LUCKY BIRDS
Riet Vell: Organic Farming and Nature - Spain

Bird-friendly farming in Spain takes off – benefiting is the Great Bustard.

Riet Vell was set up in 2001 by SEO BirdLife, the oldest conservation charity in Spain. It aims to demonstrate the feasibility (and profitability) of bird-friendly farming in areas of ecological importance, where farmland often forms an important part of the habitat of endangered species. The project began by producing organic rice in the Ebro Delta in Catalonia – Spain’s second most important birdlife region. Rice paddies are essentially man-made wetlands, and if farmed organically, they can provide an ideal feeding and reproduction habitat for rare aquatic birds, among several other species. Birds to have benefited from Riet Vell’s organic rice include the Purple Gallinule, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron and Whisked Tern. In recognition of its conservation value, the brand has won two prestigious awards from organic food associations in the UK. Following the success of its rice brand, the company has begun producing organic pasta from wheat grown in the Ebro Valley in Aragon – another important Iberian wildlife area. Small-scale farmers are being encouraged to uphold traditional agricultural practices which protect the fragile steppe environment of the Valley. Beneficiaries include a number of rare bird species – among them the Great Bustard, the Stone Curlew and the Black-Bellied Sandgrouse – and the participating farmers themselves, who receive more for their wheat from Riet Vell than they would on the market.