S15 - Session P4 - Technical and economic references for multi-performing diversified market garden micro-farms in Organic Agriculture

Authors: Mathieu Conseil, Natacha Sautereau, Simon Rivière *, A. De Lapparent, Dominique Berry, Juliette Pellat, Julien Leroy, Alexia Arnaud-Dupont, Christian Icard, Cedric Hervouet, Nicolas Herbeth

The number of diversified market garden micro-farms is constantly increasing, despite the lack of references that would allow to support installation trajectories and facilitate training and support of these innovative market gar deners . MMBio project aims to acquire, consolidate and disseminate technical and economic references for these organic farming systems. It relies on in-depth surveys of 38 farms to assess their practices in experimental stations in order to analyze performance s , viability and sustainability of these farms . Eventually, tools will be proposed to train and support project holders , to follow their installation trajectories and facilitate viable and sustainable installations. MMBio is based on a co-construct ed methodology for acquiring technical and economic references for complex agro systems such as micro-farms, shared between actors from various development networks. This methodology could be make permanent to allow for long-term monitoring of the performance and viability of these farms, and even more broadly of organic market gardening farms . The surveys and data collected (on farm and in experimental stations) will facilitate the production of information, training and project support materials, including technical and economic data sheets, a guide to help design market gardening micro-farms, educational scenarios and videos intended for a wide audience (learners, project leaders, technicians, market gardener s) . The results will also be promoted on a website dedicated to the animation of the project and the hosting of all its deliverables, as well as through social networks, which are widely used by the target audiences. At the end of the project, the network should develop with new farms, the relations between partners should continue and the survey methodology will be used by the partners to follow up acquiring necessary references on organic market garden farms.