Bjertorp officially opened – showcasing Farming of the Future in practice
In a guest post, Elisabeth Ringdahl, Head of the Agriculture Sector at Lantmännen, tells us more about the official inauguration of Bjertorp, Lantmännen’s Farm of the Future, in April 2021.
At our Farm of the Future Bjertorp, we are going to test and implement the sustainability actions and potentials that were identified in the Farming of the Future Report - all necessary in order to achieve climate neutral farming by 2050. The farm has everything that is required to turn theory into practice and thus become the test farm that is so much needed if we are to take full advantage of new technology and new farming methods both today and in the future. The digital opening ceremony, which was held in mid-April, was the first step in communicating to Lantmännen’s members, partners and customers that the journey towards farming of the future has already begun.
The opening ceremony was on the theme of “soil health” and featured several examples of actions and initiatives being implemented at Bjertorp. Precision farming, climate smart fertilizers, carbon sequestration and flower zones are examples of measures that will further boost sustainability on the farm. However, we at Lantmännen believe that Bjertorp’s biggest contribution will be in providing an arena where we can work together with our partners and customers for a more sustainable food production in general. To achieve this, we need to create conditions for a more productive and profitable primary production where the farmers who do the work are also adequately paid for the climate benefits they provide.
The Farm of the Future Bjertorp will provide a vital test bed that brings together parties from across the entire value chain. A place where we are given the possibility not only to test and develop practical cultivation methods, tools and new technology, but also ideas and business models. Where we can combine technological systems with biological ones in an effective, sustainable and profitable way. Knowledge and experience that will benefit the entire value chain. We welcome new partners with new perspectives who would like to work with us at Bjertorp.
Everything that is being done on the farm is documented and evaluated with the aim of subsequently communicating these experiences to a wider audience, to inspire the industry as a whole that the transition is possible. And not least, to show other farmers in purely practical terms how we can work towards increasing harvests and reducing climate impact in the future. But if we are to succeed in this transition, these kinds of measures and investments on farms must be financed via the entire chain and food must be valued higher. A modest price increase will go a long way to achieve the future we aim to demonstrate on the farm – fossil free and profitable farming with better crop rotation that sequesters more carbon in the soil and benefits biodiversity.
Over the next decade, we at Lantmännen will have dared to invest, dared to cooperate and dared to fail at Bjertorp. The path to climate neutral farming will not be as straight as an arrow but thanks to the official opening of our Farm of the Future Bjertorp we now have a good place to start from - the journey starts here.