PRESENTATION: PILOT AREA KOLYMVARICHANIACRETE

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PRESENTATION PILOT AREA KOLYMVARI-CHANIA-CRETE

• INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR ADVANCED MEDITERRANEAN
  AGRONOMIC STUDIES
• MEDITERRANEAN AGRONOMIC INSTITUTE OF CHANIA-GREECE

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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• Exceptional agricultural products are produced in
  the area. The majority
• of the farmland (80.14) is occupied by perennial
  cultivations like olive
• trees while the rest is cultivated by vegetables
  (2.40) and vineyards
• (3.80), while the rest is arable (8.75) and
  set-aside (5.08) land. In
• order for farmers to ensure a proper income they
  have to make their
• cropping and cultivating choices very carefully
  and cannot easily
• diversify their activities.
• Most of the households in the area are
  self-sufficient meaning that they
• have everything vineyards, olive trees, a
  garden and a livestock of
• several kinds (sheep, goats, chickens, etc).
• Diversifying income sources or pluriactivity is
  definitely an important
• phenomenon given that a lot of inhabitants are
  either private or civil
• servants or are involved in activities such as
  provision of services,
• tourism, fishing.

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Part of Kolymvari Municipality as shown in a
satellite image
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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• Three main zones can be defined in the area of
• Kolymvari
• i) the coastal area where most of the households
  deal with
• activities such as fishing,tourism, commercial
  activities etc.
• ii) the middle zone that is dominated by olive
  groves and
• vineyards and
• iii) the northern and most hilly part where
  animal breeding
• is one of the main sources of income.

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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• Different types of farming methods could be found
  
• in the Municipality of Kolymvari. The majority or
  
• even all farmers in the area are owners of olive
• groves but not all of them consider oliveculture
  as
• their main source of income. Thus, a distinction
  
• could be made between the big intensive olive
• growers who are part-time farmers and who
• mainly use olive oil for personal family use and
• the ones that produce olive oil but are also
• engaged in complementary farming activities.

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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• It is important to note that according to the
  Council Regulation
• EEC No 2081/92 the olive oil that is produced
  exclusively from
• olives of the delimited geographical zone of the
  administrative
• district of Kolymvari, in which olives have been
  produced since
• 1204, is recognized as PDO under the name
  Eleolado POP
• Kolimvari Chanion Kritis.

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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• According to the Council Regulation (EEC) No
  2081/92 of 14
• July 1992 on the protection of geographical
  indications and
• designations of origin for agricultural products
  and foodstuffs
• an agricultural product or foodstuff bearing such
  an indication
• must meet certain conditions set out in a
  specification. Only a
• group (meaning any association, irrespective of
  its legal form or
• composition, of producers and/or processors
  working with the
• same agricultural product or foodstuff) or a
  natural or legal
• person (subject to certain conditions) shall be
  entitled to
• apply for registration.

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Characteristics of the local farming sector

• Up to day the Greek authority responsible for the
  control and
• inspection of the production process and the
  processing of the
• PDO product was given by the Hellenic Ministry of
  Agriculture to
• the Local Directorate of Agriculture. This
  responsibility, however,
• is now undertaken by a newly established
  organisation, the so-
• called Agriculture product inspection
  certification scheme
• (AGROCERT).
• However, despite the favorable climatic
  conditions prevailing in
• the area, agriculture presents a slow development
  and
• modernization rate mainly due to certain
  peculiarities which
• determine its progress. The small size of farming
  land, decreasing
• employment opportunities, unstable incomes,
  reduced subsidies,
• lack of alternative cropping solutions and a
  constantly changing,
• complex policy situation are the main drawbacks
  for the
• development of organic and multifunctional
  agriculture.

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• Organic farming in the area under examination is
  still in its early
• stage. Nowadays there are thirteen organic
  producers in the
• area, cultivating an area of about 80.6 hectares.
  Most of them are
• involved in the olive oil industry (79.75 ha are
  occupied by olive
• trees, while the rest is cultivated by
  vegetables, citrus fruits and
• vineyards). Two of the organic farmers are
  definitely pioneers
• given that they converted to organic right after
  the enforcement of
• the EC Reg 2092/91.

