In an attempt to revolutionize agriculture and fight climate change, the European Union’s Horizon programme is supporting the “Carbon Initiative for Climate-resilient Agriculture” – known as CARBONICA.

This initiative aims to establish a CARBONICA Excellence Hub (CEH) by uniting the innovation ecosystems of Greece, North Macedonia, and Cyprus. The focus of the initiative is to elevate the technology readiness using cutting-edge tools like Earth Observation (EO), in situ data, and digital agriculture to advance carbon farming.

The project goes beyond simple technological advancements. It envisions a robust network involving key players from academia, industry, government, and civil society. By doing so, CARBONICA seeks to create a synergy that strengthens the regional innovation capacity. This collaborative approach aligns with the long-term joint Research and Innovation (R&I) Strategy in the realm of carbon farming.

As part of the CARBONICA project activities, AGFT together with CARBONICA partner UGD had executed soil extraction and analysis. The extraction points were generated trough GPS corrected field grid map to be able to apply the concepts of precision agriculture and gain large quantity of relevant data.

In the past week, an autumn soil preparation was performed in two distinctive ways: conventional and carbon farming. After soil preparation, based on the lab analysis results, on the conventional pilot field mineral fertilizer were applied, whereas on the carbon farming pilot field worm casting biostimulator was applied.

CARBONICA isn’t just a project, it’s a visionary initiative striving for a sustainable, climate-resilient future. By integrating cutting-edge technologies, fostering collaboration, and creating practical applications, CARBONICA paves the way for a greener tomorrow. As the project unfolds, the solutions and practices emerging from it promise not only economic benefits for the involved nations but also a significant stride towards the EU’s climate neutrality objectives. The CARBONICA project is more than just an investment; it’s a step towards a greener, more resilient future for agriculture.