As part of Action C5 “Setting up a EU low carbon farming network,” the second national networking event of the LIFE CARBON FARMING project, entitled “Carbon Farming: a possible opportunity for dairy farms,” was held on October 25, 2025, in Lombardy, at the Italian Agricultural and Livestock Fair in Montichiari (BS). The aim of the event was to illustrate the significant contribution made by dairy farming to the fight against climate change and to describe the prototype of a financing system capable of incentivizing the application of good practices aimed at reducing emissions and increasing carbon sequestration. The event was attended by farmers, technicians, representatives of trade associations in the sector, administrators, researchers, and other stakeholders from all over Italy.
The meeting was moderated by Dr. Giacomo Pirlo, previously CREA’s research director. To begin, Dr. Luciano Migliorati from CREA (Center for Research in Animal Production and Aquaculture) in Lodi presented the LIFE CARBON FARMING project, illustrating its objectives, actions, and expected results. Next, Dr. Saverio Maluccio from CREA (Research Center for Agricultural Policies and Bioeconomy) in Rome presented the voluntary carbon credit mechanism in the Italian forestry market and how the national carbon credit registry works, briefly illustrating the relevant regulatory framework and the methodologies applied to carbon farming. Then, Dr. Lucia Zingale from CREA (Research Center for Animal Production and Aquaculture) in Lodi presented the results of the environmental impact of 28 dairy farms located in the Parmigiano Reggiano consortium area, before the introduction of mitigation strategies, she illustrated the mechanism for buying and selling carbon credits and showed the results of a case study of a farm with the introduction of mitigation techniques.
The events continued with a presentation by Andrea Scarabello of UNICARVE, who presented the role of beef cattle associations in promoting environmental sustainability in the supply chain, showing some examples of mitigation strategies adopted by farmers. Furthermore, Dr. Luca Cotti, member of the Management Board of the Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese Consortium, illustrated the Consortium’s commitment to the sustainability of dairy cattle farms. Finally, Dr. Andrea Bassini, technical director of the A.I.A. (Italian Breeders’ Association), explained the fundamental role of cattle farmers as preserving the land and guardians of the environment. The meeting ended with contributions from the audience, which kicked off an interesting discussion in the conference room, particularly on the procedure for determining the base value established by the European Commission, which will be used to define the amount of carbon credits produced by companies.
Demonstration day for farms in Italy, part of the LIFE CARBON FARMING project – October 2025
On 27 October 2025, a farm demonstration day was held in Emilia-Romagna as part of action C5 of the project. The visit took place at the Ancellotti Sergio e Roberto farm in Varano de’ Melegari, in the province of Parma. The farm specializes in breeding Italian Holstein cattle for milk production for processing into Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. This farm has adopted various strategies to improve animal welfare, such as increasing the space per young animal, improving ventilation in shelters, providing shade for animals and access to pasture for dry animals, as well as genetic improvement and covering waste storage tanks, which have a positive impact on the environmental sustainability of the farm. The open day provided an opportunity to encourage discussion among participants and promote the exchange of knowledge and experience on the adoption of mitigation practices and their impact on greenhouse gas emissions.
This project is co-funded by the LIFE Programs of the European Commission
