With the beginning of the new school year in France, French farming groups have welcomed the addition of a new area of teaching to the curriculum. The new initiative will see pupils studying agriculture discuss ways to continue producing food while restoring the natural environment and eschewing the overuse of resources.

The new subject has been introduced and supported by the ministry of agriculture, which has termed it 'agroecology' or 'producing differently'. Originally a term applied to a field of sustainable agriculture bringing together progressive biological and social sciences to forge sustainable, productive and socially just 'agroecosystems', the new school subject represents a divergence from the traditional definition of agroecology. The education programme promises instead to explore "development of a new model of agriculture [designed] to meet the dual challenges economic competitiveness and ecological transition."

The programme has been welcomed by major farm association FNSEA. Although FNSEA (a federation of French farm unions) said it supports the government's attempts to teach an approach that will foster respect for the environment whilst ensuring farming remains economically viable, in a statement, a spokesperson added that young people should be allowed access to different production systems as teaching aids "without exclusion."  

Commenting on the new school programme, the FNSEA spokesperson said, "French agriculture is of great diversity, it is a treasure that must be preserved. The trend towards more sustainable production systems must reflect this diversity."

The organisation said that, as key drivers of change, farmers are keen to take a role in teaching, especially when it relates to agriculture, and welcomed the coming together of industry and education for the new subject.

Students enrolled in land-based studies in France have an incredibly high rate of employability, with over 85 percent finding a job within two years of graduating.