In the European context of reducing the use of pesticides (“Pesticide Package”), biostimulants which are substance(s) and/or microorganism(s) that stimulate the nutrition process of plants, are very promising alternative. Successful and cost-effective biostimulant solutions have been developed and marketed in recent decades. However, the lack of harmonization concerning the definition of concepts, vocabulary, functionalities or methods of product evaluation has so far led to some confusion. In addition, to optimize their use and ensure their effectiveness, it is essential to properly position these products within the cultural system (methods and period of application, possible association or not with other products such as biocontrol products, ...) Recently, a new regulatory framework has been put in place to better define and frame the use of Biostimulant products. However, it is necessary to accompanied it by information and training of the main stakeholders: industrials, farmers, technical institute, … In this context, the Biostimulant Academy project aims to develop and implement a comprehensive digital training on biostimulants in order to make them known through training for different targets (distributors, prescribers, users, etc.) and to massively disseminate validated scientific skills and knowledge. A large audience of trainers (VET actors: agricultural schools, universities, apprentices’ schools, training organization …) and trainees (learners, professionals, other agricultural stakeholder such as Technical Institute, Chamber of Agriculture, …) related to agricultural field in different European countries are targeted by this project. The distance learning tools will be developed in collaboration between complementary partners who benefit from strong knowledge and important network in the field of biostimulant (Universities, Research labs and Industrials), or important skills for distance learning development. A complete methodology will be carried out in order to produce and disseminate a complete training, corresponding to the expectations of the different target groups: First, a comprehensive international study among all the project target groups and stakeholders, targeting at least 500 participants will be carried out in order to collect and analyse their training needs on Biostimulants. After the elaboration of the pedagogical program, the experts will work on the development of pedagogical content and support (LMS videos, pdf, podcast, self-assessment content, …), available in 5 languages (EN, FR, IT, SP and NL). The training will be hosted and update on the my green training box platform created as part of previous collaborative projects (ERASMUS+, DIVA) between some of the partners of the Biostimulant Academy project. Finally, a testing phase will be conducted with at least 500 participants in Europe in order to revised and optimize the Biostimulant’s digital training thanks to questionnaires for pedagogical content evaluation and assessment of biostimulants knowledge evolution in several groups of learners and trainees. The expected impact of Biostimulant Academy project are the fostering of biostimulant use amongst the agriculture industry, the increase of biostimulants’ stakeholder skills and knowledge, and the promotion of natural product meeting with EU regulations and Common Agricultural Policy objectives to support sustainable agriculture. Moreover, this distance tool can, in the medium term, reach many people across Europe. The project can indeed be duplicated in other countries through the development of a complete project guide.
This training has been designed and made available in view of when the European standardization regulations for Biostimulants come into force. With our project, we aimed to ensure that these products, which are not sufficiently recognized by users, are developed in the EU market. Knowledge exchange, learning and innovation approaches in agriculture are evolving rapidly. Inevitably, all those involved in farming, consulting, research, education and training face various challenges to adapt to this moving context and we aimed to address some of them with this project. Through this training, we aimed to convey to different groups the following positive aspects of biostimulants, which EU Regulation 2019/1009 defines as a material containing "substance(s) and/or microorganism(s) that stimulate the feeding process of plants independently of the nutrients they contain": Biostimulants, which are mainly based on components of natural origin, provide agricultural yield optimization by stimulating plant and/or soil functioning. Plants become more vigorous and resistant to climatic hazards, resulting in better yields. To ensure that their potential is fully realized, it is important to learn how to correctly position these products within the cultural system and understand their mode of action. It is all about applying the right solution, foliar or directly at the root, in the right amount, at the right time, to the right crop. It is also important to determine the correct application period: it is about positioning the biostimulant at the time when the plant is most receptive according to the targeted objective and anticipating critical periods when yield parameters such as flowering or fruit set may be affected. It is important to consider agro-climatic conditions when applying the product. Our aim was to prepare a training that would cover and convey these points.
In the EU, almost 50% of the territory is covered by agricultural land, more than 77% is classified as rural and half of the population lives there. With 12 million farmers working full time, agriculture and the agri-food industry account for 6% of the EU's GDP. With 15 million businesses and 46 million jobs, europe has a wide variety of farms, especially intensive ones, conventional and organic. Agriculture therefore plays a key role in land management and has a great responsibility for the preservation of natural resources. The EU's Common Agricultural Policy supports sustainable agriculture that guarantees food security and promotes sustainable and balanced development in all rural areas of the EU. Such agriculture must - respond to citizens' concerns about food (availability, price, variety, quality and safety) - preserve the environment - enable farmers to earn a living - preserve rural communities and landscapes. To achieve this, the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has been increasingly adapted to integrate environmental concerns and sustainable agriculture into three priorities: 1/Reliable food production 2/Sustainable management of natural resources 3/Balanced development of rural areas throughout the EU. To meet these expectations, new agricultural practices must be introduced to produce more food in a sustainable way. Over the last three decades, several technological innovations have been proposed to improve the sustainability of agricultural production systems, through a significant reduction of synthetic agrochemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers. Among these innovations, Plant Biostimulants are among the most promising to meet these reduction challenges. The new regulation on Biostimulants came into force in July 2022 including a European harmonization. The Biostimulant Academy project was part of these new changes and was designed to develop high quality digital training content on Biostimulants.