Chair: J. Bouris -A. Dounis - P. Goulas - P. Kaldis

Agriculture Session Chair: J. Bouris -A. Dounis - P. Goulas - P. Kaldis

A.1.1 Agricultural Marketing Competitive Strategies and Innovative Practices in Greece

Dr. John Bouris Prof. TEI-Athens jbouris @ teiath .gr Dr. Panagiotis Kaldis Prof. TEI-Athens [email protected] Dr. George Alexopoulos Agricultural Univ. Athens [email protected] Alexia Giannouzakou, MBA Agricultural Univ. Athens [email protected]

Abstract In a continuous changing environment where its major threats and opportunities derives from the severe competition, the ongoing biodiversity, the established competitive rivalry, the ‘intermediaries’ bargaining power, the agriculturally-based entrepreneurship viability depends mainly on its performance, flexibility, adaptability to managing marketing competitive strategies and innovative practices. Taken under consideration that small producers and vendors, men and women, are important actors in rural and peri-urban agricultural activities, this paper aims to identify and propose innovative marketing practices both to promote agricultural product and to connect food processing/production with marketplace conditions. Based to relevant literature and empirical researches, we investigate the above- mentioned subject analyzing the entire spectrum of the food supply chain (F.S.C.). Mainly, we split our investigation effort up to two areas of analysis: Area #1: food processing & production Great concerns are given to: .food production cost volatility and several strategies are proposed in the lieu of reducing the operational cost and specific techniques suggested such as the food supply chain be functioning properly at the agricultural producers benefit . .product differentiation-that is, the introduction of differential features, quality, styles in the agricultural commodity brands as a basis for commanding a premium . product branding .The cornerstone of our endeavour is the product branding with emphasis in the name, term, symbols, special characteristics etc intending to identify the product of the end-users from those of the competitors. The identification of agricultural products and foods as Protected Destination Origin and Protected Geographical Indication on the one hand enables producers, in particular those of disadvantageous and remote areas, to promote products presenting special characteristics more easily, improving in this way their income with better prices in the market and on the other enables consumers to buy high quality products with warranties for their production, processing and geographical origin. Area #2 : Food Distribution Channels and marketplace conditions The following issues are investigated: .The F.D.C. should be chosen according to their efficiency and adaptability such as a fair value between agricultural producer price and consumer price, be able to obtaining. The agricultural product from ‘farm’ or ‘stable’ until it comes to final consumer ‘plate’ or ‘folk’, passing through alternatives marketing channels (from zero-level-direct marketing to N-level marketing channels). The strategy is to choose the channel in such a way that minimize the discrepancy between producer and consumer prices at a specified length of a channel. eRA – 6 Conference 1 Toward this direction new techniques and institutions are proposed as far as FDS is concerned such as : a.) Direct marketing channels: e-shops, farmers’ market b) Agro tourism and Gastronomy c) Collaborating to strengthen local and regional food systems. d) Community-supported agriculture e) contract farming. Marketing is the pivot of economic development in rural areas. It is an essential component in income and employment generation in farm and non-farm sectors. Since marketing is one of the pre-requisites for income generation, this article attempts to throw some light both on marketing of agriculture production to other areas and improving marketing environment within the rural areas. Key words: marketing of agriculture products, food supply chain, direct agricultural marketing, product branding

A.1.2 Τhe first national attemp for the certification of lamb and kid meat from elassona region as pdo (protected designation of origin)

Goulas P.1, Kantas D.1, Goula Ioanna-Maria2, Petrotos K.3,

1 Department of Animal Production, School of Agricultural Technology, Technological and Educational Institute of Larissa, 41110 Larissa. 2Postgraduate student in Management and Environmental Protection (Edinburgh Scotland) 3Department of Biosystems Engineering, School of Agricultural Technology, Technological and Educational Institute of Larissa, 41110 Larissa. Corresponding author:τηλ. & Fax: 2410684367, E-Mail: [email protected],

