Emiliana Silva, a professor at the University of the Azores, calls for a reassessment of agricultural support policies, greater investment in innovation, and renewed efforts to attract young people to farming.
Azorean agriculture faces growing challenges to its economic sustainability, with many farms dependent on public subsidies to remain operational, according to Emiliana Silva, a professor at the University of the Azores who is calling for a fundamental reassessment of agricultural policy in the archipelago. In an extensive interview following the publication of her new book, A Gestão da Empresa Agrícola: Manual para Estudantes, Agricultores e Técnicos de Agricultura (Agricultural Business Management: A Manual for Students, Farmers, and Agricultural Technicians), Silva argued that the region must move beyond short-term financial assistance and develop a long-term strategy emphasizing technological innovation, competitiveness, diversified production, and generational renewal.
Silva, who has taught at the University of the Azores since 1994, acknowledged that European Union agricultural subsidies remain essential to the survival of numerous farming operations, particularly given the additional costs associated with the islands’ geographical isolation. Rising energy prices, animal feed costs, and other production expenses have placed further pressure on agricultural businesses. Nevertheless, she cautioned that financial assistance should not replace the capacity of farms to generate income and achieve lasting economic viability. “Without the subsidies provided, many of these businesses would not be able to continue operating,” she explained, while emphasizing that public support must increasingly encourage efficiency and resilience.
Her assessment comes amid concerns about potential reductions in funding under the European Union’s next Common Agricultural Policy framework. Silva believes that any reassessment of agricultural assistance should involve farmers’ associations, academics, and policymakers, with particular attention to the future of the POSEI program, which provides support to agriculture in the European Union’s outermost regions. She advocated a redesigned POSEI framework that would promote more effective resource management, greater competitiveness, and stronger protection against economic uncertainty.
The professor questioned whether existing subsidy arrangements sufficiently encourage long-term structural improvements. Although programs such as PRORURAL+, PEPAC Açores, and POSEI have provided substantial financial resources, she argued that their effectiveness should be measured not simply by the amount of funding distributed but by the economic, environmental, and social results achieved. In her assessment, livestock production, particularly dairy and beef farming, has received relatively substantial support, while fruit and vegetable cultivation and forestry have received insufficient attention.
That imbalance, Silva suggested, has consequences beyond agricultural economics. Greater support for horticulture and fruit production could strengthen regional food self-sufficiency, while investment in forestry could contribute to environmental protection. She also noted that regional programs such as AGROACRESCENTA offer the advantage of reduced bureaucracy but place additional demands on the Azorean budget. For Silva, the challenge is to develop a more coherent agricultural strategy rather than repeatedly responding to immediate difficulties through temporary measures.
Technological modernization occupies a central place in her recommendations. Silva called for increased investment incentives directed toward precision agriculture, artificial intelligence, and modern farm management systems, arguing that these tools can help agricultural businesses improve productivity, control costs, and make better-informed decisions. Such investments, she believes, should become an increasingly important component of public agricultural policy.
These concerns are explored in her recently published book, which brings together approximately three decades of teaching, research, and practical experience in agricultural economics and management. Developed primarily for students pursuing agricultural sciences at the University of the Azores, the manual is also intended for farmers, agricultural technicians, and others involved in managing rural enterprises. It combines qualitative decision-making methods with quantitative approaches to evaluating economic, environmental, and social performance, drawing in part on research conducted in collaboration with students, particularly in dairy and beef production.
Silva described the publication as the fulfillment of a longstanding ambition to produce a Portuguese-language agricultural management manual adapted to the realities of the Azores. When she began her academic career in the 1990s, she found few suitable resources reflecting national agricultural conditions. The new volume seeks to address that gap while incorporating contemporary challenges and technologies. More personally, she regards the book as a professional legacy for generations of students and agricultural practitioners who may benefit from the knowledge accumulated throughout her career.
The publication also coincides with the 50th anniversary of the University of the Azores’ Department of Agricultural Sciences in 2026, providing an opportunity to examine the relationship between academic research and agricultural practice. Silva recalled that the university’s early efforts to develop agricultural extension services were influenced by professors who completed doctoral studies in the United States, where university-based agricultural extension programs were already well established.
Although relations between researchers and farmers have improved over the decades, Silva believes that stronger institutional connections are still needed. Agricultural cooperatives, farmers’ associations, and agricultural supply businesses currently play important roles in transferring technical knowledge, often employing graduates of the University of the Azores. She argued that collaboration should extend beyond conferences and presentations to ensure that scientific research is translated into practical improvements on individual farms.
Another major concern is the declining interest of younger generations in agricultural education and careers. Silva called for renewed efforts to attract students to agricultural sciences and provide them with the knowledge necessary to manage modern farming operations. Training in emerging technologies and artificial intelligence, she suggested, could help make agriculture more attractive to young people while improving the sector’s long-term competitiveness.
However, she emphasized that education alone will not ensure generational renewal. Young farmers must also have access to viable economic opportunities, professional recognition, and conditions that allow them to establish and sustain agricultural enterprises. Agriculture, she argued, deserves the same dignity and respect as other professions, particularly because of its essential role in providing food for society.
For Silva, the future of Azorean agriculture ultimately requires a broader public understanding of the sector’s importance. Beyond its contribution to employment and regional economic activity, farming remains fundamental to food security, environmental stewardship, and the ability of island communities to maintain a degree of self-sufficiency.
Her central message is that the Azores must decide what kind of agriculture they want for the coming decades. Rather than relying primarily on subsidies to address recurring financial pressures, she advocates policies that combine targeted public investment, scientific knowledge, technological modernization, diversified production, and opportunities for a new generation of farmers.
As the University of the Azores marks half a century of agricultural education and research, Silva’s reflections underline the importance of connecting academic knowledge with the economic realities of the islands. Her newly published manual represents both a record of three decades of scholarship and a practical contribution to the continuing debate over how Azorean agriculture can become more competitive, resilient, and sustainable.
Based on a interview published in Diário Insular, José Lourenço-director. The photoi is also fro DI.