THE DECALOGUE OF BIODIVERSITY IN AGRICULTURE
"Biodiversity Friend" is a standard for agricultural businesses, whether individual or grouped, committed to the conservation of biological diversity. The protocol is also intended for agritourism businesses, educational farms, and businesses located in mountainous areas characterized by extensive agricultural, forestry, and pastoral activities.
The certification proposes 10 actions to be pursued that WBA considers the “Decalogue of biodiversity” in agriculture:
cultivation model
soil fertility
water resource management
hedges, woods, meadows and nectariferous species
agricultural biodiversity and structural biodiversity
soil quality
water quality
air quality
energy from renewable sources
environmental responsibility.
Environmental quality is assessed through soil, water, and air biodiversity indices, based on biomonitoring methods developed by the WBA Onlus Scientific Committee.
BIODIVERSITY: AN ESSENTIAL VALUE FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
Biological diversity is one of humanity's fundamental resources, along with water and energy. Maintaining a high level of biodiversity in the environment must therefore be a fundamental objective for productive activities, especially in the primary sector.
Agenda 21 (objectives 4 and 5) indicates the path to saving the planet: management of water resources and energy sources, protection of marine ecosystems and forests, fight against desertification and conservation of biodiversity.
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY = PRODUCT HEALTHINESS
The agrosystem is not a true ecosystem, however, it represents the best possible solution for ensuring environmental and production quality. The modern farmer should, therefore, promote biodiversity on the farm and manage the risks of its possible reduction, since the close relationship between the biological quality of the environment and the healthiness of the products has been demonstrated.
GOOD AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES
“Good agricultural practices” contribute to the maintenance and increase of biodiversity in agroecosystems and improve the quality of air, water and soil.
Here are the main ones:
conservation of soil fertility,
correct management of water resources,
weed and pest control through low environmental impact methods,
diffusion of country hedges and nectariferous species,
use of multi-year rotations.
ENVIRONMENT AND ECONOMY
In a constantly changing world, humanity faces a strategic challenge for the future of the planet: ensuring, within a sustainable framework, the productivity of economic systems and the protection of natural resources. In the past, we were concerned about the impacts that economic growth could have on the environment; today, we are forced to worry about the impact of ecological stresses (land, water, and atmospheric degradation, biodiversity loss) on production processes and our economic prospects. In other words, today the problem no longer concerns just the environment, but also the economy.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY AS A STIMULUS FOR COMPANIES
To address these new challenges, a growing number of companies are developing strategies that embrace "environmental responsibility," aimed at minimizing the environmental impact of their production processes and supporting actions inspired by sustainable development. Companies can move from simply supplying products to becoming service providers, with a direct and certified commitment to protecting the land, air, water, and soil. This message of responsibility from companies also becomes an active vehicle for educating citizens about conservation and sustainable development.
A NEW APPROACH TO SUSTAINABILITY
To demonstrate their commitment to environmental responsibility, companies are encouraged to change their practices. A commitment to environmental protection, certified by an accredited body, can offer a company several benefits. First, as established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), it has a very positive effect on the company's image among consumers.
In this context, communicating a company's environmental commitment also becomes crucial and strategic. To date, communication has underestimated companies' commitment, where it exists, resulting in customers/consumers failing to assign a recognized role to virtuous producers in environmental sustainability dynamics.
BIODIVERSITY FRIEND CERTIFICATION
In 2010, the United Nations declared the "International Year of Biodiversity," the World Biodiversity Association (WBA) non-profit organization proposed "Biodiversity Friend," the first certification that assesses biodiversity conservation in agriculture. This certification not only certifies a company's commitment to significantly reducing biodiversity loss in the region, but also encourages the company to progressively increase biological diversity, which ultimately translates into improved product health and quality. In this sense, farmers finally become true guardians of the environmental integrity of the region and, as such, must be considered by both the public and decision-makers.
EACH ACTION CORRESPONDS TO A SCORE
Each action is assigned a score; the overall sum can reach a maximum of 100 points.
To obtain certification, 60 points are sufficient, but the company must commit to increasing its score annually; beyond 80 points, the company is not required to make further improvements.
Once a score of 80/100 is achieved, the inspection visit will be biennial, rather than annual.
"Biodiversity Friend" received the patronage of the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies in 2010. The "Biodiversity Friend" trademark is the exclusive property of WBA Onlus and is protected by a patent in Italy.
The trademark is also registered with the World Intellectual Property Organization in Madrid for the European Community countries and the People's Republic of China and with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the United States of America.
HARMONIZING PRODUCTION AND STORAGE
Conservation policies to date have not been effective because they have failed to synergistically involve the productive sector.
On the contrary, production and environmental protection have often come into conflict, leading to misunderstandings, radicalization of positions and, unfortunately, environmental crises of global proportions.
The “Biodiversity Friend” proposal, in essence, aims to harmonize production and conservation, the only possibility for truly sustainable development.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT, SYNONYMOUS WITH QUALITY OF LIFE
The expected environmental benefits are enormous and can potentially affect all human activities.
In fact, an environment richer in biodiversity is a healthier, more wholesome environment, which offers quality products, with better organoleptic properties.
Consequently, a better quality of the environment and food could have positive effects on the general health of the population: it has been scientifically proven that many diseases are directly related to environmental alterations and to food with poor quality requirements.
POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE AGRITOURIST SECTOR
Improving environmental quality will also have positive effects on the promotion of agritourism in the area, with a greater propensity on the part of users/consumers towards areas, such as those in the plains, traditionally under-regarded from a landscape and tourism-recreational perspective.
The introduction of wooded and hedged areas into agricultural environments, greater attention to the quality of air, water and soil, and the recovery of ancient crop varieties and animal breeds from pre-industrial agriculture will allow for a marked improvement in the characteristics of the agricultural landscape, which will finally be able to be compared, from the point of view of environmental quality, to that of hilly and mountainous areas.
Agricultural areas will be able to return to being an expression of rural tradition, of its historical, economic, social and cultural uniqueness.
CONSUMERS ARE INCREASINGLY MORE CAREFUL
The expected economic implications are also of considerable interest.
Today, most consumers are able to recognize product quality based on multiple indicators and make more ethical choices, attentive to protecting the environment and the people involved in the production process.
Increasingly, consumers demand information that goes beyond simple product characteristics, but tend to share responsibility for the choices of manufacturing companies, which, in turn, are increasingly attentive to communicating their responsibility towards the quality of the environment in which they operate.
This trend is increasingly widespread, especially in the primary sector, where there is an attempt to differentiate the quality offering from the large-scale production of industrial agriculture.
GUARANTEE OF SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION MODELS
Purchasing a product with the “Biodiversity Friend” label means consumers can be assured, through scientifically verified monitoring procedures, that the product comes from highly natural agro-ecosystems and has been obtained using production processes with minimal environmental impact.
Consequently, the “Biodiversity Friend” product will also be identified as a healthy product, the result of a production process that has sustainability as its basic principle.
Such a production model, based on the valorization of local products from the rural tradition, could foster market rebalancing processes, resulting in greater fairness for both producers and consumers.
Indeed, on the one hand, producers are expected to earn more equitable and profitable revenues, resulting from a more rational use of resources and the valorization of the diversity and uniqueness of processes and products.
For consumers, on the other hand, it will be possible to achieve, in addition to objective savings, timely information on the distribution network, the origin and seasonality of products, and the positive effects of their choices on the environment.
