Spotlight on 5 schemes

What is the agroecological transition?

The agroecological transition encompasses all the solutions implemented to adapt agricultural models to agroecological challenges. This means completely rethinking agricultural production to minimise its impact on the environment, by capitalising on ecosystems. Thus, agroecology relies in particular on diversifying production and reducing inputs.

N°1 – The TRAEVITI Coll project

Launched by IFV, the TRAEVITI Coll project (Transfer of Agro-environmental VITIcultural measures to Collectives) aims to support the implementation of agri-environmental measures, on both a collective and an individual scale. It calls on several winegrower groups and uses various tools :

• A presence on social media, with the creation of a Facebook page dedicated to the agroecological transition in viticulture. It allows users to follow all the news and initiatives of the project.
• An interactive sound map that highlights the various initiatives and the paths taken by winegrowers involved in a transition process. It is thus possible to discover their testimonies on video.

N°2 – GEEI groups

GEEI (Groups of economic and environmental interest – GIEE in French) are state-recognised collectives. They bring together farmers who are committed to agroecological projects with a view to transforming their practices. Being recognised as a GEEI makes it easier to obtain financial support: European funding, Government grants, aid from local authorities or subsidies from public bodies.

Today, more than 12,000 farms across the country are members of GEEIs. 735 groups have been formed since 2015. On average, each of them has about twenty farmers. All together, they can exchange their methods and share their experience and know-how.

N°3 – The GO PEI network

EIP operational groups (GO PEI in French) bring together partners who wish to engage in innovation projects, with regard to various themes: plant production, disease control or animal welfare. They may be scientists, farmers or experts in the agri-food sector. As of 1 April 2022, the regional councils had selected 310 GO PEI projects. These are funded by the European Rural Development Policy.

N°4 –Écophyto 30,000 groups

The 30,000 group is a group of farmers, united around the same collective project: to reduce the use of chemical crop protection products. Their mission is to deploy together economical and efficient techniques, already tested by the DEPHY network. In accordance with the Ecophyto II+ plan, the programme aims to support 30,000 farms in their agroecological approach.

Each group will consist of 10 to 20 farmers. They will be able to choose the structure that will support them throughout the project. These farmers must already be part of a collective (such as a GEEI, for example).

N°5 – The Dephy collective

Within the framework of the Ecophyto plan, the DEPHY network (Demonstration, Experimentation and Production of references on low PHYtosanitary consumption systems) is divided into two schemes: DEPHY FERME and DEPHY EXPE.

• The DEPHY FERME network

This is a network of 3,000 farms that are committed to reducing the use of crop protection chemicals on their farms. 250 groups of 12 are spread throughout the country. They represent all the major sectors: viticulture, arboriculture, horticulture, tropical crops, field crops, livestock and vegetables.

• The DEPHY EXPE scheme

This is the experimental part of the DEPHY network. It allows the design, testing and evaluation of crops with greatly reduced use of pesticides. Two major calls for projects were launched in 2017 and 2018 and 41 of them were selected. They have been ongoing since 2018 and 2019 and will run for 4 to 6 years.

Initiatives are multiplying all over the country to help all those who work in vineyards and help them innovate and reinvent themselves. The aim is to ensure their profitability and longevity while protecting the environment.