Strengthening of the sustainable bread wheat value chain according to the Carta del Mulino’s rules
An agro-ecological vision of agricultural practices aimed at increasing sustainability produces enormous benefits from an environmental, a product quality and a food safety viewpoint. The Carta MB project aims at strengthening the sustainable wheat supply chain of Mulino Bianco from an organizational point of view, validating it from a scientific and methodological point of view and improving supply chain services and agronomic management with particular reference to increasing biodiversity.
The specific Work Packages (WP) of the plan are:
- WP 1, aimed at facilitating the implementation and adoption of the production rules by the value chain operators;
- WP 2, aimed at verifying the effects of the rules on the on-field biodiversity;
- WP 3, aimed at improving the internet portal devoted to the management of the value chain and developing new IT tools to support it;
- WP 4, aimed at measuring the economic and environmental impacts deriving from the adoption of the production rules.
The Carta del Mulino is a set of rules (10) for the production of a flour from sustainable agriculture that favours agro-biodiversity and product quality. These rules are shared by the actors of the Mulino Bianco value chain. In 2018, Mulino Bianco (Barilla) obtained, thanks to this value chain, about 5000 t of flour, necessary to obtain the first product: the “Buongrano” wholegrain biscuit. Starting from 2019, the quantities will be progressively increased up to 300,000 t of flour. Approximately 60,000 t will be
obtained from the 2019 harvest. To date, the supply chain includes: Barilla, 8 mills, 35 elevators and hundreds of farms, but the number will grow further. The farmers who are part of this value chain follow a rotation plan to favour the natural fertility of the soil, saving an area equal to 3% of the bread wheat fields of the Carta for the cultivation of a mixture of herbaceous species, whose presence attracts insects, including bees and other pollinators. Farmers do not use insecticides in the dedicated areas, and use selected and certified seeds. To store the grains, the elevators limit the use of chemicals and use physical methods, such as refrigeration and modified atmosphere. The lots are segregated, the supply chain is completely traced and certified according to the ISCC PLUS scheme for sustainability (https://www.mulinobianco.it/lacartadelmulino/).
To consolidate the supply chain it is necessary to systematize the initiatives already undertaken and make them more stable over time. To do this, the activities of WP1 will be:
- The verification, through meetings, of the alignment of the operators to the objectives of sustainability and biodiversity increase that move the value chain;
- The definition and sharing with the operators of the value chain of the necessary steps to obtain and /or renew the ISCC plus certification of sustainability;
- Pre-audits (documents and inspections) to ensure compliance with the rules of the card;
- The registration of all operators in the portal www.lacartadelmulino.it, a fundamental tool for strengthening interactions and agreements;
- The definition, through a process of co-creation, of improvements to be made to the portal;
- The definition, through meetings with farms, mills and elevators, of any changes to be made to the Carta del Mulino's rules to ensure the effective applicability;
- The design of a mobile application that facilitates the use of the portal;
- Agronomic support to partner and non-partner farms for the cultivation of wheat in compliance with the rules;
- The use of alternative traceability systems that can connect to the portal to guarantee the identity of the lots;
- The improvement of the contractual agreements that regulate the relations between the elevators and the farms;
All the activities indicated above will be carried out in the GO partner companies and in at least 7 other farms, 5 elevators and 2 mills involved in the value chain in Emilia Romagna.
The regulation of the Carta del Mulino aims to promote technical production regulations aimed at restoring the main ecological services provided by agro-biodiversity. In this context, it is therefore important on the one hand to monitor and quantify the effects of regulating in a precise production context and on the other to collect experimental evidence that will allow us to improve and implement the regulation itself from year to year. Therefore, for each production area, WP2 will be divided into 3 phases:
PHASE 1 - Sampling: will be performed on the ground, on the floristic component and on the faunal component;
PHASE 2 - Elaboration of the overall biodiversity index: to be elaborated at the end of each agricultural year;
PHASE 3 - Reduction of chemical inputs: variable rate fertilization systems and Integrated Weed Management System will be applied.
The activities foreseen by WP3 are the following:
- make improvements to the portal www.lacartadelmulino.it reserved for suppliers in the supply chain, thanks to the inputs collected in action 1. The changes will be aimed at simplifying the usability of the portal and inserting new functions. The portal, as mentioned, currently has the purpose of computerized tracking of the supply chain and has different interfaces based on the role. The entire portal will be translated into English and it will be possible to switch from Italian to English.
- creation of a mobile application: the plan aims to adapt the site ww.lacartadelmulino.it so that it can be managed by mobile devices (App. for smartphone or tablet).
WP4 involves the development of a system of analysis and monitoring of the sustainability of the Carta del Mulino value chain, in economic and environmental terms. The aim is to identify synthetic indicators, to understand if the adherence to these practices is able to increase the economic and environmental performances of all the actors involved: farms, elevators and mills.
This scheme will be implemented by defining the model for estimating the trend in costs and economic-environmental benefits; by collecting data and by calculating the indices, by verifying, monitoring and dissemination.
Atti del convegno finale del GO Carta MB
Emilia-Romagna, Filiere agroalimentari, I Gruppi Operativi, PEI-AGRI| Titolo/Descrizione | Url | Tipologia |
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The production rules and concept
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Link ad altri siti che ospitano informazioni del progetto
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The value chain portal
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Link ad altri siti che ospitano informazioni del progetto
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Sito del progetto
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Sito web
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