The European Soil Mission is leading the transition to healthy soils by funding an ambitious research and innovation program with a strong social science component, establishing a powerful network of 100 living laboratories to co-create knowledge, test solutions about the importance of soils.

At national policy level, it is a mosaic of European Union regulations and directives that have been applied directly into our legal system. Two examples are represented by Directive (EU) 2025/2360 (the first regulatory framework dedicated exclusively to soil health) and the Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 that introduces "enhanced conditionality": to receive European contributions, Italian farmers must comply with the GAEC (Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions) standards.

At farms level the soil health, can be achieved through the use of sustainable practices (Crop diversification, ecological corridors, etc.) with the consequent implementation of sustainable business models. It’s mainly focus on developing a new local supply chain based on the transformation of primary products into high-value-added products, which are then marketed, enhancing not only the company but also the landscape and tourism.

The topic of soil health can also be analyzed from the perspective of consumers who benefit from the agricultural products they consume daily.

Introducing this topic to non-experts, however, requires structured and well-codified approaches.

In collaboration with the Novasoil project, a survey of approximately 600 Italian consumers was conducted through a discrete choice experiment. The topic of soil health was addressed by creating scenarios that would require various specific characteristics to maintain soil health.