EU CAP Network EIP-AGRI Focus Group: Production of protein crops under climate change

Euroopan maaseutuverkosto etsii valkuaiskasvien asiantuntijoita fokusryhmään

Currently, cultivation of pulses and soya bean, the main protein crops in Europe, only accounts for
2% of the EU agricultural area. Although a large share of protein crops is used as feed, there is still a
shortage in the feed sector, resulting in high levels of imports. Therefore, there is a strong need to
increase European self-sufficiency in plant protein, which would increase the sustainability of the EU
food systems by less fertiliser use, less soil and air pollution and an increase in self-sufficiency at farm
level. However, there is still a lack of knowledge and good practices for the cultivation of protein
crops. Moreover, climate change, which significantly affects the cultivation of protein crops, presents
an additional challenge. Simply increasing the area of leguminous crops will probably not level this
deficit and would not foster the competitiveness of crop farming. To reach this objective, innovative
solutions to develop an EU sustainable and competitive agricultural sector comprising new or
improved plant protein sources, adapted to climate change, are needed.

The number of EU farms growing protein crops either for their own on-farm use or to sell on local
markets is on the rise. At a regional scale, there are limited initiatives to produce protein crops for
locally processed products. Protein crops and especially legumes can contribute to crop diversity in
Europe and bring associated benefits such as reduced disease and pest pressure, improved nitrogen
management, fewer nitrogen emissions, more attractive landscapes and increased opportunities for
local value chains. However, climate change brings risks to produce protein crops in Europe which
will differ in each region.

The Focus Group on ‘Production of protein crops under climate change’ will address the SO2 (to
increase competitiveness) of the CAP 2023-27. The innovative solutions to introduce new or improved protein crops in the EU and to valorise protein crops in the value chain would help to diversify cropping systems, reduce European reliance on imported plant protein, and create significant value in rural regions. The FG would also aim at new sources of plant protein to ensure nutritional quality while preserving environmental and economic sustainability. The benefits of cultivating protein crops will be explored in relationship to the impact on soil health, the environment and on climate change mitigation, and it will provide some solutions for adaptation to climate change. Thus, this FG will also contribute to the SO4 (environmental care) and SO5 (to preserve landscapes and biodiversity) of the CAP. The FG will take the results of previous EIP-AGRI/EU CAP Network events and relevant projects into account and build upon them.

Question: How to increase European plant protein self-sufficiency by integrating sustainable
production of plant-based protein in different value chains and regions, taking climate change into
account?

 

Tasks

•  Identify examples of new, existing and forgotten protein crop cultivation in Europe;
•  Map the potential and challenges of protein crop cultivation and value chain development
  in different European regions;
• Assess the effect of the most promising good practices on environment, farm productivity
  and profitability, and identify barriers to their implementation;
• Discuss solutions and explore the role of innovation and knowledge exchange in addressing
  the challenges identified;
• Propose potential innovative actions and ideas for Operational Groups to stimulate the use
  and improvement of robustness-related practices at field and farm level;
• Identify needs from practice and possible gaps in knowledge which may be solved by further
  research