On 5.-6. June 2025, Cooperativas Agro-alimentarias de Andalucía (FAECA) hosted the first edition of the Convention of Agri-food Cooperative Technicians of Andalusia. The event brought together more than 350 participants from across the region, creating a valuable platform for knowledge exchange and showcasing ongoing innovation in the cooperative agri-food sector.

As part of the programme, FAECA highlighted their current research, development, and innovation (R&D&I) projects. The CARINA project was featured among these through dedicated posters, offering attendees insight into its goals, activities, and contributions to the promotion of sustainable and diversified agricultural systems.

The event marked an important opportunity to connect with the cooperative community and reinforce the importance of sustainable practices in modern agriculture.

As part of the CARINA Project, URCACYL, in collaboration with Camelina Company (CCE), organised a demonstration day on 12 May 2025 focused on the cultivation of camelina (Camelina sativa), an herbaceous plant species from the Brassicaceae family. The event took place in the municipality of Torquemada in Palencia, Spain.

Camelina trials are currently underway in various plots across the Castilian-Leonese region within the framework of CARINA. These trials are aimed at analysing the crop’s hardiness, adaptability, control methods, and yield performance. Recognised for its drought and frost tolerance, camelina is a low-input, short-cycle crop that produces a high oil yield, positioning it as a promising alternative for sustainable agriculture.

The demonstration day brought together 18 participants, including farmers, technicians from cooperatives such as Cobadu and Agropal, representatives from technology centres such as Itacyl, and members of Camelina Company and URCACYL. Attendees expressed strong interest in learning about camelina crop management, its allelopathic effects, and its current and potential future market value.

Camelina’s multiple applications were highlighted during the event, including oil production for biofuels, the use of its meal or cake for animal feed, and its role in the creation of various bio-products. The day concluded with an open discussion, during which participants shared experiences, challenges, and questions, leading to a productive exchange of knowledge.

To conclude the event, attendees completed an evaluation survey to collect their impressions, observations, and interests. These responses will be carefully assessed and analysed as part of the CARINA Project’s ongoing work.

Camelina continues to attract attention as a versatile and resilient crop with the potential to contribute significantly to the future of sustainable agriculture.

One of the objectives of the CARINA project is to design and implement new site-specific primary production systems at farm scale. The new systems will be thoroughly analysed within the lighthouses to co-create and develop innovative and sustainable technical solutions.

In this line, three ways of production of camelina and carinata have been studied within the framework of the project. Both crops are being tested in double cropping systems as winter or summer intermediate crops, in intercropping systems with a companion crop, or as intermediate crops replacing fallow periods on marginal lands.

A total of 158 field trials of these two oilseed crops were carried out in Bulgaria, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Poland, Serbia, and Tunisia. Additionally, 28 demonstration field days were organized to discuss these trials with local stakeholders such as farmers, seed companies, practitioners, and cooperatives. The initial results show a good potential for the development of camelina and carinata on marginal lands. Likewise, the crops such as summer or winter intermediate crop in a double cropping system seem promising. Nevertheless, the growth cycle of carinata appears to be too long when sown in autumn to allow for the seeding of a following summer food crop. Regarding intercropping, various companion crops have been tested, such as peas and lentils, showing encouraging results.

However, several technical challenges need to be addressed, such as seeding density balance in the intercropping systems, crop protection, and harvest management.

The work will continue within the project, allowing for the improvement of farming practices for each system studied, according to specific soil and climatic conditions.
As part of the Horizon Europe programme, the CARINA Project contributes to this goal by promoting sustainable practices through the use of camelina and carinata—low-input crops selected for their adaptability and bio-based potential. These oilseeds are used to develop biofuels, bioplastics, bio-herbicides, and animal feed, contributing to the bioeconomy and helping farmers transition to more climate-resilient practices.

To present our goals and actions clearly, we’ve created seven Practice Abstracts (PAs), which summarize CARINA’s key activities and the agronomic characteristics of our focus crops. These PAs are structured to help final users—like farmers and advisors—understand the project’s objectives, methodology, and expected results.

