E K O L O G I S K T L A N T B R U K N R 4 0 • J U L Y 2 0 0 4 LOCAL AND ORGANIC FOOD AND FARMING AROUND THE BALTIC SEA Laura Seppänen (ed.) Baltic Ecological Recycling Agriculture and Society (BERAS) Centrum för uthålligt lantbruk Ekologiskt lantbruk – 40 Local and organic food and farming around the Baltic Sea Centrum för uthålligt lantbruk SLU Box 7047 750 07 Uppsala Ecological Agriculture – 40 Local and organic food and farming around the Baltic Sea Centre for Sustainable Agriculture Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences S-750 07 Uppsala Authors are responsible for the factual contents of the report. ISSN 1102-6758 ISRN SLU-EKBL-EL--29--SE ISBN: 91-576-6636-9 Antal sidor: 97 Ämnesord/Key words: Organic farming, Organic food, Local food, Sustainability, Resource management, Food systems, Rural development E K O L O G I S K T L A N T B R U K N R 4 0 • J U L Y 2 0 0 4 LOCAL AND ORGANIC FOOD AND FARMING AROUND THE BALTIC SEA Laura Seppänen (ed.) Baltic Ecological Recycling Agriculture and Society (BERAS) Centrum för uthålligt lantbruk P A R T I CONTENTS PART I 1. Baltic Ecological Recycling Agriculture and Society (BERAS) ....................................................................... 3 2. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................ 5 3. Biographies of the authors ................................................................................................................................... 8 PART II 4. Järna, Sweden ....................................................................................................................................................... 10 5. Juva, Finland ........................................................................................................................................................ 27 6. Bioranch Zempow, Germany ............................................................................................................................. 45 7. Nørregaard and Bakkedalen, Denmark ........................................................................................................... 54 8. Kluczbork and Zbiczno, Poland ........................................................................................................................ 66 9. Raseiniai, Lithuania ............................................................................................................................................. 78 10. Pahkla Camphill Village, Estonia .................................................................................................................... 85 11. Solmarka, Sweden ............................................................................................................................................. 88 PART III 12. Discussion ........................................................................................................................................................... 93 1 P A R T I S Solmarka 2 E K O L O G I S K T L A N T B R U K N R 40 • J U L Y 2 0 0 4 P A R T I BALTIC ECOLOGICAL RECYCLING AGRICULTURE AND SOCIETY (BERAS) Artur Granstedt The serious environmental situation in the Baltic Sea is a consequence of agricultural specialisation, pollution from industries, incorrect waste management and the unsustainable lifestyle prevailing in the countries around the Baltic Sea (i.e. in its drainage basin). Reduced use of non- renewable energy and other resources and the elimination of pesticides would result in less pollution of air, water and soil. Increased recycling of nutrients within the agricultural systems through integration of plants and animals in the farming system would reduce leaching from fields. These are important goals for a more sustainable lifestyle and can also contribute positively to regional development. Significant local initia- tives in this direction can be found in small rural communities in the countries of the Baltic Sea region. There is a need to analyse their environ- mental and socio-economic consequences as well as the opportunities and obstacles facing the various actors in the food system, i.e. produc- ers, processors, traders and consumers. It is necessary to develop knowledge and skills in this area and to better understand the poten- tial for and consequences of a larger-scale changeover to such systems throughout the region. A knowledge base that can be used to reduce the negative environmen- tal impacts of production, distribution, processing and consumption of food in the Baltic Sea drainage area will be developed. This will be based on case studies, complemented with scenarios and consequence analy- ses, of ongoing practical, local ecological initiatives to promote local food supply cooperation between consumers and ecological producers in rural villages in the eight EU countries around the Baltic Sea. The aim is to learn about and promote more sustainable food systems. The project is a EU-funded INTERREG III B project. Methodologically the project is based on studies of 35 selected ecological recycling farms representing different farming conditions and 10 examples of more or less local and/or regional food systems located in the eight partner countries. The first work package, (WP 1) builds on activities and cooperation with representatives from already establis- hed local ecological food initiatives and recycling farms in each coun- try. It includes evaluation, promotion and exchange of experiences with other initiatives in and among the project countries. The second work package, WP (2), will study and quantify the environmental benefits that can be achieved through local ecological consumption, processing and ecological, integrated, recycling farming, in comparison with conventional food systems. The results will feed into the evaluation 3 P A R T I process and be made available to the actors. The third and fourth work packages, WP (3) and WP (4), will evaluate the economic and social consequences at the societal level including rural development and job opportunities. The final work programme, (WP5), will produce an Agenda with recommendations for implementation and disseminate this to concerned actors, including policy and decision makers. Reference Granstedt, A. 2000. Increasing the efficiency of plant nutrient recycling within the agricultural system as a way of reducing the load to the environment - experience from Sweden and Finland. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 1570 (2000) 1-17. Elsevier Science B.V. Amsterdam. For more information contact the project coordinator at the following address: Artur Granstedt, The Biodynamic Research Institute, Skilleby, SE-153 91 Järna, Sweden. Phone: +46 8 551 57702, Fax: +468 552 57781 E-mail: [email protected] 4 E K O L O G I S K T L A N T B R U K N R 40 • J U L Y 2 0 0 4 P A R T I INTRODUCTION Laura Seppänen The interest in local and organic food chains and systems has many reasons. One of them is environmental. The situation in the Baltic Sea with increased levels of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution has raised the need for recycling and the restructuring of agriculture. Among researchers in organic farming and sustainable agriculture there is an increasing awareness that the restructuring of agriculture cannot be made by focusing only on farming and primary production within the limits of the farm gate. The restructuring of agriculture is necessarily linked to structural changes in the rest of the society. Creating new local food chains and systems has potential to go forward with the restructuring task. Local integration of food production and consump- tion requires that farming is considered in a wider system of production, processing, and demand instead of a production system only. (Lockie & Kitto 2000) And for this purpose, cooperation among farmers, processors, consumers, shopkeepers and many others is needed. Another reason for the interest in local and organic food is rural development. Value adding and processing brings employment and economic welfare to small rural communities. Local and organic food systems and chains can potentially strengthen local identities and build creative environments for innovation and quality of life. Local recycling and close relations between producers and consumers are of importance also from the point of the organic agriculture movement. These perspectives are considered in the project Baltic Ecological Recycling Agriculture and Society (BERAS, see page 3). It studies local and organic food chains and systems around the Baltic Sea with the aim of analyzing, on the one hand, their environmental, economic and social impact, and on the other hand, of developing knowledge of how local and organic food chains and systems can be developed further. This publication is produced by one of the five work packages of the project that aims at documenting and promoting cooperation, interaction and learning within the food systems for more sustainable rural development. The purpose of this publication is to describe the cases around the Baltic Sea that are involved in or linked to the BERAS project. In them, active people, projects and organizations have taken initiatives towards local and organic food chains and cooperation. The cases documented are seen in the map on page 2. Part of the cases deal with food systems that are located in one municipality or village, such as Järna in Sweden, Juva in Finland, Kluczbork and Zbizno in Poland, and Raseiniai in Lithuania. Other