Farm fodder and protein autonomy (Lozčre, France)

Livestock farming is the dominant agricultural activity in the department of Lozère. The autonomy of the systems is the major stake of the territory, in particular the protein autonomy for the feeding of the herds. However, pedoclimatic conditions (mountain area, acidic and shallow soils ...) limit the choice of legume species. They are mainly present in mixtures with grasses in the grasslands or for meslin or harvested grain. Alfalfa, faba bean, peas, vetches, sainfoin and clover are the dominant legumes of Lozeric cropping systems.

The Chamber of Agriculture of Lozère leads some farmers groups on the theme of forage autonomy. These groups work on forage meadow and on cereal/legumes associations (types, ITK - adapted technical itineraries), but also on alfalfa (rates of return, diseases ...). There is no organized value chain, since the objective is the farmer's forage autonomy.

The crop management is preconized without pesticides, so it is a sustainable objective. These activities provide data on forage autonomy under Mediterranean conditions.