Stay tuned as we begin sharing each Practice Abstract in this new campaign!

On May 14, 2025, a CARINA Lighthouse and Stakeholder Meeting, along with a Demo Event, took place in Sebt Jahjouh Rural Municipality near Meknes, Morocco. The event was jointly organized by ICARDA, INRA, and Société Ouest Marocain, drawing the participation of 37 representatives from key Moroccan agricultural institutions, cooperatives, and research organizations.

Dr. Abdelghani Nabloussi (INRA-Maroc) gave a presentation on rapeseed, its importance, and its role in crop rotation. Dr. Sripada Udupa (ICARDA) presented the CARINA project, detailing its objectives, ongoing activities, and results from other sites. He highlighted the relevance of introducing oilseed crops like camelina and carinata in Morocco to diversify cereal-based systems and reduce dependence on imported edible oils and cakes. He emphasized camelina’s adaptability to conservation agriculture and marginal lands, its low water requirement, weed suppression capacity, and multiple uses—from omega-3-rich oil and cosmetics to biodiesel and high-protein animal feed. Carinata oil was also noted for its suitability for biofuels and bio-based products, with its cake being valuable as animal feed.

Dr. Abderrahim Bentaïbi (INRA-Maroc) spoke about the importance of conservation agriculture in cereal, legume, and oilseed crop production.

Mr. Aziz Zine El Abidine, lead farmer and President of Société Ouest Marocain, explained how camelina and carinata were cultivated using no-tillage practices and locally available cereal seeders. Mr. Brahin Aoujil shared his experience with camelina cultivation and harvesting using a locally available combine harvester.

The presentations were followed by Q&A and discussions. Participants then visited camelina, carinata, and rapeseed fields and observed the crops’ performance under drought conditions compared to wheat. Particular interest was shown in camelina’s weed suppression capability, especially against glyphosate-resistant Lolium. The discussion included planting techniques, fertilizer needs, harvester adjustments, and potential market creation for camelina and carinata. In camelina’s no-till plots, Lolium growth was significantly suppressed.

Future actions and market development were discussed, and all participants received flyers and presentation handouts. Many farmers expressed interest in planting camelina in the upcoming season.

On May 14, 2025, a CARINA lighthouse event was held in Blancas, Aragón (Teruel), organised by FACA and the Cereales Teruel cooperative, with support from Spanish Co-ops. Members of the cooperative had the opportunity to visit the CARINA field trial running under Task 1.4, aimed at assessing the adaptation and agronomic performance of Brassica carinata.

The trial was conducted in an arid/semiarid area with an annual rainfall of 300–400 mm. Located on a 2.54-hectare plot, the trial was divided into two sowing dates. Each sowing covered approximately one hectare: the first was sown on September 20, 2024, and the second on February 3, 2025, both at a sowing rate of 4 kg/ha. No base fertiliser was applied, but a cover fertilisation was done on February 5, 2025.

Plot preparation included a mouldboard pass and two cultivator passes in September. Glyphosate was applied before sowing on both dates, and an herbicide was used on the second sowing only.

By the time of the field day, flowering in the first sowing had started on March 25 and lasted nearly a month. While a recent storm had caused most petals to fall, the plants had branched well and produced many filled pods. In contrast, the second sowing showed limited development. Plants were short (no more than 20 cm tall), had only begun forming flower buds, and were unlikely to reach full maturity.

Despite favourable weather this year, with higher and better distributed rainfall than usual, the trial results reinforced that February sowings are too late for this crop in this region. Based on field observations and previous seasons’ experiences, farmers proposed testing a mid-November sowing next season. This reflects their belief that while the first sowing date trial looked good, it may have been slightly too early. All participants agreed that a February sowing is not viable due to insufficient time for proper crop development.

The event served as a valuable opportunity for the twelve attending members of the Cereales Teruel cooperative to observe trial outcomes, share impressions, and discuss practical next steps for refining sowing schedules in future seasons.