Adnkronos Rome, 3 Apr. (Adnkronos) – The Davines Group, a company active in the professional cosmetics sector, B Corp since 2016, renews its commitment to incentivizing agroecological practices and launches, in collaboration with the Foundation for Sustainable Development, the second edition of 'The Good Farmer Award'. The initiative is the first in Italy to reward farmers who have started projects inspired by the fundamental principles of regenerative organic agriculture and agroecology.
This year too, the Award is dedicated to young farmers under 35 who will be able to submit their project from 3 April to 16 June 2025 on the website. The aim is to contribute to the diffusion of a new agricultural production culture, which supports the ecological transition of agri-food supply chains. The Award Jury will select the two most innovative and advanced projects and the two winners will receive 10.000 euros each from the Davines Group for the purchase of material and for interventions aimed at improving and developing the agro-ecological practices already underway. The award ceremony will be held between the end of November and the beginning of December 2025 at the Davines Group Village in Parma. The necessary requirements to access the call are to have a valid organic certification and to apply the principles of regenerative organic agriculture and agroecology.
In particular, the young farmers involved and their farms will have to demonstrate that they use at least three of the regenerative organic farming and agroecology strategies and practices identified in the call, including crop rotation, minimal soil disturbance, the use of organic fertilizers, the cultivation of trees associated with arable fields or pastures, the use of cover crops such as legumes and soil mulching (i.e. covering the soil with organic material such as straw or leaves).
For its second edition, the Award is enriched with an important new feature: agricultural-livestock companies that are attentive to animal welfare, that use extensive breeding systems and that adopt livestock practices aimed at improving agroecosystems, for example through the use of manure for fertilization and the recycling of plant nutrients as feed, will also be able to submit their projects. The choice to also involve agricultural-livestock companies is consistent with the purposes of the Award, aimed at supporting and incentivizing the creation of synergistic agricultural systems, which imitate natural processes and take advantage of the beneficial interactions that occur naturally in the field.
The Award Jury The Commission that will evaluate and select the projects is composed of eight members, including university professors and experts in agriculture, agroecology and sustainability, integrated this year with two experts in zootechnics.
This year, 'The Good Farmer Award' also has an American edition: the Davines Group branch in North America, together with the Rodale Institute, has recently closed the nominations for farmers and ranchers who have been operating in the United States for less than ten years and who use regenerative organic farming practices. On April 22, 2025, on the occasion of World Earth Day, the winner of 'The Good Farmer Award' US will be announced, who will receive a prize of 10.000 dollars from Davines North America to invest in equipment or initiatives that improve the agro-ecological practices of his agricultural business. The awarded farmer will also have the opportunity to visit the European Regenerative Organic Center (Eroc) that the Davines Group has created in Parma together with the Rodale Institute. The second and third place winners of the American edition of the Award will win a training course from the Rodale Institute Education Resources on the best practices of regenerative organic farming.