Photo: Gloria Guzmán Casado Organic produce at the ecomercado… ANDALUSIA VEGA SPAIN Sustaining transition through changing SPAIN political winds La Comarca de La Vega, Grenada 69 CASE STUDIES 02 BREAKING AWAY FROM INDUSTRIAL FOOD AND FARMING SYSTEMS 3.6 VEGA, ANDALUSIA, SPAIN The comarca of the Vega53 is located in the Organic Farming and Rural Development Re- southeast of Spain, around the city of Grana- search and Training Centre’, was founded in da. The agrarian modernization of the Vega 2002 following an agreement between a new occurred as early as the beginning of the 20th political coalition and the provision of fund- century, through the establishment of crop ing from regional and provincial councils. A commodity monocultures (primarily sugar wide-ranging research project was initiated beet) and the accompanying use of commer- to evaluate the sustainability of agriculture cial seeds and mineral fertilizers (Guzmán in the Vega and to develop agroecological Casado and González de Molina, 2009). The transition strategies, building on the existing process sped up from the 1960s onwards with social movements. the implementation of Green Revolution tech- nologies, and further accelerated when Spain This culminated in the Vega de Granada Or- joined the European Economic Community ganic Farming Plan – an ambitious agenda for (EEC) in 1986. agroecological redesign of the district’s pro- duction and marketing systems. The plan was By the end of the 20th century, the limits of based on local provisioning of all inputs, the this model were starting to show in Andalu- development of direct sales initiatives (bio- sia, and particularly in the Vega district. Rural fairs, shops of producers’ associations, etc.) populations were abandoning agriculture, and and organic public procurement – referred to natural resources – soil, water, biodiversity as ‘social consumption’ schemes. Education- – were showing signs of depletion and deg- al programmes were also developed to build radation (Chica et al., 2004; Guzmán Casado awareness of sustainability in the district with and González de Molina, 2006; Menor Toribio, the support of local farmers. 1997). As the farming population declined, so too did agrarian institutions and infrastruc- However, the political coalition in support tures, and the organizational capacity of the of transition broke down in 2009, paving agricultural sector. Local processing industries the way for withdrawal of regional govern- and regional resource fows (e.g. manure avail- ment support. The CIFAED closed soon af- ability) were lost. terwards, alongside the newly formed Direc- torate General of Organic Farming and the Nonetheless, Save the Vega and other lo- Andalusia-wide organic public procurement cal social movements continued to defend programme. Yet the revival of sustainable ag- landscape conservation, and alongside lo- riculture in the Vega and the social activism cal farmers, managed to sustain an organi- underpinning the transition have endured, zational and knowledge base that would al- showcasing the capacity for non-institutional low transition to occur. A new research and actors to sustain transition even when formal training centre, CIFAED54 or the ‘Granada support has dissolved. 53. A comarca is a Spanish administrative district consisting of several towns, with common territorial features and agricultural conditions. The towns in the Vega comarca include: Armilla, Atarfe, Cájar, Cijuela, Cúllar Vega, Chauchina, Churriana de la Vega, Fuente Vaqueros, Gójar, Granada, Huétor Vega, Láchar, Ogíjares, Pinos Puente, La Zubia, Las Gabias, Vegas del Genil, and Santa Fe. 54. Centro de investigación y formación para la agricultura y ganadería ecológicas en la provincia de Granada CASE STUDIES 02 BREAKING AWAY FROM INDUSTRIAL FOOD AND FARMING SYSTEMS 70 3.6 VEGA, ANDALUSIA, SPAIN CHANGES IN PRODUCTION PRACTICES ers struggled to obtain manure given a long- term trend of declining livestock production in Despite its dry Mediterranean climate, the the region – stretching back to the 19th century Vega is one of the most productive Spanish and accelerating when Spain joined the EEC in districts, beneftting from fat and fertile land 1986 (Guzmán Casado and González de Moli- with abundant irrigation. Most of the cropping na, 2009). Spanish agriculture had shifted its area in the district had long been dedicated to production to specialize in products with high large-scale crop commodity production, with demand on EU markets (e.g. olive oil, fruit and prices guaranteed by the administration - frst vegetables), while dairy cows and other ‘sur- the Spanish state (fax, hemp, sugar beet, and plus’ sectors declined.55 tobacco) and then the EU (tobacco). In the early 2000s, CIFAED identifed enabling However, high