CHARACTERIZATION OF AGROBIODIVERSITY PRODUCTS FOR THE ENHANCEMENT OF MARGINAL AND MOUNTAIN ENVIRONMENTS

Marginal and mountain territories are important for the conservation of environment and biodiversity (and agrobiodiversity). “Marginal” and “rural” adjectives are frequently used together to describe specific territories. Marginal/rural areas host great part of tangible and intangible heritage for humanity that is always at risk of being lost and then “fragile”. On the other hand, the natural, unique resources of marginal territories, which are often unknown and underutilized, could be central for their recovery: value chains, in the agriculture, agroforestry and tourism sectors, are often the backbones of marginal areas economies and deliver essential ecosystem services to society. The pristine habitats are spaces to enhance the production of high-quality food, agricultural products and non-timber goods (as spices or medicinal plants). Very often agrifood products turn into a gastronomic portrayal of landscapes, as in the case of honey, that is also a useful tool to monitor (further than a unique agrifood product) the conditions of special habitats in marginal territories. The environments defined as “marginal”, “mountain”, “rural” and “fragile” deserve the attention of Environmental Sciences. These territories could offer for sure many fields of scientific investigations for the correct management of their resources and the conservation of the environment and its (agro)biodiversity. This thesis is the result of the research activities realized at the Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences - Production, Landscape, Agroenergy (DISAA), at the Centre of Applied Studies for the Sustainable Management and Protection of Mountain Areas (CRC Ge.S.Di.Mont.) and at the Swiss Federal Research Center for Agri-food and Environment (Agroscope), in the framework of the PhD in Environmental Sciences (PhD ES), XXXVII cicle, Department of Environmental Science and Policy. The thesis, presented as collection of publications, relates to the main research lines followed during the doctoral thesis: i) “Honeybee products as representation of marginal territories, their peculiarities and changes” ii) “Agricultural agrobiodiversity and minor crops for the renaissance of marginal and mountain territories: landraces, saffron and minor cereals” Considering the first point, honey is strongly linked to the area where it is produced, especially for its relation to the vegetation. Beekeeping can be a secondary activity to help economically vulnerable communities, such as the ones of marginal and mountain territories, through honey production, as well as with other economic benefits such as pollination services. Additionally, honeybees are not only agents of biodiversity maintenance, but also sentinels of the conditions of agroecosystems and possible ongoing alterations. These concepts are at the base of the research works presented in chapter 3. Many plants, also rare or endemic, rely on cross pollination for their reproduction, and they could become special foraging resources for honeybees and other pollinators in certain environments. This is the case of the endemic plant Sanguisorba dodecandra Moretti, which resulted also a resource for other agricultural activities (as pastoralism), contributing to build unique agroecosystems (chapter 3.1 and 3.2). Beekeeping products are identified with special protection labels for their representativity of special territories, as the honey produced in the high lands (chapter 3.3) or dune habitats (chapter 3.4) and, other than being very specific and unique, these products often portray features and variations of these fragile areas. Finally, some honey from these special territories are excellences which still need an in-depth characterization, as raspberry honey (chapter 3.5). The floral origin of honeys, other than being valuable to describe their organoleptic features and to valorize them, is useful to protect these products against food frauds (very common for honey and pollen). Finding reliable analytical techniques to define honey botanical origin becomes then pivotal for many reasons, as food analysis and bee ecology and ethology (chapter 3.6). In the second research line of chapter 4, instead, other “niche” products which could be focal to revitalize agroecosystems in marginal territories are considered. In specific, they are one show case of ancient plant variety (Caigua or Ciuenlai, chapter 4.1), saffron (chapter 4.2 and 4.3) and minor cereals (chapter 4.4). A special focus is reserved to the socio-economic and cultural dimension as another important component of agrobiodiversity (chapter 4.3 and 4.4), also considering the scientific validation of traditional good production practices (chapter 4.2). the body of the thesis is followed by a final discussion of the work through a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis which can help in summarizing what was learnt about agrobiodiversity in marginal and mountain territories during the research work and to draw successful strategies for further studies and projects. In the SWOT analysis the strengths and opportunities resulted more than the weaknesses and threats, and technical and scientific knowledge could have an important role in overcoming the limits. The focal points for future research are individuated in a scientific, multidisciplinary and participatory approach, based on sustainability and on the exceptionality of the resources of agrobiodiversity of marginal territories.