Ievina Sturite

INNOFORAGE: Advancing adaption and adoption of new forages in Norway: An innovative farmer-led research approach via citizen science

INNOFORAGE: Raskere tilpasning og implementering av nye fôrvekster i Norge: En innovativ forskningsmetode ledet av bønder via folkeforskning

A stable supply of high-quality forage is essential for the economic output and sustainability of milk and meat production, the economically most important agricultural production in Norway. Further successful forage production in Norway depends on species, cultivars, and seed mixtures that can thrive across the diverse range of environments characteristic of the country. The environments vary greatly, both over latitudes from north to south, and altitude from coast to inland or mountainous areas. Climate change, with increasing temperatures and changing precipitation patterns, modifies the current production zone boundaries in unpredictable ways. Due to rapid changes and lack of on-farm performance data, there is a risk of recommending or developing new varieties that may perform sub-optimally in farmersʼ fields. To address this, we propose the Tricot method - a participatory large-scale and costeffective testing approach where farmers evaluate new seed mixtures in their own fields. This approach is based on principles developed in relation to crowd sourcing and citizen science where many farmers participate and carry out small simple experiments on their own fields. Each trial consists of an incomplete block with only three options out of the total options in the trial. The farmers rank the options according to predetermined criteria or questions by using a digital tool, an ODK app for mobiles. This data and other data related to management, climate and soil conditions is collected into the software ClimMob, which also performs the statistical analyses and feedback. When all data are aggregated, the approach can give solid statistical results on which of the tested seed mixtures were optimal in the different local conditions. This method will also strengthen the collaboration between researchers, advisors and farmers and contribute to a more sustainable and resilient agricultural practice.