Results
Achievements
Mission
Activities
Numbers
History
Performance
FEM Campus 03
05
06
07
10
13
15
16
10
13 01
02
04
08
14
09
01 Student Accommodation 11
12
14
02 Winery and Distillery - 12th century Wine Cellar 03 Chemical and Enological Laboratories
04 Management and Administrative OďŹƒces - Historic Augustini 15
05 Food Quality and Nutrition Laboratories 06 Main Lecture Hall 07 Education and Training Centre 08 Operational Service Centre
01 Student Accommodation
09 Research and Innovation Centre
02 Winery and Distillery - 12 century Wine Cellar
10 Technology Transfer Centre
03 Chemical and Enological Laboratories
11 Experimental Winery
04 Management and Administrative OďŹƒces - Historic Augustinian Monastery
12 Experimental Fish Breeding Facility
05 Food Quality and Nutrition Laboratories
13 Research and Knowledge Building - C3A
th
15
06 Main Lecture Hall 09 11 12 07 Education and Training Centre 08 Operational Service Centre 09 Research and Innovation Centre 10 Technology Transfer Centre
14 Enology Training Facility 15 Phytopathology and Entomology Laboratorie 16 Farm
Activities and Mission The Fondazione Edmund Mach operates in the key sectors of agriculture, environment and food through research, training and technology transfer activities. A Foundation of the Autonomous Province of Trento, governed by a Board of Directors representing the professional organisations and agricultural cooperatives of Trentino, it pursues the aims and activities of the Istituto Agrario di San Michele all’Adige, an agricultural institute founded on January 12 1874 and based on the German model of coexistence between research and training, making it the only organisation of its kind in Italy. Headed by a Chairmanship and General Management with and staff units, it consists of an Education and Training Centre, a Research and Innovation Centre, a Technology Transfer Centre and a farm of 120 hectares of cultivated land. The Agriculture Food Environment Centre - C3A, an academic structure managed jointly with the University of Trento for the implementation of university education and PhD programmes, was founded in 2017. The institution is located in the municipality of San Michele all’Adige, Trento, extending over a campus comprising some 14 hectares of classrooms, greenhouses, laboratories and offices plus 70 hectares of cultivated land and green areas.
The Numbers of FEM
14 Hectares of the San Michele Campus
110
70
Teachers and educators*
Technicians
200 Researchers and experimental technologists
120 Hectares of farmland
50
1,225
7,100
PhD students
Students per year*
Adults and farmers trained per year
*Figure including Education and Training Centre and C3A
FEM’s Achievements
Italy’s first One-Health Research Centre focusing on agriculture, the environment and food in order to improve health, quality of life and the local economy International benchmark in traditional breeding and new breeding technologies applied to vines, apple trees and soft fruit plants Top position for research in recent ANVUR ratings in the fields of Chemistry, Agriculture & Veterinary Science, and Biology Portfolio of patents, plant variety rights and know-how 6 plant varieties (4 vines and 2 apple trees), 3 in genomics, 5 in integrated pest management, 3 pharmaceutical, 1 in mechanical engineering, 1 in agricultural mechanisation, 1 in animal biology, 3 microbial strains and 1 spin-off Cutting-edge centre for genome sequencing of species of agricultural interest (grapevine, apple, strawberry, raspberry, olive and peach) as well as insect pests (Drosophila suzukii) and crop pathogens (Plasmopara viticola)
Top position for training in recent Eduscopio ratings of the Fondazione Agnelli, which evaluates high schools in Italy FEM students in top positions in recent editions of: European Wine Championship, National Competition of Agricultural Technical Institutes and Chemistry Games Member of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and member of the European cluster Climate KIC Member of the international scientific consortium ZikAlliance Promoter and member of network initiatives in research, training and development, including: the Agriculture Food Environment Centre - C3A in conjunction with the University of Trento; Hub Innovazione Trentino (HIT), the Epilab joint unit with the Bruno Kessler Foundation; the Food & Health Euregio competence centre; the Fruit Innovation Consortium (CIF) joint venture, the Vine Innovation Consortium (CIVIT) and the Trentino Fish Farming Consortium (CTP)
Education and Training Centre
1,000 students and 1,100 adults in training per year 2,828 graduated agronomists from 1958 to date, including 800 oenologists
600 companies involved in internships and traineeships
2,500 students
twinned with German schools from 1959 to date and 114 postgraduate internships in Burgundy
The Centre has contributed to and continues to promote the dissemination of agrarian and viticultural-oenological knowhow in Italy, training prominent professional figures to international standards. It offers study programmes at various levels and provides education, training and expertise in the agricultural, agrifood, environmental and forestry sectors as well as a strong link with the local area and the technical and professional world. The different training levels offered are high school education, postgraduate specialisation training and adult education. The Centre develops programmes that meet the needs for agricultural innovation and sustainability, healthy food products and environmental protection. It benefits from synergy and continuous interaction with other centres and is equipped with modern facilities and educational equipment as well as comfortable student accommodation. It has long-standing partnerships with international schools and institutes (in Germany, Austria, France and the United Kingdom). The Centre also manages the Trentino Academy for Environment, Forests and Fauna and the FEM Library.
Research and Innovation Centre
Italy’s first One-Health Research Centre boasts significant experience in the field of interdisciplinary scientific research and offers solid scientific and technical skills to support the definition of models of excellence in the agri-food and forestry sectors. Particular attention is placed on the enhancement of agri-food products and sustainable production, with development of low environmental impact practices and interventions for preservation of the landscape and of Alpine ecosystems. Cutting-edge research, high-level laboratories and important partnerships form the basis for integrated programmes which, using the most advanced technologies, make it possible to provide innovative solutions and competitive products that benefit the production and consumption system. The Centre operates at an international level. The presence of Italian and international PhD students and scholarship holders also contributes to this, with a high level of incoming and outgoing mobility testifying to the dynamic nature of this organisation’s international relations.