eRA – 6 Conference 2 The studies on the certification of lamb and kid meat of the Region of Elassona as PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) were based originally on Regulation 2081/92 of the EU, which was replaced by Rules 509 & 510/2006 on the Council of March the 20th, 2006, Regulation 1898/2006 (EC) laying down detailed rules of implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs, JMD 261611/FEK Sheet No. 406 / 03/22/2007 Issue Second set additional measures for the implementation of Regulation 510 & 1898/2006 for the protection of PDO and the preparation of special studies. It should be noted that this is the first attempt for the certification of fresh meat in Greece (there is no fresh meat or meat product certified as PDO or PGI). For the certification of fresh lamb and kid meat from the Region of Elassona the following 7 research level studies were made:  study on the production methods (nutrition, housing and management) of sheep and goat units in the region.  study to identify the breeds of sheep and goats in the region of Elassona and genotype control. study on the physical conditions of the province of Elassona where the "lamb and kid of Elassona" are produced (soil, climate and flora).  study on the health status of sheep and goats population of the region (transitable diseases and infestations) and ways of cope them.  study on the quality control study of lamb and kid meat and determination of quality characteristics. study on market demand for lamb and kid meat and of possible historical evidence linking these products to the region.  final study design and file preparation on the claims for Designation of Origin (PDO) "Lamb & Kid Meat of Elassona"

A.1.3 Integrated system for micro-climate monitoring in agriculture

D. Pyromalis, A. Sari, D. Cantzos, D. Dimogiannopoulos, D. Tseles,

Abstract An integrated system for agricultural use is developed in order to monitor climatic conditions in open field and greenhouses. Wireless sensor networks are adopted and special purpose software is developed for Greek areas and cultivations. The whole system is documented and compared with other systems that have been applied in several areas of the world. Literature review of such attempts has proved that effectiveness of distributed wireless sensor networks is acceptable and successful for applications in the agriculture section. Keywords: Wireless sensor networks, precision agriculture, embedded data acquisition, wireless sensors

A.1.4 Design of an autonomous agricultural installation

G. Kyriakarakos1, Anastasios. I. Dounis2, C. Alafodimos2, D. Tseles2 1Agricultural University of Athens, Department of Natural Resources and Agricultural Engineering, 75 Iera Odos Street, GR 11855, Athens, Greece, Tel +30.210.5294046, Fax. +30.210.5294032, email: [email protected] eRA – 6 Conference 3 2Technological Education Institute of Piraeus, Department of Automation, 250, P. Ralli & Thivon Str., Egaleo 122 44, Greece, Tel +30.210.5381188, email: [email protected]

Abstract In order to design an energy autonomous agricultural installation it is first needed to identify the specific needs of the installation. In Greenhouses and Animal Housing buildings the main consumptions include ventilation using fans and windows, lighting not only for illumination in the dark, but also for production boosting and heating with IR lamps, cooling through the use of misting or evaporation cooling panels, heating with electrical air heaters or diesel burners and finally electricity for all automations present. After the definition of the main consumptions priority is given to investigating them and applying changes in order to minimize the electricity needs through the use of energy saving appliances with final goal the promotion of rational use of the available energy. This will assist in minimizing the nominal power needs. The most important tool in the reduction of energy demand is the design and implementation of a Building Energy Management System (BEMS). This will allow the optimization of the energy flows in the system, something that would otherwise be impossible. The automatic control of the processes that take place in an agricultural building will, on one hand, aid in energy conservation, and, in the other hand, increase the agricultural production and quality of the produced goods with lower labor input from the farmer. The final step includes the preparation of energy demand profiles of the installation and the identification of available renewable energy sources in the area of the installation. These could include solar, wind, geothermal or small hydro energy. A created computer model analyzes the profiles and the available power and in the end, through optimization techniques, provides the most economical system that can cover adequately the needs of the installation.

A.1.5 Development of a mobile energy production system using photovoltaic cells

M.Papoutsidakis1, P.Fetfatzis1, D.Pyromalis1, D.Tseles1 1 Department of Automation, T.E.I. of Piraeus, Petrou Ralli & Thivon 250, 12244 Athens, Greece, tel: +30 2105381483, *contact author: [email protected]

Abstract World Energy consumption and the resulting CO2 emissions are increasing substantially and this increase puts in danger the ecological stability of Earth. Growing scarcity and rising prices of fossil fuels may lead to economical and political instability in many countries in the near future. These problems can be solved by contribution of the use of renewable energy resources. The renewable energy resources are sufficient enough to meet the world energy requirements. Most of the countries have recognized the new energy policy to encourage the investment on photovoltaic energy systems. In this paper, an autonomous energy production system using a single photovoltaic panel is going to be presented. The system is mounted on a trailer with 3 wheels and can be towed by any typical car, even a small one. The parts of the system from energy production to ready for consumption point and their construction will be discussed in details. A significant part of this paper include the description of a future project that will be undertaken in the close future, and will eRA – 6 Conference 4 involve four photovoltaic panels in separate frames, in an attempt to increase the power supply and the overall autonomy of the system.

