The FERTI & GROW ACADEMY project aimed to achieve the following objectives: 1/ Pool the knowledge and skills of several European scientific and technical experts to create a high-quality scientific and educational digital training course on organic fertilizers and growing media. 2/ Offer the project's target groups synchronous and asynchronous training courses on organic fertilizers and growing media to implement the principles of integrated pest management and meet the requirements of sustainable agriculture at the European level. 3/ Improve the skills and knowledge of users of these products in the agricultural sector. 4/ Develop sustainable training content that can be integrated free of charge into existing training courses in schools, universities, training organizations, and companies in the agricultural sector.
The new EU regulation (EU 2019/1109) covering fertilizer products came into force in 2019 and was fully implemented in July 2022 to harmonize the marketing of fertilizers and crop products among member countries. Training all users in the use of these products is necessary to ensure the implementation of certain new agricultural practices and to produce sustainable food. The project's target groups included education and training stakeholders (schools, universities, and training organizations), their learners, professional organizations, chambers of agriculture, agricultural cooperatives, and farmers. The project responded to this need by developing a comprehensive training program comprising 4 courses with synchronous and asynchronous sessions on: - Fertilizing products regulation, - Soil fertility and plant nutrition, - Organic soil improvers and fertilizers, - Growing media for soilless cultures.