In the last two years:
400 scientific articles 33 international projects
FEM research around the world
42 national and provincial projects 222 contracts
and partnerships
Collaborations 1-2
7 - 10
20 - 24
2-4
10 - 16
24 - 33
4-7
16 - 20
33 - 73
Technology Transfer Centre
8,000 farms supported and 12,000 subscribers to the web services 900 customer
companies for services
The Centre’s activities are aimed at supporting and developing Trentino’s agro-forestry system and has various peripheral offices throughout the area. It operates through its three branches: applied research and experimentation (aimed at development and validation of techniques and tools for sustainable agricultural production), extension services (intended as an effective and direct action to support farmers and agricultural companies, with a focus on aspects linked to production and business qualification, provided by more than 70 experts who work daily in the area), and services (i.e., the provision of analytical or information services in the fields of chemistry, agricultural and oenological microbiology, phytopathological diagnostics, agro-meteorology, hydrobiology and biomass, as well as a test centre for the evaluation of plant protection products for registration purposes). The Centre carries out training activities for farmers and operates a service management platform which also permits large-scale dissemination of technical information among members.
Customer companies in Italy Other regions
30,000 samples analysed per year
BZ
6,000 farmers trained per year TN
Local offices Extension services offices Experimental farms Experimental sites
Presence in the area
Farm
The farm not only produces and transforms its produce, but also supports the experimental, educational and training activities conducted by the Foundation’s other Centres. It is composed of both croplands and the winery (connected to the distillery). The agricultural land covers about 120 hectares, distributed over a dozen locations in Trentino’s most important agricultural areas. The winery and distillery, housed in the former Augustinian monastery, generate a large range of products obtained exclusively through the cultivation, harvesting and processing of the farm’s own grapes, with the goal of creating top-quality wines and spirits representative of the entire viticultural and oenological context of Trentino.
A total of 120 hectares, 60 of which are cultivated with vines and 40 with apple trees
32 wine labels 18 types of grappa and spirits
280,000 bottles of wine
15,000 of sparkling
wine
5,000 of grappa and spirits
Maiano Denno
Piovi
Maso Parti
Farm locations
Giaroni Gardolo Vigalzano
Maso Togn San Michele Telve Spagolle
Navicello
Agriculture Food Environment Centre (C3A)
225 students enrolled on the degree course
The Centre has been operational since 2017 thanks to an agreement between the Fondazione Edmund Mach and the University of Trento. It aims to jointly promote high-level research and training in the fields of high-value agriculture, focusing on the production of quality foods, sustainable use of resources, and protection of the environment. The C3A manages the three-year Viticulture and Oenology study programme established in 1996 as a B.Sc. course promoted by a partnership between FEM, the University of Udine and the University of Trento and in collaboration with the Hochschule in Geisenheim, Germany, to train professional figures in oenology. The C3A is currently setting up a PhD course, in agreement with FEM, in Agri-food and Environmental Sciences and a master’s degree in Agri-food Innovation Management, two initiatives of international standing aimed at bringing innovation and competitiveness to the agri-food sectors relevant to Trentino.
FEM’s History in Stages 1874
On 12 January 1874, the Tyrolean Government of Innsbruck set up an Agricultural School in San Michele all’Adige with an adjoining Experimental Station for the revival of agriculture in the Tyrol region. Edmund Mach, a brilliant researcher at the experimental station in Klosterneuburg, Vienna, was appointed as its director and ran the Institute for 25 years. He is credited with the realisation that research and teaching are inseparably linked.
1919
The Institute came under the responsibility of the Province of Trento.
1926
The Consortium with the Italian State was activated for the management of the institution, and the Institute was divided into an Agricultural School and an Experimental Station.
1958
Activation of the Agricultural Technical Institute (and, in 1960, of the special Viticulture and Oenology programme) and the Laboratory which, in 1963, became the “analysis and research” Laboratory.
1990
Provincial Law no. 28 of 1990 and its subsequent modifications and integrations redefined the organisations operating in San Michele all’Adige, re-establishing the former Agricultural Institute, focusing on the essential areas of teaching, research and technical assistance.
1996
Agreement with the Fachhochschule in Wiesbaden, Germany, and launch of the three-year Diplom Ingenieur Weinbau und Önologie B.Sc. course.
2002
The Institute took over the ESAT, and the Centre for Technical Assistance was established, which works in conjunction with the School Centre and the Experimental Centre.
2008
In compliance with Provincial Law no. 14 of 2 August 2005, on 1 January the Institute became a private foundation with public capital - the Fondazione Edmund Mach – also incorporating the Centre of Alpine Ecology (established by Provincial Law no. 17 of 31 August 1992). The institution is composed of an Education and Training Centre, a Research and Innovation Centre and a Technology Transfer Centre.
2010
Through an agreement between FEM and the Autonomous Province of Trento, the Environment, Forests and Fauna Academy was established, managed by the Education and Training Centre.
2015
First agreement between FEM and the University of Trento for establishment of the Agriculture Food Environment Centre (C3A), which became operative in 2017.
2019
145th anniversary of the Foundation.
FONDAZIONE EDMUND MACH Follow us on
Via Edmund Mach, 1 38010 San Michele all’Adige TN Tel. +39 0461 615111 - Fax +39 0461 650218 www.fmach.it
Editorial coordination and production by the Press and External Relations Office Supplement to Terra di Mach no .4 / March 2019 - Managing Editor Sergio Menapace - Editor-in-Chief Silvia Ceschini Photographs: FEM - G. Cavulli, M. Brega, P. Cavagna and G. Zotta