Brussels, 14 April 2021 – Investment in technology and innovation emerges as the clear win-win solution to lead the transition towards a more sustainable farming in Europe according to the conclusions of today’s CEMA Summit ‘Seeding the Future of Sustainable Farming - Advanced Farm Machines & Solutions to deliver on the European Green Deal’.

Digital farming tools, modern farm machines, farm data management systems and agricultural robotic solutions will be the drivers allowing European agriculture to take on the double challenge of producing sufficient quality food whilst protecting nature and safeguarding biodiversity.

However, unleashing innovation and heading to a digital transformation of the agri-food sector requires increased efforts at the EU level. A strong CAP, reachable sustainable objectives and a major technology deployment were singled out as pre-conditions to endorse this transition.

“With the very ambitious Green Deal targets in a not so far horizon, supporting farmers to adopt precision and digital farming technologies stands out as a key priority for the overall agricultural sector and society as a whole. EU policies must consider  the current agri-food sector’s realities in order to devise adequate measures and tailored-made support initiatives to advance more sustainable practices”, pointed out Thierry Krier CEMA President.

Key discussions about the final negotiations of the Common Agricultural Policy, the importance to ensure an aligned vision among the 27 National Strategic Plans and the need to make sure eco-schemes consider farm technologies as a driver to deliver sustainable practices took place. “A CAP supporting sustained investments in technology and advanced agricultural machinery will ensure the future of a smarter, greener and more competitive agriculture in Europe” concluded the CEMA President.

30 high-level speakers, 5 interactive live sessions, an online exhibition displaying the latest trends in the agricultural machinery world and selected EU research projects filled the agenda of a very insightful day. In its first virtual edition, the CEMA Summit gathered over 500 participants.