Cereals - Autruy-Sur-Juine, France
Resources
Working closely with a neighbour, machinery resources are shared. This allows capital intensive equipment to be used in the most cost-effective manner, and means a full complement of agricultural machinery is not required to be purchased to operate the farm efficiently.
The farm is part of the Natura 2000 network which is an EU initiative committed to the protection of biodiversity. Over the last 25 years a vast network of over 26,000 protected areas covering all the Member States (around 850,000 km2) has been developed, representing more than 20% of total EU territory. This vast array of sites is the largest coherent network of protected areas in the world.
Being a part of the Natura 2000 network shows the importance of the farm’s geographic location and the biodiversity already on site. The farm has adopted some new concepts such as planting herb/grass strips along river banks which helps reduce the risk of pollution entering the water course.
Participation in Natura 2000 demonstrates the farm’s commitment to protecting the biodiversity of the local environment.