Food chain sustainability
Visegrad +4 push for extension of unfair trade practices to large suppliers
The Visegrad Four, as well as Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Slovenia, have warned about “disproportions” in the food supply chain if large suppliers are not covered by the European Commission’s proposal on unfair trade practices (UTPs).
Debate on the scope of unfair trade practices heats up in EU Parliament
The final scope of the European Commission’s proposals on unfair trade practices (UTPs) in the EU food supply chain has divided stakeholders, as it has not been decided yet if large companies should also be included in the legislation, in addition to small and medium firms.
Five meat and dairy companies emit more emissions than major oil companies, study finds
Together, the five largest meat and dairy corporations (JBS, Tyson, Cargill, Dairy Farmers of America and Fonterra) are already responsible for more annual greenhouse gas emissions than ExxonMobil, Shell or BP, a new study released on Wednesday (18 July) warns.
Thailand confident to ban illegal fishing, forced labour by end of year, says ambassador
Thailand aims to become free from illegal fishing and forced labour by the end of this year, Virachai Plasai, the Thai ambassador and head negotiator on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, told EURACTIV.com.
Has the world reached ‘peak fish’?, fish experts ask
This week’s meetings of the European Parliament’s committee on fisheries (11-12 July) saw fish experts tackling the growing issues of overfishing, small-scale fisheries and fish dependence.
Soil ‘completely underestimated’ in EU climate strategy
While climate change takes a toll on agriculture and land use contributes to warming the planet, soils still find little attention from policymakers in their climate strategies.
Amended Commission food proposal ‘completely inadequate’, says foodwatch
The European Commission continues to serve the interests of big companies rather than consumers, and this will lead to new food scandals soon, the European consumer organisation foodwatch said on Tuesday (10 July).
The EU must take the lead on international fisheries governance
As the largest seafood market in the world, importing more than 60% of its seafood from other countries, the EU has a responsibility to tackle illegal fishing, writes Dr Samantha Burgess.
The digital farmers’ market
Farmers being in direct contact with the consumers and setting their prices independently, without having to submit to the wholesale market dictate - sounds like going back to the roots of agricultural markets. Behind this, however, is a model with a genuinely promising future. EURACTIV.de reports.
Europe must get serious about short food supply chains
Europe must get serious about short food supply chains (SFSC) and put an end to the frustrating inconsistencies within the Common Agricultural Policy and with other European policy fields, write Maria Heubuch and Bart Staes.
Enhancing food transparency and local production with aquaponics
Implementing combined fish and vegetable farming system provides the food transparency and local production customers are asking for, say the supporters of aquaponic farming.
School canteens find it difficult to be supplied with local products
Local farmers are increasingly sought after by catering establishments, which want to improve their food supply and enhance local production. However, public procurement rules hinder their plans. EURACTIV.fr reports.
G7 can tackle five priorities with one investment: agricultural research
This week the representatives of the world's most advanced economies grapple with complex challenges at the G7 summit. Smart investments need to be made to solve the five key issues addressed at the summit and the smartest investment is in agricultural research, writes Marcon Ferroni.
EU opportunity to make fish discarding history
On World Ocean Day (8 June), it is important to bring back to the forefront the debate of overfishing which is undermining the health of our oceans. Five years after the reform on the EU Common Fisheries Policy nothing much has changed, and discarding at sea is still common practice, writes Rebecca Hubbard.
Brussels calls for closer monitoring of fishing rules… on paper
The European Commission presented its proposal for revised fishing rules last week (30 May). But while the proposals have good intentions, they provide no real guarantees of efficiency. EURACTIV’s partner Le Journal de l’Environnement reports.
EU farmers: Prevention is better than cure for sustainable livestock
Prevention is far better than cure when it comes to animal diseases and creation of sustainable livestock. Vaccination may play a role in reducing the need for antibiotics, but it needs to be accompanied by other "tools", like education and training, farmer representatives and EU politicians have told EURACTIV.
Insufficient consideration for food issue in CAP
Olivier De Schutter, a co-chair of the international expert panel IPES-Food, calls on the European Commission to lay the foundations for a Common Food Policy. EURACTIV.fr reports.
The moment for a future-proof EU agriculture and food policy is now
The next reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) should bring agricultural and food policies out of their respective silos and align actions across different areas in support of building sustainable food systems, write Sirpa Pietikainen and Bart Staes.
European beet producers’ growing concerns over sugar prices
The end of sugar quotas coincides with the collapse of prices on the world market. This is currently more of a problem for sugar refiners than sugar beet growers, who are still protected by contracts. EURACTIV.fr reports
Soil is the underrated issue of food waste challenge, says World Biogas Association boss
Food waste processed via anaerobic digestion can significantly improve nutrient recovery in the soil, and the process may have significant use in sustainable agriculture and in fighting climate change, David Newmann, president of the World Biogas Association, told EURACTIV.com in an interview
Reducing meat consumption to reduce CO2 emissions: a sustainable challenge
Eating habits are responsible for carbon dioxide emissions and many countries could improve their carbon footprint by changing them. European countries are not all equal in terms of CO2 emissions, but an effort could be made.
Ecolabels have lost all credibility, report claims
Lack of transparency, oversights, confusion… A report by the Dutch Foundation Changing Markets, published on 3 May, reveals the inefficiency of environmental labels, particularly for seafood, textiles and palm oil. EURACTIV's partner Le Journal de l'environnement reports.
EFSA boss: EU food law overhaul ‘a big step towards transparency’
The European Commission has learned its lesson from the glyphosate controversy and is coming forward with “bold proposals” on transparency, says Bernhard Url. The raw data of all industry-funded studies related to pesticides will be made publicly available under Commission plans, he told EURACTIV in an interview.