Ruralitud, a new digital platform to promote sustainable agricultural entrepreneurship

From the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation we present Ruralitud, an innovative digital tool to accompany new agricultural production projects. Aimed at promoting generational renewal and the incorporation of young people into the agricultural sector, we seek to contribute to a sustainable food system with this digital platform. The website offers practical guides, reference resources and examples of successful initiatives that are already underway in Spain, representing a significant sample of Territorialized Food Systems (TSS).

Created with the collaboration of the Center for Rural Studies and International Agriculture (CERAI), the page is aimed at those who are evaluating new agricultural projects and can use it from their particular context. It seeks to be very useful, for example, for people who have inherited land and want to design their own project, those who are interested in starting to work in the rural world, or those who prefer to study the current agricultural situation before making a decision.

More and more people, concerned about the environment and healthy eating, are opting for agroecological production on small farms and in tune with biology and the ecosystem, and thus market their products in short and local channels, highlighting the value of the territory and the culture linked to food. and fairly distributing the profit throughout the chain. Proof of this interest is that Spain is the third country with the largest area under organic cultivation in the world and the first in Europe, with 10.24% of the Used Agricultural Area (UAA).

In this context, Ruralitud serves as a guide for reflection by those who are thinking about their professional incorporation into the agricultural sector. It approaches this process from its own personal context and proposes various sustainable practices. It is a living tool that has begun with agriculture and will be updated to also include livestock and fishing.

The website is structured into three main segments: Guidance, which proposes six chapters of analysis, recommendations and good practices; Inspiring initiatives, with 65 success stories that are currently being developed in Spain; and Resources, a compendium of bibliography and website that allows for more information and good practices presented in the first segment.

Guidance for new agricultural production projects

Chapter 1 What is the countryside like in Spain?

In this chapter we present a broad x-ray of the situation of the agricultural sector in the country: the challenges and uncertainties it faces, the view that the rest of society has of this economic activity and the employment situation. We also address the moment that family farming is experiencing, “an asset that is vital for the sustainability of the rural environment and that can take advantage of its experience and its infrastructures to move towards the agroecological model”.

It also highlights the information on conventional and agroecological production systems, as well as the potential of Territorialized Food Systems (TSS) as an alternative for many of the projects for the benefit of society, the environment and rural repopulation.

Chapter 2: Motivation, training and approach

In this segment, we formulate clear approaches to expand the knowledge essential for entrepreneurship in this activity: the barriers that must be overcome and the needs that must be addressed. But, mainly, training stands out as a key element for a better incorporation into this sector, generating added value to the project.

A key clue to enter this field is also the approach that allows you to understand it from a professional perspective. For this reason, we present various initiatives already underway, with a very varied profile and with a unique operation, which becomes a first contact, as well as examples that can be inspiring.

Chapter 3: Project Design

The success of an agroecological project also requires a business perspective, knowing the monetary costs and the calculation of economic viability for all the tasks involved, including aspects such as the initial investment needed, marketing and others.

Therefore, the design must include descriptive elements such as the objectives, the context of this activity, the spatial environment, an inventory of land and resources, a calendar, the economic and revenue estimate, as well as the feasibility study and the marketing plan.

Chapter 4: Access to the territorial base

The three essential elements to start an agroecological project are: land to cultivate, a house to stay in and a local community to integrate. The first of these is not easy, since it competes against investment funds and large farms, there is emotional attachment from the older generations of owners, and the CAP is added to distribute the income received according to the area owned, which causes immobility in the transfer of land.

In this chapter we describe the types of land according to the characteristics of the project, as well as access to land through alternatives such as land banks, communal lands, ephemeral testing spaces, agrarian land stewardship or the transfer of land by the owners.

Chapter 5: Start-up

Projects must meet a series of legal requirements, so a series of suggestions are made on administrative procedures, steps to be taken for this prior planning and to have essential advice for the management of all this.

The financial needs of the project are also explored in this section, which proposes some ways of financing, in addition to raising the need for advice in this area and having as an alternative access to funds that promote incorporation into the rural sector, as is the case of the Spanish Agricultural Guarantee Fund (FEGA).

Chapter 6: Early Life

The times to adjust what was planned, follow up on the activity and detect incidents that must be corrected are also aspects that this tool takes into account, which proposes good practices for this to ensure a successful settlement in those first years. Tips and suggestions are also presented to better focus the sales of the products, as well as to take into account the human and personal aspects that are part of the project.

Inspiring initiatives

In this activity, many people with projects have undertaken their actions to build a fairer and more sustainable food system. This tool includes 65 success stories, specifying the orientation phase in which they are and their geographical location, so that they can serve as inspiration and a mirror in which to look at future initiatives.

Resources

Finally, the platform presents a series of resources so that interested people can expand and complement the data provided in the six stages of the Guidance section, delving into precise and detailed information in the aspects in which they wish to know more. It forms a complete toolbox with up to a total of 36 entries to other platforms, content, pages and source consultation.

Ruralitud arises from the joint work of the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation with the Center for Rural Studies and International Agriculture (CERAI), whose 2022 report The road to agricultural employment in Territorialized Agri-food Systems has been the basis for creating this digital platform as an element of consultation and contribution to agroecological entrepreneurship.