On Monday, 11 November 2024, the final event of the innovation project ‘Added value mountain farming’ took place at the Nachhaltigkeitsschmiede in Steinbach an der Steyr. The aim of this project, which focussed on cooperation between farmers and scientists, was to find out how an alternative income can be generated for farms in the Kalkalpen National Park region to improve economic security.
Research in collaboration with practitioners
The starting point for the analyses were ecosystem services that are provided by farms on a daily basis and that we as a society consume, sometimes unconsciously, such as alpine pastures, species-rich extensive grassland, air and water quality or knowledge of old craftsmanship techniques. The aim of the project was to identify, evaluate and valorise these services, specifically to develop prototypes for marketable products.
Together with 29 farmers from the 22 municipalities in the National Park region, the Umweltbüro Klagenfurt, Raumberg-Gumpenstein R&D and Bio Austria conducted a field study and farm visits to develop and test indicators for ecosystem services at regional and farm level and analyse them for a wide range of interrelationships.
In order to be able to define the requirements for a marketable product, STUDIA Schlierbach and the Upper Austrian University of Applied Sciences – Campus Steyr carried out further surveys of farm managers, calculations on the provision costs of selected services and clarification of the framework conditions on the markets and in companies.
Focus on Biodiversity
As a result of this process, which has now lasted 2.5 years, initiator Regina Aspalter, Member of the Provincial Parliament, summarises: ‘The clear result is that biodiversity is the basis of all ecosystem services. The higher the degree of difficulty, the higher the biodiversity. For the first time, there are scientifically substantiated results that certify that we have a diverse and valuable range of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the mountain agriculture of the national park region. This puts us a big step ahead of other regions.’
What happens now with these new insights? ‘The Green Deal can be a huge opportunity for mountain farming,’ emphasised speaker Thomas Brettenthaler from FE business parks in his presentation. From 2025, companies will be confronted with new European regulations and markets. Farmers could offer new products with their environmental services that go beyond milk and meat. A Europe-wide certification of ecosystem services would be a possible way to be eligible for measurable sustainability measures. A follow-up project in this direction is already being considered.
With freshly prepared burgers from „Biokeiwi“ and homemade pastries, the evening ended with lively conversations and discussions.
