The Government of the Generalitat has approved the Decree for the creation of the Agrarian School of New Technologies and Horticulture in Cabrils (Maresme), which is attached to the Department of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda, and the modification of Decree 255/1997, of September 30, which regulates the regime of economic autonomy of the schools and centers of agricultural and nautical-fishing training and of the natural spaces of special protection managed by the aforementioned Department.
The new Escola Agraria aims to be a model of open innovation with a strong interdependence of collaboration between the private sector, horticulture professionals and entities and organizations representing the agri-food sector, to collect all the demands for training needs and also their trends. .
The creation of the new School arises from the need to offer continuous training in the agri-food sector in the field of new technologies and horticulture. Regarding the vegetable garden, this need has been claimed for years by the sector itself and representative organizations to cover some important areas in the horticultural production of Catalonia, such as the regions of Maresme, Baix Llobregat, Vallès Occidental and Oriental, and the metropolitan area, among others.
In relation to the more technological aspect, it is considered necessary to implement new technologies in the agri-food sector as solutions to strengthen the sector, make it more competitive, more efficient, more sustainable and more technical. In recent years, the adoption of new technologies by citizens has been gaining ground and has been accentuated by the pandemic, while information technology has been democratizing, that is, practically the entire population has access and connectivity to technological gadgets and devices.
For all these reasons, the main objectives of the Agrarian School of New Technologies and Horticulture are, among others, to improve people's professional skills (increase and attract talent), with a clear specialization in horticulture in the Maresme, Baix Llobregat, Vallès Occidental and Oriental, and the metropolitan area, as well as promoting digitization, the implementation of new technologies and technology transfer projects in the agri-food sector.