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• Moreover they package and export most of the
  quantity
• produced abroad and mainly in USA, Canada and
  Japan. The
• limitation of organic production to a small
  number of perennial
• cultivations can be explained by the national
  institutional and
• economic framework of organic agriculture as well
  as by the
• existing know-how for the practical applications
  of organic
• cultivation techniques. Thus, the promotion of
  olive cultivation
• as a basic organic cultivation in the area is
  directly related to

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• The agricultural geography and the national
  soil and
• climate conditions. Olive cultivation has a
  long-standing
• tradition in the semi-mountainous regions of the
  Kolymvari
• area. This area has optimal local varieties and
  in many parts
• of the area, the traditional extensive way of
  olive cultivation is
• still surviving. On the other hand, organic olive
  cultivation
• does not differ in many aspects from traditional
  cultivation it
• does not require complex intervention whereas the
  European
• subsidy per hectare based on Regulation E.E.
  2078/92 offers
• a motivation for the exploitation of small,
  abandoned olive
• groves in mountainous areas.

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• The important know-how which has been
• developed regarding organic fertilizing and pest
• control in olive cultivation. The confrontation
  of
• these problems in olive cultivation is a research
  
• objective in many national research teams,
• whereas organic cultivation techniques have been
• applied for nearly twenty years, which means that
  
• organic farmers have precious experience.

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• The increased international demand for high-
• quality olive oil in combination with the
  existence
• of some trading institutions for organic olive
  oil
• (private or unions). Due to this background, a
  high
• percentage or organic olive oil goes to the
  export
• market, and in most cases the prices paid to the
• producer are substantially higher than the prices
  
• for conventional olive oil.

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The organic and/or multifunctional farming
development in the territory

• Undoubtedly the optimal soil and climatic
  conditions
• prevailing in the region, the knowledge
  concerning olive
• cultivation, the assistance provided by the
  agronomist
• favored the attempt of those organic farmers that
  set the
• example for the promotion of organic agriculture
  in the area.
• Obviously, the organic farmers to be found in the
  area are
• big olive growers that share characteristics
  such as
• knowledge, experience and willingness to change.
• Moreover, they take risks and learn they enforce
  
• professionalism and foster feelings of
  sensitization to
• environmental issues

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The role of the farms in the production,
accumulating and innovating activities

• According to what a stakeholder interviewed said
  farmers
• of the Municipality of Kolymvari can act very
  well as such,
• but they are very bad entrepreneurs mainly due to
  their
• low educational level and their inability to
  understand the
• entrepreneurial and market environment.
  Moreover, most
• of the stakeholders that were interviewed
  emphasised that
• the small size of the farms, the lack of
  infrastructure
• (limited irrigation and road networks, lack of an
  
• Organisation / Advisory body) are the main
  difficulties to
• be encountered.

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The role of the farms in the production,
accumulating and innovating activities

• The contribution of education and training to
  farming
• practices is becoming more important in cases
  where
• environmental issues are considered. The
  education level
• is a critical indicator of the quality of human
  capital and
• affects the farmers ability to co-ordinate the
  operation of
• various enterprises in order to search for
  alternatives and
• avoid excessive losses. The age of the farmer
  composes
• an important indicator in explaining the adoption
  of new
• practices and technologies at the farm level.
  Younger
• farmers have been found to be more knowledgeable
  about
• new practices and may be more willing to bear
  risk.

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The role of the farms in the production,
accumulating and innovating activities

• The majority of the plantations that are found in
  
• the area of Kolymvari can be characterised as
• Intensified traditional plantations. They
  follow
• traditional patterns but are under intensive
• management making systematic use of fertilisers.
• There is a tendency to intensify further by means
  
• of irrigation, increased tree density, use of
• chemicals and mechanical harvesting.

