The first certification of integrated agricultira the islands obtained the SAT Agro Canarias.

THE EXPLOITATION GUARANTEES THE USE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND METHODS AS A PASSAGE TO ECOLOGICAL AGRICULTURE.

With this certification it is accredited that the owner of the exploitation introduces techniques that make compatible the demands of society., environmental protection and agricultural productivity, as well as the operations carried out for the manipulation, packing, transformation and labeling of products covered by the system.

Agro Canarias is an Agrarian Transformation Company established in 1993 and run by Rafael Hernández, current president of COAG Canarias, which consists of some 20 hectares divided into several plots whose production is oriented to the domestic market, mainly potatoes, that are rotated with other vegetables such as broccoli, coles, cauliflowers, carrots, leeks or onions.

The European Union considers that to ensure the future of the primary sector on the Continent, it is necessary to promote the excellence of productions, what involves certifying its quality through one of the following five lines: Denominations of Origin, animal welfare and food traceability, Traditionally Guaranteed Specialties, Organic Agriculture and Integrated Agriculture. There is a commitment that Canarian production is approved in accordance with this last qualification., as a preliminary step to organic farming.

The methods used by a large part of the Archipelago's producers already comply with these environmentally friendly procedures., although they need to be certified, which would open the doors to new European subsidies. The ICCA has chosen to begin the homologation of the UNE standard 155.000. This initiative will make the Canary Islands the second autonomous community to standardize its production systems, after Andalusia and will greatly speed up certification procedures.

In this sense, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fishing and Food already has a line of aid available to interested parties, which allows you to cover all the expenses arising from this procedure. Certified producers may be beneficiaries of the European aid provided for the promotion of their products., in the field of training, etc.

In accordance with the provisions of the Resolution of the director of the ICCA, published in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands on 15 December of 2008, One hundred percent of the expenses derived from this procedure will be subsidized to support farmers who participate in food quality programs.. Interested parties have six months to submit their applications in accordance with this call..

Basically it is about reducing the use of inputs, such as fertilizers, phytosanitary products or fossil fuels, so that they are used only when strictly necessary and always with a technical justification. In short, It is about obtaining primary products through reasoned agriculture, that uses environmentally friendly methods and guarantees food safety, and the profitability of the farms.