ensure there is the maximum degree of synergy and cooperation between training and R&D activity.

TRAIN 1: Integration and coordination are needed to meet these challenges effectively. Trainers and educators must become involved these strategic areas, favouring approaches that naturally bring together research, training, and development (as can been seen, for example, in joint technology networks (RMT)). Living Labs, research networks, farm observation networks and the other proposed open innovation [INNOV] measures are well suited to supporting this synergy. To these ends, the French Institute for Agronomy, Veterinary Science, and Forestry (Agreenium-IAVFF) could play a key role in coordinating research activity and strategy in partnership with agricultural higher education institutions (training for engineers and veterinarians, master’s and PhD programmes). Agreenium-IAVFF could also play a central role in coordinating activity and strategy on educator training and teaching technical skills.

TRAIN 2: More generally, providing students with training in life sciences and technology, and in environmental science would

strengthen skills in and exposure to systemic approaches in two key areas: bioeconomy and agroecology. The concept of bioeconomy is gaining particular ground within the EU, and will be the subject of dedicated attention in France’s upcoming Roadmap to National Bioeconomy Strategy. Agroecology has already well taken into account in new policy measures for technical and high-level training, which must be supported and expanded.

3

TrainingAgricultural stakeholders

as drivers of change


Priority

036 037



SUMMARY OF

THEMATIC AREAS - PROJECTS -ACTIONS

Annexe 6

1Developing a systems approach and using agriculture to fight climate change2 axes - 9 projects -31 actions

Priority

AgroecologySupporting and spurring agroecology transition

AGROECO 1Advancing soil biology research

Agroeco1-1 Improving knowledge of soil biodiversity and identifying functional markers

Agroeco1-2 Mapping and comparing soil biodiversity

Agroeco1-3 Identifying the plant and microbial traits involved in beneficial interactions

Agroeco1-4 Developing an international network of farms to test and use diagnostic tools

1

AGROECO 2Improving soil fertility and mitigating climate change

Agroeco2-1 Improving knowledge of biogeochemical cycles associated with GHG emissions

Agroeco2-2 Identifying and describing all farming and forestry practices that are likely to contribute to increasing organic carbon storage in soil

Agroeco2-3 Developing and testing a range of incentive measures

Agroeco2-4 Establishing an international monitoring, reporting, and auditing agency

2

3 AGROECO 3Preparing for and adapting to climate change: Developing and promoting integrated water management

Agroeco3-1 Creating an integrated regional approaching using identified solutions

Agroeco3-2 Establishing an interdisciplinary research programme on water management

Agroeco3-3 Bringing research agencies and partners together to work on a major national project supporting public policy on water, agriculture, and regions

4 AGROECO 4Preparing for and adapting to climate change: Creating a portal for agricultural services

Agroeco4-1 Associating national-scale models on climate, agriculture, forestry, and hydrology

Agroeco4-2 Simulating climate change impacts on an 8×8 km grid

Agroeco4-3 Simulating various adaptation strategies

Agroeco4-4 Engineering and ergonomics for the portfolio of agrohydroclimatic services

038 039



AGROECO 5Developing rapid health diagnostic tools for farm use

Agroeco5-1 Establishing sequencing databases necessary for identification via high throughput sequencing

Agroeco5-2 Advancing the latest tools and methods for plant and animal diagnostics

Agroeco5-3 Developing tools that a wide range of users can operate

Agroeco5-4 Encouraging methodology transfer among research agencies and organisations

Agroeco5-5 Supporting the development of participatory research

5

BioeconomyDeveloping bioeconomy research and innovation

BIOECO 1Promoting protein autonomy in France and Europe

Bioeco1-1 Pursuing research to improve understanding of plant protein metabolism

Bioeco1-2 Improving protein extraction and processing technology

Bioeco1-3 Demonstrating the potential of environmental biorefineries

Bioeco1-4 Calling for projects on this topic from Carnot institutes focusing on SMEs and mid-tier companies