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The role of the farms in the production,
accumulating and innovating activities

• Most of the farmers are kept in captivity by
  the
• production process, given that they are obliged
  
• to sell their product under certain conditions.
  They
• sell their product in bulk quantities and they
  dont
• act as entrepreneurs. Only a small quantity of
  the
• olive oil produced is packaged, while the rest is
  
• exported in bulk quantities to Italy or to some
• multinationals in Greece. Moreover, very few of
• them are involved in the whole distribution
  chain.

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The role of the farms in the production,
accumulating and innovating activities

• However, some efforts have been made to
• encourage producers to collaborate in order to
• allow them to promote their product together,
• thereby imposing better prices. Undoubtedly there
  
• is a need to replace private actions with more
• organized ones. In this region, there are neither
  
• auction centres, like the ones existing in
  Kountoura
• and Ierapetra (Eastern Crete), that could help
• farmers enhance their entrepreneurial skills, nor
  a
• Consultant organization to support the farmers.

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Agronomic and environmental aspects of the
production activities

• Oliveculture has both positive and negative
  environmental
• effects. These effects depend on several factors
  including
• prevailing environmental conditions in and around
  the
• plantation (soil type, slope, rainfall, presence
  of water
• supply bodies and farm management practices). The
  main
• categories of actual and potential environmental
  effects are
• associated with the management of the olive
  plantations
• such as soil, water, air, landscape,
  biodiversity.

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Agronomic and environmental aspects of the
production activities

• Soil erosion is one of the principal
  environmental
• problems associated with olive farming.
  Traditionally,
• terraces were created with supporting stonewalls
  to
• allow the cultivation of the hillsides. Their
  maintenance
• however, is labour intensive and abandonment is
  quite
• common. The over-exploitation of the water
  resources
• for irrigation is an enormous environmental
  problem in
• the area. Irrigation is expanding rapidly
  although ground
• water resources are already severely depleted.

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Agronomic and environmental aspects of the
production activities

• From an agronomic point of view the main issues
  related
• to the oliveculture are the maintenance of soil
  fertility and
• pest control. The existence of the Dacus Olea in
  large
• population in the area consists one of the main
  problems
• of the oliveculture.
• Moreover, the organic alternative proposes the
  application
• of animal manure and green manure rather than
  the use
• of chemical fertilisers and the use of biological
  methods
• (e.g traps) instead of the conventional
  treatment of Dacus
• Olea, are used.

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The correlation between agricultural produce and
territory suitability

• Olive farming provides an important source of
  employment
• in many areas of the Municipality of Kolymvari
  where it is
• either a principal employer or an important
  part-time
• employer combined with other activities such as
  tourism.
• Moreover, the morphology of the land creates
  difficulties in
• the application of cultivation techniques which
  doesnt
• facilitate the production of other products.
• The favourable climatic conditions allow the
  production of
• high quality products. The production process
  from
• harvesting to processing and marketing faces
  economic
• problems. In the cultivation phase, the means for
  the
• fighting of insects and the fertilisers are very
  expensive.

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The correlation between agricultural produce and
territory suitability

• The favourable climatic conditions allow the
  production of
• high quality products but the integration is very
  limited. This
• is so mainly due to the fact that the processing
  sector does
• not help create contacts with private enterprises
  in order to
• try to sell the product directly to the market
  without the
• middleman. In the last decade, the downgraded
  action of
• cooperatives and Unions halted standardization.
  So now,
• they do not have proper exports and trade.
  Producers
• comply with the suggested level of integration by
  supplying
• goods and services enterprises that, in most of
  cases,
• facilitate them by undertaking the delivery of
  the inputs.

