Agricultural Cultural Heritage in Austria

Created: July 20, 2023
Last updated: February 5, 2025

Agricultural Cultural Heritage in Austria - GIAHS

Project leader

Dr. Wilhelm Graiss

Head of Department

Agricultural cultural heritage in Austria - Agricultural production systems of global importance worth preserving

Within the framework of the GIAHS ( Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems ) program of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ( FAO ), traditional agricultural systems worthy of preservation are to be identified and maintained in Austria. This includes not only traditional knowledge but also the landscapes shaped by these systems and their biodiversity. The entire system, encompassing agriculture, ecology, economy, history, and culture, is to be preserved in the long term through sustainable management and appropriate protection measures.

Cultural Heritage Agriculture GIAHS

A production system certified as Agricultural Heritage under the FAO's GIAHS program represents a comprehensive system encompassing agriculture, ecology, landscape, economy, history, and culture. At its core is a traditional agricultural system worthy of protection, whose preservation is threatened and which is of global importance. This global importance lies in the fact that it must serve as a model for other countries.

The Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management (BML) commissioned the HBLFA Raumberg-Gumpenstein as a GIAHS Focal Point to support this process and to publicize the resulting opportunities.

Requirements for admission to the GIAHS program:

It is a remarkable and unique agricultural production system that is spatially delimited
It offers a local approach to solving problems or challenges
It possesses contemporary value and is endangered: its preservation for the future is imperative

The focus is on the agricultural production system, not on the product itself
It must be described as a complete system, including its historical background and significance
It is of global importance. This global importance is to be understood in the sense that it must serve as a model for other countries.

Criteria for participation in the GIAHS program

to qualify as an agricultural production system of global importance that is worth preserving.

It serves to ensure food security and livelihood
promotes agro-biodiversity
preserves local and traditional knowledge
based on traditional social structures (cultural and value systems)
shows typical landscape structures

Opportunities through participation in the GIAHS program

The program offers the opportunity to showcase valuable but under-pressure elements of Austrian agriculture, thereby contributing to their preservation at the national level and providing new impetus.
It also offers the chance to position small-scale agricultural production methods and the resulting cultural landscape as positive examples internationally, in contrast to industrialized agriculture. In this context, the concept of "global significance" must be interpreted accordingly, meaning that these must be exemplary models for others.

Information material, application documents for the GIAHS program

To enable applications for inclusion in the catalogue of protected agricultural production systems from Austria as well, the HBLFA Raumberg-Gumpenstein, as GIAHS Focal Point Austria, accompanies the process for inclusion as a GIAHS. Please direct all questions regarding a possible submission to This email address is protected from spambots! You must enable JavaScript to view it.