Canary Islands

The archipelago's agricultural sector thrives on fertile soils that facilitate deep-rooted crops such as bananas, grapes, tomatoes, oranges, potatoes, and avocados. However, production techniques are challenged by a scarcity of water resources and a rugged terrain that hampers their expansion, allowing farms to be established in a small proportion of the total territory. The livestock sector, on the other hand, is primarily characterized by well-adapted goat farms, followed by pig and sheep farms.

Thus, agriculture and livestock farming play a leading role in the socio-economic framework from the point of view of territorial structuring, landscape preservation and environmental protection ( Canarian Confederation of Businessmen (2022). Annual Report on the Canary Islands Economy, 185 ), but with little weight in the Archipelago's GDP (1.5%) and faces economic and productive tensions associated with high production and marketing costs, BREXIT and foreign competition.

According to data collected in the Canary Islands Industrial Development Strategy 2022-2027 of the Technological and Competitive Surveillance Platform (VTCAN) of the Canary Islands Technological Institute ( ITC ), the agri-food sector is represented by 230 companies at the end of 2020. This group of companies is progressively adjusting to the improvement in competitiveness, sustainability, traceability and food safety provided for in the Agri-Food PERTE and the Canary Islands Food Sovereignty Strategy .

The regional AKIS is represented by a group of public and private agents grouped together and interacting with each other:

The image shows the groups of public and private agents in a regional AKIS:

Agents that generate knowledge.
Public sector agents.
Agents dedicated to training.
Agents of the agri-food sector.
Other AKIS agents.

AKIS agents and interactions

Agents dedicated to the generation of knowledge

University of La Laguna .
University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria .
Canary Islands Institute of Agricultural Research ( ICIA ) : the Institute's objectives are to plan, execute and monitor research activities, transfer of agricultural technologies and agricultural technological development.
Institute of Natural Products and Agrobiology ( IPNA ) : an institute belonging to the CSIC focused on research into the use, conservation and management of natural products and resources and the analysis of chemical, biological or geological parameters of the environment, the study of organisms themselves and their ecosystems.

Public sector agents

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty is a public institution that administers the responsibilities of agriculture, livestock, agri-food, rural development and fisheries in the Autonomous Community.
Agricultural Extension Agencies .
Territorial and Environmental Management and Planning, SA ( GESPLAN ).

Agents dedicated to training

Agricultural and vocational training schools. A list of institutes and centers can be found here.

Agents of the agri-food sector

Canary Islands Institute of Agri-Food Quality ( ICCA ): The Institute is responsible for both standard and differentiated agri-food quality.
PROEXCA : Public company focused on positioning products manufactured on the islands in both national and international markets.
Union of Agricultural Cooperatives of the Canary Islands : is the organization that brings together and defends the economic and social interests of the Asturian agri-food cooperative movement represented by 10 Cooperatives .
Association of Banana Producers' Organizations of the Canary Islands ( ASPROCAN ).
CULTESA : A public joint venture focused on improving income in the agricultural sector and providing solutions to the various production and commercial strategies of Canary Island farmers.
Canary Islands Confederation of Businessmen .
Tenerife Beekeepers Association , APITEN
Gran Canaria Beekeepers Association , APIGRANCA
National Association of Breeders of Select Palmera Breed Cattle, AVAPAL
Professional Colleges of Agricultural Engineers , Agricultural Technicians Tenerife , Las Palmas and Veterinarians Las Palmas , Tenerife .
Professional Agricultural Organizations (OPAs): COAG-Canarias, ASAGA/ASAJA , UPA-Canarias , and PALCA

Other agents

Technology Surveillance and Competitive Intelligence Platform ( VTCAN ).
Rural Development/Local Action Groups . The LAGs as collaborating entities for Local Development Strategies can be consulted here .
Operational Groups .
Canary Islands Wine Tourism Cluster .

Instruments and tools for the dynamization of the AKIS

REGIONAL SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION STRATEGIES

The Smart Specialization Strategy (RIS3) 2021-2027 of the Canary Islands is part of the agenda Canary Islands Progress 2030 of the Government of the Canary Islands. This roadmap, which provides the tools and resources to lay the foundations for research and innovation that meet the needs of Canarian society, promotes, in addition to the Canary Islands' S4 2021-2027, four fundamental pillars for developing the knowledge economy in the Islands:

The Canary Islands R&D&i Plan 2023-2030.
The New Canary Islands Law on Science, Technology and Innovation.
The Pact for Science 2030.
The Canary Islands Digital Agenda 2025.

CAP 2023-2027

Within the scope of the common agricultural policy, the Canary Islands allocates the following budget and actions to two of the interventions most directly linked to AKIS:

7161 (Cooperation of EIP operational groups): €500,000.
7201 (Knowledge exchange and information dissemination): €50,000.

More information on PEPAC's 2023-2027 EAFRD interventions can be found here .

TOOLS FOR DYNAMIZATION

Although the diagnosis of the Canary Islands Food Sovereignty Strategy points out that “the primary sector occupies a position of weakness in the agri-food system with the predominance of vertical and asymmetric commercial relations between the different operators (and) there has been a transfer of income and participation in decision-making that has successively passed from the primary sector to the agri-food industry and currently to distribution, placing the primary sector as a mere supplier of agricultural inputs” ( Canary Islands Food Sovereignty Strategy: 8 ), there is a set of public and private agents that interact collaboratively and that understand the challenges inherent to international competition, food sovereignty and competitiveness, the application of technological innovations and the transfer of knowledge, protection for the outermost regions (ORs) and the European Green Deal ( Canary Islands Confederation of Entrepreneurs (2022): 168 ).

In this sense, research and innovation from public institutes and universities, public procurement agencies, private organizations, and the seven Local Action Groups all contribute their tools and instruments for institutional engagement to develop cross-cutting initiatives and projects, workshops, activities, and publications on agricultural and agri-food issues, with a focus on the challenges of 21st-century agriculture and rural development in the Canary Islands.