Speaking to AgTechNavigator at the sidelines of the recent World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in the UK, he said farmers are the first to see the impacts of climate change. Europe experienced an extraordinary year of extremes with record-breaking heatwaves, wildfires, floods, and drought.
"We need to be able to ensure that farmers are able to react to crises but have a long-term resilience."
Innovations like precision farming and the use of data are key elements of this, he said.
"Many of the innovation practices and possibilities are there but they need to arrive to farmers of Europe." Copa-Cogeca is supporting carbon farming, and the certification of carbon removals.
Watch: Copa-Cogeca on why data is needed to grow Europe’s carbon farming market
Carbon farming in Europe is still a relatively new and emerging market, but it's gaining significant attention and is expected to grow, particularly as the EU develops a comprehensive policy framework for carbon credits in the agriculture sector, centred around the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF).
Data needs to continue improving, suggested Pagani, to allow farmers to produce with less inputs and get renumeration for the removal of carbon.
Trust is an issue for farmers and data, however. Fair conditions for renumeration will create trust, he said, while the EU Data Act provides assurance regarding farmer data.
"Clearly there's a strong opportunity for carbon farming but it needs time," Pagani said. "We need to have a voluntary market which is secure for the farmer and able to renumerate for both reductions and absorption."
Meanwhile, technological innovation like carbon removals can also help attract new blood to the industry, he suggested, and bring down the average age of farmers in Europe.
This ageing farmer population is considered a significant challenge for the sustainability of food production in Europe, with many countries facing a generational renewal challenge in agriculture.
“We clearly need to have a strategy for young farmers to embrace the sector,” he said.
