On 13 and 14 September the Conference, organised by the Austrian Presidency of the Alpine Convention and the Permanent Secretariat, took place in Sankt Johann im Pongau (AT). More than 300 relevant stakeholders took part, ranging from mountain farmers, to associations and Chambers of agriculture, to representatives of local, regional and national governments. Austria was represented by the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management Mr Andrä Rupprechter; his German counterpart was Mr Christian Schmidt, Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture, whereas, for the Alpine Convention, Secretary General Markus Reiterer brought his inputs to the Conference.
The aim of the Conference was to have an in-depth overview of and an open discussion on the challenges mountain agriculture is facing today, as well as to approve the “Memorandum of the Alpine regions on the development of Mountain Farming in the Context of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)” aimed at shaping the next CAP for the period 2020-2027. The Conference was also the opportunity to present the publication “Mountain Agriculture” which sums up the years of works, the achievements and the results of the Mountain Agriculture Platform of the Alpine Convention. You can find the publication in all Alpine languages and in English here.