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The correlation between agricultural produce and
territory suitability

• As far as the marketing sector is concerned,
  farmers are
• content with selling the product. An attempt is
  made by
• some people to motivate farmers to concentrate on
  the
• brand named olive oil, quality assurance, and
  protected
• denomination of origin/ geographical indication
  approval
• But the oil industry does not certify the product
  with a label
• such as product of origin and geographical
  indication
• product, even if it is of high quality, because
  it is not
• written in the label therefore it does not differ
  from the
• conventional product.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• According to official data 54.2 of the
  population is
• employed in the Agricultural sector while 11.9
  and 28.0
• is employed in the secondary and tertiary
  economic sector,
• respectively. The secondary sector is rudimentary
  in its
• development. Only small individual businesses are
  mainly
• involved in handicraft or engaged in the
  processing of the
• products of the primary sector. The tertiary
  sector is the
• second most important in the area and it enjoys
  continuous
• growth because of tourism and its alternative
  forms.
• However most people employed in tourism do not
  rely on
• this exclusively, but are also involved in other
  activities to
• supplement their income.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• In fact, there arent any organised intersectoral
  network
• linkages besides the direct ones existing among
  the
• primary (farming and animal breeding), secondary
• (industry) and tertiary (tourism and other
  services) sectors.
• Relations are mainly developed at a personal
  level rather
• than through well structured channels. More
  specifically,
• agriculture provides products and supports the
• development of tourism and agritourism, while the
  shops
• provide inputs to the agricultural sector.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• Coherence between emerging sectors (tourism) and
  the
• existing ones (agriculture) is of crucial
  importance. When
• referring to the Municipality of Kolymvari, it
  is obvious that
• there is a continuous interrelation /
  interdependence
• between those two sectors. Farming supports
  tourism that
• seems to add value to local products and provides
  an
• alternative /additional source of income.
  Furthermore, the
• development of tourism as well as agro-tourism is
  based on
• the existence and the exploitation of the local
  resources.
• However, there is an increasing competition among
  the
• agricultural and tourism sector with regard to
  the use of the
• available natural, capital, human resources.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• Unfortunately there is very limited cooperation
• among the farmers. Moreover, the marketing /
• processing organisations are comprised of a close
  
• relation among the enterprises of the primary
• sector, the agricultural enterprises and the
  Unions
• of Agricultural Coops. There is direct dependence
  
• among them only as far as the production and
• distribution needs are concerned.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• There are also special programmes referring to
• Organic Farming but farmers dont benefit from
• the Improvement Plans that are financed by the
• Directorate of Agriculture of the Prefecture of
• Chania. Also, someone must have land and some
• speciality, like mountainous land, to have a form
  
• of enterprise, age limits, to PDO and PGI
  products
• in order to be subsidized.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• There is an inter-Municipalities Developmental
  enterprise
• but it doesnt help a lot. It is not very
  efficient. Moreover, all
• departments of the Prefecture and the
  Municipality related to
• the environment, training and culture should be
  motivated
• and involved. Some efforts were made to set up a
  group of
• producers. However, as there is neither the
  infrastructure
• nor the motivation to undertake this project, no
  suitable
• distribution was found by the producers. However,
  without
• infrastructure (Olive Oil Mills) this can not
  work.

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Intersectoral and intra-sectoral integration
processes

• Finally there was a proposal initiated by an
• Organic Consumers and Producers Cooperation
• called GAIA, that could promote their production
• under a common name. This initiative was
• promoted by exhibitions, internet, and an organic
  
• certification sign. In general the key objective
  is
• the vertical integration of the production
  process.

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Interpersonal relationships and institutional
aspects

• Institutional development is an aid through which
  local
• community members can empower themselves and
• generate the knowledge base and enthusiasm
  necessary for
• conservation and for involvement in community
• development. Such institutional forms in the area
  of
• Kolymvari are Agricultural Coops, womens
  organisations
• and youth organisations. The Union of the
  Agricultural
• Coops and the Agricultural Coops play an
  important role,
• provided that they assist the agricultural
  activity and
• undertake the processing, marketing and promotion
  of
• agricultural products.

