This document summarizes the OK-Net Arable project, which aims to improve knowledge exchange among farmers, advisers, and scientists in organic arable cropping across Europe. The project includes 17 partners from 13 countries, including farmer innovation groups and dissemination organizations. The farmer groups will identify challenges, test communication materials developed by the project, and ensure materials are useful for real-world farming. The project expects to produce materials on topics like soil fertility, weed management, and crop choices. It will share information through an online knowledge platform, social media, training courses, and partner channels. The platform will collect materials and integrate with social media to disseminate information directly to farmers. OK-Net Arable is a pilot for the

1. OK-Net Arable
Bram Moeskops
Senior Scientific Coordinator
IFOAM EU

2. Objectives
• Improve the exchange of knowledge among farmers, farm
advisers and scientists to increase productivity and quality in
organic arable cropping all over Europe
• Specific objectives
• Develop easily understandable communication material
• Create a European network of farmer innovation groups to test the
communication material
• Create an online platform for knowledge exchange across Europe
unique in organic farming

3. Consortium overview
• 17 partners from 13 European countries
• Good balance between experienced farmer groups and
organisations engaged in advice / dissemination
• Core group of 6 institutions
• 9 farmer innovation groups
• Another 2 organisations engaged in advice / dissemination

4. Role of the farmer innovation groups
• Identify needs and challenges
• Provide solutions
• Decide topics of communication materials
• Test the communication materials
• Ensure that materials work in the “real world” of farming

5. OK-Net Arable: full interaction between farmers and scientists

6. Expected results
• Materials for dissemination of new methods / technologies
• soil fertility
• fertilization strategies
• weed management
• pest and disease control
• Examples
• new crop rotations, intercropping with legumes, habitat design
• biogas slurry, biochar, digestates
• mechanical weed control
• novel botanicals, functional agro-biodiversity, parasites and predators,
predictive information models
• variety choice

7. Communication channels
• Online knowledge platform
• Email, social media (facebook, twitter, slideshare, youtube)
• Online training courses
• Existing communication channels of project partners
(newsletters and homepages)
• Relevant national farmer media
• Events and conferences
• EIP-AGRI website

8. Online knowledge platform
• Collect communication material
• Integrate with social media
• Bringing the platform to the farmers , not attracting them to the platform
• Will continue after end of project

9. OK-Net Arable: pilot project of EIP-AGRI
• One of four first thematic networks
• All should improve flow of knowledge between scientists and
practitioners
• New approach: learning by doing
• Outcomes will feed into the EIP-AGRI website

10. OK-Net Arable: multi-actor approach
• Roots of organic farming lie in multi-actor approach
• OK-Net Arable: multi-actor approach on two levels
• EU level: balanced consortium of farmer groups and scientists
• Local level: co-operation between farmers, farm advisers, scientists
in farmer innovation groups

11. EIP-AGRI: more than Horizon 2020
• OK-Net Arable builds on the work of the Focus Group on
organic arable cropping
• OK-Net Arable will connect with upcoming Operational
Groups (Rural Development Programmes)
• Look broader than Horizon 2020!

12. Thanks
Bram.Moeskops@ifoam-eu.org
www.ok-net-arable.eu (available soon)