synthetic input costs and low and limiting factors to regional transition us- global market prices presented severe chal- ing innovative knowledge generation meth- lenges to the economic viability of small-scale ods (see below). A range of strategies for farms in the district. Furthermore, farmers agroecological transition were developed, struggled to respond to the progressive dis- based on mutually-reinforcing sustainable mantling of market support policies in recent practices all along the food chain. These decades. The situation has been compounded strategies were brought together in the Vega by proximity to the city of Granada, leading to de Granada Organic Farming Plan, developed the development of urban, road, and indus- and adopted by four organizations repre- trial infrastructures, and upward pressures on senting farmers and agroindustry, and three land markets. ecological and consumer organizations. In response to the wide-ranging backing it re- In this context, farmers disappeared at an ceived, the regional government commit- annual rate of 5-6% between 1989 and 2009, ted to co-fnancing the Plan for three years dropping from 8,228 to 2,523 over the two (2008-2010). The Plan contained the follow- decades (INE, 2009, 1999, 1989). At the outset ing components: of the agroecological transition process, only 1. The local generation of a sufcient quality 19 agri-food companies (of which ten were and quantity of nutrient and water fows re- cooperatives) brought their products to mar- quired for production ket, mainly via long value chains that yielded low returns. 2. The redesign of the agroecosystem and de- velopment of management techniques in The potential to revive farming was initially accordance with the European Law on Or- held back due to degradation of the natural ganic Production (Council Regulation (EC) No resource base, including water contamination 834/2007, of 28 June 2007) from urban-industrial waste, nitrates and pes- 3. The generation of alternative proximi- ticides, and the loss of key material and en- ty-based food networks through public pro- ergy fows in the Vega (Guzmán Casado and curement and direct sales strategies for or- González de Molina, 2009). In particular, farm- ganic food products 55. In the Vega, this translated into a 3% annual decline in dairy cow populations between 1986-1999, and a steeper 9% annual decline between 1999-2009, meaning that diary is now a marginal sector (INE, 2009, 1999; MAPAMA, 2000, 1986). CASE STUDIES 02 BREAKING AWAY FROM INDUSTRIAL FOOD AND FARMING SYSTEMS 71 3.6 VEGA, ANDALUSIA, SPAIN Photo: Gloria Guzmán Casado Market stand at the ecomercado Steps to implement the Plan were undertak- problems. Attempts were made to redirect en primarily by CIFAED and the civil society nutrient fows in a way that was environmen- groups signing onto the Plan, working along- tally and economically benefcial for both dis- side the fruit farmers and extensive irrigation tricts. crop farmers (corn, alfalfa) who had shown willingness to shift their practices. The need However, the Organic Farming Plan was to move away from industrial practices un- cancelled before important additional steps derpinned all of the steps that followed. Eval- could be taken, such as the installation of uation activities had identifed severe nitrate composting plants. Despite the abrupt rup- contamination in irrigation water, highlighting ture of the political pact and the dismantling the need for protection of water supplies so of the institutions and measures promoting as to avoid further undermining the agricul- agroecological transition, the strong initial tural future of the Vega. focus on strengthening local knowledge and networks allowed many farmers to continue Local horticultural varieties were introduced practicing agroecological farming. Many or- to the farms, drawing on the traditional prac- ganizations continue to defend and promote tices discussed in the preparatory phases of agroecological transition in the Vega, bring- the Plan. Eforts were made to mitigate the ing forward the ideas initially developed lack of organic matter in the Vega by setting through CIFAED. From 2010 to 2017, the to- up composting plants in bordering districts. tal organic area (now 521 hectares) and the Olive oil mills were targeted in particular, giv- number of organic farmers (now 37) con- en the large amounts of waste they tend to tinued to rise, though at slower rates than generate, and the associated environmental during programme implementation. CASE STUDIES 02 BREAKING AWAY FROM INDUSTRIAL FOOD AND FARMING SYSTEMS 72 3.6 VEGA, ANDALUSIA, SPAIN CHANGES IN KNOWLEDGE GENERATION AND including local farmers and store owners, en- DISSEMINATION vironmentalist groups, and consumers. This paved the way for