6

BIOECO 3Organising systems biology and synthetic biology research for bioindustries

Bioeco3-1 Establishing an interdisciplinary centre for research and training on systems biology and synthetic biology

Bioeco3-2 Developing an EU-level research facility

8

BIOECO 2Expanding research on technology and process engineering

Bioeco2-1 Bolstering research on processes and biotechnology

Bioeco2-2 Supporting, expanding, and networking technology infrastructure and facilities through a new Investing in the Future (PIA) programme

Bioeco2-3 Calling for projects on this topic from Carnot institutes focusing on SMEs and mid-tier companies

7

BIOECO 4Organising research on and for the bioeconomy

Bioeco4-1 Establishing an interdisciplinary bioeconomy research and training centre

Bioeco4-2 Building capacity for bioeconomy planning

9


4 axes -12 projects - 45 actions

Priority 2

Digital agricultureData: new knowledge and new services

DIGI 1Creating an agricultural data portal for open innovation

Digi1-1 Preparing the portal’s foundations

Digi1-2 Building and developing the portal

10

DIGI 2Organising research on digital technology in agriculture

Digi2-1 Establishing an interdisciplinary research centre on digital agriculture

Digi2-2 Starting a research programme focused on developing new digital models on how agrosystems work

Digi2-3 Supporting the development of specialised sensors for agricultural use

11

RoboticsFast, precise and safe agricultural equipment

ROB 1Accelerating research and development in agricultural robotics

Rob1-1 Including agricultural robotics issues in ecomobility and intelligent object solutions

Rob1-2 Creating an agricultural robotics research programme

Rob1-3 Encouraging robotics students to consider agricultural issues and challenges

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ROB 2Organising and supporting industrial activity in agricultural robotics

Rob2-1 Creating a national organisation to support competition in this field

Rob2-2 Supporting the creation of an agricultural robot working group within the Strategic Committee on Agricultural Equipment and Services

Rob2-3 Implementing and supporting advocacy at national and EU levels

Rob2-4 Assessing the impact of robots on society

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ROB 3Designing methods to test and certify agricultural robots

Rob3-1 Designing methods and measures to assess robotic systems

Rob3-2 Creating a facility to measure performance

Rob3-3 Creating a virtual testing centre for safety testing

Rob3-4 Contributing to standard-setting and regulation in this field

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GEN 1Improving genomic selection in plant and animal breeding

Gen1-1 Designing and building genomic selection programmes for a wider range of plant and animal species

Gen1-2 Improving key scaling infrastructure

Gen1-3 Establishing data centres

Gen1-4 Supporting efforts to develop an internationally recognised position in genomic selection within the context of the EU

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GEN 2Managing new biotechnology

Gen2-1 Establishing oversight of new biotechnology

Gen2-2 Supporting a generic research programme on new biotechnology

Gen2-3 Creating a multisite research facility

Gen2-4 Creating a field phenotyping platform

Gen2-5 Supporting programmes to encourage the use of plant biotechnology innovation in crop systems

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GEN 3Developing the industrial potential of secondary metabolites Diversifying and broadening this potential

Gen3-1 Describing metabolic pathways, metabolic flows, and their production and control processes at biochemical and genetic levels

Gen3-2 Carrying out genomics projects on improving species that produce important secondary metabolites

Gen3-3 Encouraging public–private partnerships on target molecules

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GEN 4Updating procedures and regulations to encourage new genetic developments and their adoption

Gen4-1 Organising efforts to cocreate research protocols through participatory processes

Gen4-2 Establishing guidelines within the EU’s current regulatory framework on the use of plant varieties derived from new biotechnology

Gen4-3 Participating in efforts to move forward on Proprietary Variety Protection Certificates (PVPC) for plants

Gen4-4 Creating an EU standard for capturing, processing, and assessing livestock data

Gen4-5 Developing methods to analyse and support the coexistence of a range of genetic resource practices

