Lawmakers in both the European Parliament and the Council are currently hammering out their final positions on the EU’s plan to slash the use and risk of pesticides in half by 2030. So what is going on behind the scenes? ARC’s Natasha Foote gives you an inside glimpse on the current state of negotiations ahead of a definitive Parliament vote next week. […]
Why do nearly 50% of our calories come from the same three crops: wheat, rice, and maize? Underutilised crops (UCs) boast a long history of cultivation in many parts of the world and hold great nutritional and environmental promise for the future of our food systems. What role for policy and a value chain approach which considers access to seeds, the ecological aspects of agricultural production, the power positions of stakeholders, the nutritional value of food, and food security and sovereignty? […]
The Nature Restoration Law (NRL) took a massive step forward in the evening of the 9th November, with the conclusion of inter-institutional negotiations. The adopted position, which still has some hurdles to surmount, is certainly less ambitious than the Commission’s initial proposal. While all ecosystems are in, the NRL largely adopts the Council’s flexible position, while some weaking of targets accommodates the Parliament’s position. Oliver Moore has an initial report. […]
As many Europeans protest against new GMOs proposal by the European Commission another area of concern has emerged – soil microbes. It turns out that in the US, the agrochemical industry, without much fanfare, has already introduced commercial products containing new GMO microbes, with many more in the pipeline. So what are the concerns? Marianne Landzettel reports on a new report form Friends of the Earth US. […]
After years working towards clinching a free trade deal between Australia and the EU, talks went ‘down under’ on Sunday (29 October) in Osaka after the two sides beefed over market access for agricultural products. So what happened – what’s the beef between these two? – and what does the UK have to do with the dramatic turn of events? Natasha Foote reports […]
As has become very familiar in recent months, another opportunity to better integrate CAP and the pledges of the European Green Deal is being missed. Instead of watering down the ambition, this time the mainstream political establishment simply postponed or abandoned DG SANTE’s law proposal for a European Framework for Sustainable Food Systems. Yet, there are many ways the CAP or the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas could accompany and bridge with the upcoming SFS. […]
Food is much more than a stomach to be filled, and actions on the ground in France are focusing on the social barriers to local, healthy food for all. Marie-Lise Breure-Montagne reports. […]
Malgré le retrait de la Sustainable Food System Law de l’agenda européen, cet automne, notre récolte des moments conviviaux et fédérateurs sur le thème de l’alimentation durable fut féconde. Compte-rendu d’un trio d’évènements auxquels le projet « Rural Resilience » a participé. Rédaction : Marie-Lise Breure-Montagne. […]
The 12th Forum of the European Coordination of Let’s Liberate Diversity, held in the Irish capital, drew over 100 participants from all over Europe and beyond, including Minister of State at the Irish Department of Agriculture, Pippa Hackett. The importance of agrobiodiversity, of food policy councils and the risks of the proposed European seed marketing proposal emerged as key themes from a vibrant event held in Dublin last week. […]
The Environment Committee in the European Parliament (ENVI) has ensured a core part of the EU Green Deal – the pesticide regulation – progress towards completion. In a vote yesterday (24th October) the SUR – sustainable use of pesticides regulation – saw some changes introduced, but progress maintained. Despite many delays over the regulation since last June, the SUR text will now face a plenary vote by all Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in November. […]
Nous allons dans cette deuxième partie aborder la résilience des systèmes assurantiels en agriculture, fonction tenue par la réassurance publique (France, Espagne) ou privée (Allemagne)… ou ultimement, par la solidarité nationale. L’Europe constate ces disparités entre pays européens, alors que la crise climatique permanente s’invite chaque année avec plus de mordant. […]
In this second part article we look at the resilience of agricultural insurance systems, a function fulfilled by public (France, Spain) or private (Germany) reinsurance, in relation to water scarcity and drought. […]
No progress for the Sustainable Food System Law and only the transport aspect of the animal welfare legislation surviving. Some progress is being made to move the SUR – Sustainable Use of Pesticides regulation – on, though member states and the environment committee in the Parliament may be pushing in opposite directions. And somehow, Parliament is finding time to really push hard and fast for new GMO’s. […]
Local food was a focus of the Planet Local Summit, a global gathering in Bristol, UK earlier this month that served to highlight the unparalleled value of the grassroots. The ‘largest gathering of its kind’, it was a rare in-person opportunity for actors from all over the world to learn, share and celebrate together, in a showing of solidarity for the movement. Ursula Billington reports from Bristol. […]
Are subsidies provided to farmers in the EU generating deforestation in Brazil? Or the decline of pastoral communities in Sahel? In this article, we shed light on the CAP’s implications beyond the EU, focusing on its influence on the global trade of soya and milk products and examining its implications for local populations. […]
Agricultural and Rural Convention