Organic Farm Knowledge promotes productivity and quality in European organic farming
Organic Farm Knowledge provides many tools and knowledge exchange for farmers, farm advisers and scientists. The platform covers a wide range of topics and is constantly expanding its thematic repertoire through new partnerships. Also the CORE Organic Cofund projects will publish their practice-oriented results on the platform.
A great deal of knowledge about organic farming is already available throughout Europe, however, sometimes it is not easy to acquire and use this knowledge. Organic Farm Knowledge addresses this deficiency by providing an easy-to-use platform that offers a search function with numerous filter options.
The toolbox
The core of the platform is the “toolbox”. Available tools include, for instance, practical tips, factsheets, guides, online calculation tools and videos. The online platform offers the possibility for comments, discussions and questions on topics and resources. By promoting the exchange of good practices, it supports farmers and advisors in putting innovations into practice.
Partnerships and knowledge exchange
Organic Farm Knowledge is a unique resource for organic farmers and advisors for knowledge sharing and exchange, but also for scientists to share and discuss their practice-relevant findings with practitioners across Europe.
The core partners of Organic Farm Knowledge platform are FiBL, ICROFS and IFOAM EU. The collection of knowledge emerged from the project OK-Net Arable, and enriched with the follow-up project, OK-Net EcoFeed. Several EU research projects and CORE Organic projects have joined and intend to use it to disseminate their practice-oriented results.
Growing range of topics
Although the topics covered on the platform range widely, the goal is for constant expansion, creation and exchange of innovative knowledge surrounding organic farming. Several European projects have expressed interest or are already committed to supplying tools on themes such as seeds, plant breeding, fruit production, inputs used for organic plant protection, animal production and fertilisation. These tools are expected to be available soon. The knowledge platform is open to further collaborations, enabling continued growth of knowledge provision.
Key questions
1. How can I find a tool?
Each of the themes, has a dedicated webpage where related tools are found along with background information. An extensive search function is also available.
2. Are the tools available in all languages?
While not all tools are available in all languages, their summaries and key recommendations are translated via automatic translation – into Bulgarian, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Serbian, Spanish and Swedish. The language toggle is located in the upper right corner of the webpage.
3. How can I inform myself about new tools?
All tools are announced on the Organic Farm Knowledge platform with a news item. The latest tools are also highlighted in a separate box on the homepage and on the relevant theme pages.
4. Can I rate and comment on a tool or engage in discussions?
The platform offers the opportunity to rate tools. For discussions, we offer the Organic Farm Knowledge Facebook page and Twitter account, where each tool is posted and can be commented upon. Also, the discussion function, DISQUS on the platform itself, can be used.
Links to Organic Farm Knowledge
Organic Farm Knowledge platform website - https://organic-farmknowledge.org/
Organic Farm Knowledges social media pages:
Contact
Dr. Bram Boeskops, IFOAM EU, Bram.moeskops(at)ifoam-eu.org
Dr. Helga Willer, FiBL Switzerland, helga.willer(at)fibl.org
Andreas Basler, FiBL Switzerland, andreas.basler(at)fibl.org
Partners websites
FiBL - https://www.fibl.org/
ICROFS - http://www.icrof.org/
IFOAM EU - https://www.ifoam-eu.org/
OK Net EcoFeed – https://ok-net-ecofeed.eu/
OK-Net Arable – http://www.ok-net-arable.eu/
Authors info
Dr. Helga Willer, FiBL Switzerland, helga.willer(at)fibl.org, https://www.fibl.org/
Editor: Karin Ullven / Design: Christine Dilling