A.1.6. Implementation of a dynamic site for agricultural unions

Ch. Drosos, E. Sofianopoulos, N. Alafodimos, D. Pyromalis, D. Tseles,

Abstract Internet is the major information source worldwide today. This article shows how we implement a dynamic site for agricultural unions in Greece with open source CMS. The low cost of information, communication, and interaction on the web offers unions opportunities to improve services and attract members, and thus reinvent themselves. Also web technologies in the agricultural sector can play key role for promoting agricultural products of the members with low cost all over the world, to improve communication with other unions globally and give the opportunity to members to interact and exchange ideas about production etc. Keywords: Website, agricultural unions, open source software

A.1.7. Innovative agricultural methods

A.Efthimiadou, M.Gkoulta, D.Tseles Technological Education Institute of Piraeus, Department of Automation, 250 Thivon & P.Ralli, 12244, Egaleo, Greece Tel:+302105381540, fax: +302105381200 Email: [email protected]

Abstract During the past years the cultivation of fields in Greece was based on agrochemicals. Agrochemicals have multiple negative effects: in the environment , in the quality of the products, in the health of the farmers as well as of the consumers. In order to overcome these difficulties new agricultural practices are adopted and new products are promoted. One of the most successive new practices is Organic Agriculture, which has proven to protect the environment, the consumers and the farmers from the but effects of common agriculture. At the same time sustainable agriculture seems to be the answer for the lower yields (in comparison to common agricultural practices) of organic agriculture. Our study intents to present these new agricultural practices. We give examples of cultivation and certification procedures, taking under consideration the characteristics of some prefectures.

A.1.8. A Multicriteria Method for Agricultural Land Management/ Planning based on GIS

D.Finos, M.Gkoulta, D.Tseles Technological Education Institute of Piraeus, Department of Automation, 250 Thivon & P.Ralli, 12244, Egaleo, Greece Tel:+302105381540, fax: +302105381200 Email: [email protected]

Abstract eRA – 6 Conference 5 The development of a decision support tool for Agricultural Land Management / Planning based on multicriteria methods and the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) is presented in this paper. The process includes digitization of geological maps of a prefecture, digitization of maps with climatic data (temperature, rain, wind speed, etc.), overlapping these digital maps with maps that evolved from the analysis of elevation, road network, residential areas & river network with the concurrent use of a multicriteria method for crop decision. The final result is mapped on GIS in order not only to assist decision making (planning, tracking of risks, alternatives or proposals for suitable cultivations, product quality inspection, problematic/ least suitable/ ideal Areas, tec.) but also be easy for use by agriculturers.

A.1.9. Optimal design and implementation of an e-shop for selling agricultural products

University oh the West of Scotland/ T.E.I. Pireaus

Author: Alexandros Tsekouras, D. Tseles e-mail: [email protected] 2, Agias Varvaras st. Zip Code: 166 74 Glyfada, Greece

Abstract The aim of this survey is to study the problem of designing and implementing a modern and functional electronic shop for the promotion of agricultural products. The purpose was the theoretical and practical approach, analysis and solution of the problem. What is of particular interest in this study is the combination of one of the earliest forms of primary production such as agriculture, with electronic commerce, which is one of the most modern types of marketing. In order to cover the whole spectrum of the subject, first a brief historical overview of agriculture is preceded, followed by a short review of the evolution of electronic commerce and the presentation of web development technologies. Onwards, the current situation of agriculture and marketing of agricultural products in Greece is presented and finally, before proceeding to the design and presentation of the website, a research takes place on a representative sample of the population recording the current needs of modern farmers on the best promotion of their products, as well as the preferences of consumers. For the implementation of the electronic shop, open source technologies were used: the “PHP" scripting language in which the code was written, the relational databases management system "MySQL", and the "Apache HTTP server". Key Words: e-shop, agriculture, php, e-commerce, open source

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