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Interpersonal relationships and institutional
aspects

• To a wider extent, the relationships of
• Farmer-Cultural associations are not so close.
  Those associations organize some events that
  promote agricultural products
• Farmers schools are only information related
• Farmers Agricultural Coops have close relations
  since all farmers are members of the Agricultural
  Coop.
• Farmers- Other entrepreneurs have a very strict
  and professional relationship.
• All the Communities are mountainous so they can
  be
• incorporated into many Developmental Programs,
  the
• Mountain communities programs, is a Community
  program
• for the exploitation of mountainous areas.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• The agroenvironmental conditions of the area
  under
• investigation are in favour of the production of
  high quality
• and organic agricultural products. The most
  crucial point
• however, is that there is no infrastructure. For
  example for
• oil factories of organic olive oil, there is no
  legislation that
• would ensure proper production. Somebody can be
• certified in Greece, in every stage, but there is
  a gap as far
• as the extraction of olive oil is concerned.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• There is no olive oil Mill that can provide the
  right conditions
• to ensure the producer about the production of
  organic olive
• oil. The product may come out with residues and
  thus will
• not be certified. The certification comes from
  the DIO, the
• Biohellas (Soya). Finally, no olive oil Mill
  exists that would
• produce only organic olive oil.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• During the last 10 years Organic Agriculture had
  an
• increase of 6. There are 50 organic farmers in
  the
• prefecture of Chania. Big quantities are produced
  and sold
• in shops specializing in organic products as well
  as in
• super-market.
• The main factors to foster the development of
  Organic
• Agriculture in the area are
• There is a cell of farmers that submitted a
  project in the framework of Leader plus to
  establish an olive oil Mill specializing in the
  production of organic olive oil.
• Organic farming was introduced through a
  Horizontal Policy Program of the Agricultural
  Department for standardisation

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• The Biologiki Georgia (Organic Agriculture)
  programme is financed by the Department of
  Agriculture and subsidizes farmers of the region.
  However, the competition between small and big
  farmers is very high (some farmers have a lot of
  labour and stremmas (1/10 Ha) compared to
  others). Thus, small farmers can not enter the
  program.
• Integrated Programmes related to the conditions
  of the area are more abundant and isolated
  (mountainous areas).

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• Community support to the organic producers is
  very
• limited. They receive 37 per stremma for the
  first 5 years
• (1 stremma is 1000m2 or 1 stremma 1/10
  hectare).
• There are some pioneers in the area such as
  "Biolea",
• who organised vertical integration. But provided
  that
• technical-agronomic infrastructure does not
  exist, small
• farmers can not undertake the entire process.
  There is no
• olive oil Mill that can provide the right
  conditions to ensure
• the producer about the production of organic
  olive oil. The
• product may come out with residues and thus will
  not be
• certified. The certification comes from the
  DIO, the
• Biohellas (Soya). Finally, no olive oil Mill
  exists that would
• produce only organic olive oil.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• Most farming establishments are family owned.
• Therefore, to make a profit they have to reduce
• inputs. Most of them dont actually believe that
  
• organic agriculture could be a source of
  additional
• income for them. There isnt any Certification
  and
• Control Body to continuously secure organic
• production as far credibility/reliability is
• concerned.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• Moreover most of the factors discourage the
  farmers to
• convert to organic
• Two problems are usually faced by farmers the
  problem of nitrogen and the problem of limiting
  the production outputs because of the cultivation
  techniques.
• There is neither information regarding the spread
  of organic agriculture, nor leadership.
• There is a distribution problem in the market.
  Everybody is trying to find individual markets to
  be the sole sellers of their products. But as
  long as organic farming remains exclusively among
  2-3 persons, the distribution channels will
  remain limited.
• The production of organic products requires very
  expensive inputs and needs as well as intense
  labor. Concerning the certification, there are
  only some Institutes but they are very expensive
  too.

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Strengths and weaknesses of organic and/or
multifunctional farming in the territory

• Last but not least, organic and multifunctional
• agriculture can only be developed if the vertical
  
• production mode is followed and many different
• products are produced to secure the viability of
• agriculture and local areas as well.

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Integrated evaluation of the pilot area (SWOT
analysis)
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