Sustainable Silage: Sustainable nutrient management in silage production – sustainable silage

Project “Sustainable nutrient management in silage production – sustainable silage”.

Farm nutrient runoff is one of the sources of nutrients that ultimately end up in the Baltic Sea from surface waters. As livestock farming has become more efficient and intensive, so has silage production. As modern silage production technologies have not been sufficiently studied from the perspective of nutrient leakage, it is necessary to assess and prevent environmental risks. In doing so, the entire chain from silage production to its storage and use, as well as the management of used silage plastic waste, needs to be considered. Farmers need more information and professional knowledge about various innovative agri-environmental solutions for silage production that are most relevant in the project area. Therefore, pilot and capacity-building measures targeting the livestock sector are needed in Estonia, Latvia and Finland. Environmental risks from silage production need to be addressed through cross-border cooperation, as efforts by individual countries alone are not enough.

The project “Sustainable Silage” aims to reduce silage wastewater in the full silage production cycle at farm level. The planned silage management analysis covers environmental, economic and quality aspects. 20-25 farms from the pilot areas will test different agricultural methods and solutions in silage production, and the impact on nutrient leakage will be assessed and analysed. Farmers will receive sound information, practical guidelines and recommendations on the effectiveness of different types of technologies and agricultural practices that have a real positive impact on the environment. It is the first joint initiative of agricultural producers, farmer organisations and research institutions in the Central Baltic region focusing on environmental issues in silage production.

Project is part-financed by INTERREG Central-Baltic Programme 2021-2027.

Project partners: Estonian Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce, Estonian Rural Research and Knowledge Centre, Estonian University of Life Sciences (Estonia), NGO Latvian Farmers' Parliament, Latvian University of Life Sciences and Technology (Latvia), ProAgria Western Finland and Natural Resources Institute Finland-LUKE (Finland).

Project period: 01.01.2023-31.12.2025.

Total project budget: EUR 2,093,939.88, including ERDF co-financing of EUR 1,675,151.90.

Contract No.CB0100103

Contact information: Raimonds Jakovickis, email: raimonds@zemniekusaeima.lv, mobile: 25433033