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Genetics & BiotechnologyMobilising genetic resources and biotechnology for plant and animal production Plant and animal biocontrol

Organising research and supporting innovation

BIOC 1Organising and supporting research and development on biocontrol for plant pests and diseases

Bioc-1 Establishing a public–private RDI consortium

Bioc-2 Organising networks in the research community focused on innovation

Bioc-3 Financing research projects over suitable timeframes for biocontrol measures

Bioc-4 Starting a number of integrated RDI research projects based on crop systems

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BIOC 2Supporting biocontrol in livestock systems to improve performance and animal health

Bioc2-1 Establishing a public–private consortium on biocontrol for livestock diseases

Bioc2-2 Developing rapid diagnostic tests for livestock diseases

Bioc2-3 Creating a new generation of more effective vaccines

Bioc2-4 Conducting research to identify resources in agroindustrial and household byproducts that can be used to improve livestock health

Bioc2-5 Conducting necessary R&D to develop a range of products acting on animal flora

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BIOC 3Adapting procedures and regulations for assessing plant and animal biocontrol measures

Bioc3-1 Bringing research and industry expertise and health and safety agencies together in projects to develop biocontrol assessment methods

Bioc3-2 Formulating best practices and regulatory measures to support the work of national and EU agencies and policymakers

Bioc3-3 Participating in the development and implementation of regulatory procedures to assess and certify biocontrol products

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3 axes - 9 projects -22 actions

Priority

InnovationEncouraging open innovation

INNOV 1Incorporating farm experience into innovation efforts

Innov1-1 Creating a mechanism to identify, describe, and capitalise on new developments and innovation in the field, with the aim of encouraging their dissemination

Innov1-2 Establishing a network of RDI stakeholders to share and test practices

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INNOV 2Mobilising agricultural RDI to meet social challenges

Innov2-1 Creating a decision-making mechanism to identify high-priority challenges

Innov2-2 Encouraging partnerships on high-priority challenges through the creation of project teams

Innov2-3 Adapting action plans to local regions through a participatory process with local public- and private-sector stakeholders

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INNOV 3Creating regional Living Labs to study agroecology and bioeconomy

Innov3-1 Calling for projects on the creation of Living Labs

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INNOV 4Upgrading research networks and farm observation networks

Innov4-1 Improving the effectiveness and coherence of the national research network

Innov4-2 Ensuring than input and output data is interoperable

Innov4-3 Developing statistical methods for analysis

Innov4-4 Ensuring the systemic use of decision-making tools

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ECO 1Developing and disseminating multicriteria assessment tools for agricultural and food systems

Eco1-1 Improving multicriteria assessment methodology

Eco1-2 Developing and maintaining an open research facility for measuring performance at farm, industry, and regional levels

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Agricultural economicsMultiperformance and innovation in agricultural economics

ECO 2Diversifying sources of agricultural revenue and financing

Eco2-1 Developing the ability to remunerate for ecosystem services

Eco2-2 Pursing research on innovative agricultural financing mechanisms

Eco2-3 Designing tools to manage agricultural risk

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ECO 3Establishing an international competitiveness observatory on agriculture and agrifood

Eco3-1 Establishing a competitiveness observatory on agriculture and agrifood comparing France and its major competitors

Eco3-2 Developing research programmes to support the observatory’s work

Eco3-3 Using the observatory to support public policymakers and private-sector decision making

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TrainingBuilding capacity to support change in agriculture

TRAIN 2Building capacity to support change in agriculture

Train2-1 Increasing support to agroecology training schemes

Train2-2 Encouraging wider awareness and consideration of bioeconomy issues, approaches, and tools

Train2-3 Creating a scheme to foster training in digital agriculture across all career stages

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TRAIN 1Improving training and support schemes to match skill requirements

Train1-1 Identifying, together with agricultural industries and businesses, needs in training and support schemes to overcome existing recruiting challenges

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Agriculture & Innovation 2025 30 Projects...a taskforce prepared a report to provide direction and...

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