News
Political Hotspot December 2023
With an eye on next year’s elections, the EU institutions have geared up work on many important dossiers. But rushing…
Entrepreneurship in the organic seeds and breeding sector
Are you an organic farmers or SME managers who is involved in: Join the webinar “Entrepreneurship in the organic seeds…
New digital tool for breeders, seed producers & traders
LiveSeeding is an EU-funded project promoting growth of organic seed and plant breeding to transition to more sustainable food systems.…
05/12/2023
Seeds
Parliamentary committees have started work on proposed Plant Reproductive Material regulation
The AGRI and ENVI parliamentary committees have started their work on the proposed Plant Reproductive Material (PRM) regulation, a file…
23/11/2023
Plant health care
European Parliament rejects Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR)
On 22 November, the plenary of the European Parliament voted to reject the proposal of the Sustainable Use of Pesticides…
Sprouting discontent: organic movement regrets European Parliament's failure to pesticides reduction
BRUSSELS, 22 NOVEMBER 2023 – IFOAM Organics Europe regrets the European Parliament’s inability to agree on a pesticides reduction regulation. …
IFOAM Organics Europe welcomes progress on pesticides reduction negotiations
BRUSSELS, 24 OCTOBER 2023 – IFOAM Organics Europe welcomes the vote today of the European Parliament Environment Committee on the…
Baking soda more dangerous than synthetic pesticides? - EU decision-makers on the brink of endorsing deceptive pesticide metrics
16 OCTOBER 2023, BRUSSELS, PARIS, BERLIN, VIENNA – As the Council opens negotiations today on ‘Targets and Indicators’ the European…
10/10/2023
Plant health care
Baking Soda more dangerous than Glyphosate & Co.?
Invitation to Online Press Conference 16 October 9:00 AM CEST Join us on https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83162329706?pwd=WkRFOTFuRVFFYitEdkRzcFNoYTArZz09Meeting ID: 831 6232 9706Passcode: 284856 BRUSSELS,…
Six-fold increase in organic seeds needed in the next ten years in Europe – 2nd European Organic Seed Policy Conference shows pathways to make organic seeds a reality
The Spanish Presidency of the European Union put a spotlight on rural areas and agricultural resilience during a High-level Rural…
BIOFRUITNET project promoting cross-border knowledge exchange comes to an end
Over the past 3.5 years the BIOFRUITNET project has collected and synthesized existing practical and scientific knowledge on organic fruit-growing,…
Registrations open for the Organic Seed Policy Conference to be held in Poland
In the context of the LiveSeeding project, where IFOAM Organics Europe is a partner, a public Organic Seed Policy Conference…
Debate and discussion: Which recycled nutrients products could be suitable for organic farming?
On 18 September, 14:00-17:00, we are holding an online workshop on Recycled Nutrients for Organic Farming with the European Sustainable…
BIOFRUITNET project: Making stronger networks in organic fruit growing
Knowledge sharing is key for bringing together innovative ideas and identify new solutions in organic farming. The Horizon 2020 BIOFRUITNET…
New video on organic plant health care & updates on the SUR
We are happy to announce that we just published a new video on the organic approach to plant health care…
23/03/2023
Plant health care
The Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR), moving forward but slowly
The legislative process of the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) proposed by the European Commission back in June 2022…
Scientific study shows synthetic pesticides significantly more dangerous than natural ones
More organic farming means less pesticide use and risk BRUSSELS, VIENNA, 23 FEBRUARY 2023 – The European Green Deal’s targets of…
Online press conference: Conventional and organic pesticides compared, 23 February
“Organic farming is not what it claims to be. Organic farmers also spray poisons – and not too sparingly.” “Organic…
Innovative solutions in organic fruit production – BIOFRUITNET project's final conference - 2 March 2023, 9:15-13.30 (CET), online
Organic farming relies on knowledge and information flow and has a biodiversity-based approach to plant health. Sharing the available best…
Organic movement's recommendations on EU pesticides regulation (SUR)
IFOAM Organics Europe’s position paper gathering our recommendations on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) is out. As our…
Save the bees and farmers hearing at the European Parliament
The official hearing of the European Citizens (ECI) Initiative Save the Bees and Farmers, which we are part of, take…
Welcome note November 2020 newsletter
Dear readers, I would like to use this opportunity to look back on a turbulent year, marked with great successes…
First online edition of Organic Innovation Days was a success! 24-25 November, online
On 24-25 November 2020, TP Organics, the European Technology Platform for Organic Food and Farming, held its annual Organic Innovation…
25/11/2020
Seeds
Organic breeders, share your pictures - Use #BreedingABrightFuture on Twitter
#BreedingABrightFuture is LIVESEED’s social media campaign, aiming at raising awareness about the beauty and benefits of organic plant breeding to…
New organic regulations published
Application of the new EU Organic Regulation Originally, the new EU Organic Regulation (EU) 2018/848 was set to apply from 1…
13/11/2020
Plant health care
RELACS project on track despite Covid-19: First digital annual meeting - 10-12 November, online
The RELACS project’s third annual meeting took place digitally 10-12 November. It demonstrated that research in all work packages is…
12/11/2020
Seeds
Last week to register for the Organic Innovation Days 2020 – Brought to you by TP Organics and LIVESEED - 24-25 November 2020, online
Interested in organic research & innovation to transform food & farming? Interested in organic seed & plant breeding? This is…
Welcome note October 2020 newsletter
Dear readers, As Board Vice President of IFOAM Organics Europe and prospective member of the TP Organics Steering Committee, it…
28/10/2020
Seeds
LIVESEED: Tools and incentives for the value chain involved in organic seed
According to Article 48 of Regulation EC No 834/2007, the establishment of a national database to list all offered organic seed and…
Organic breeders, share your pictures – Use #BreedingABrightFuture on Twitter
#BreedingABrightFuture is LIVESEED’s social media campaign, aiming at raising awareness about the beauty and benefits of organic plant breeding to…
Organic Innovation Days – register now! 24-25 November, online
You can now register for the Organic Innovation Days 2020, the only EU event on research & innovation for organic,…
15/10/2020
COVID19
European Parliament pushes for fast recovery aid
On 13 October, the Agriculture Committee of the European Parliament voted for a fast, targeted and sustainable recovery package for…
Save the date: Organic Innovation Days 2020: A cooperation of TP Organics & LIVESEED, 24-25 November 2020, online
For this year’s Organic Innovation Days, TP Organics is partnering with the LIVESEED project, coordinated by IFOAM Organics Europe. Bringing…
Replacement of copper in organic farming – First results of RELACS experiments conducted by ÖMKi
Copper is currently used as a plant protection product (PPP) and/or leaf fertilizer in organic and conventional farming in several…
15/09/2020
Seeds
LIVESEED workshop on vegetative propagating material – Why organic vegetative material has a long way to go compared to organic seeds
Vegetative propagation material such as seed potatoes, rootstocks and cuttings were in the spotlight of a LIVESEED workshop on 10…
Farm gate nutrient budgets in organic agriculture
The RELACS project partners issued practical guidelines informing farmers about assessing the main nutrient flows in and out of their…
04/08/2020
Plant health care
Request for proposal: Conducting research on pesticide contamination in the environment and pesticide residues in organic food
IFOAM Organics Europe (IFOAM OE) is the European umbrella organisation for organic food and farming. We fight for the adoption…
LIVESEED international workshop identifies top priorities to work towards 100% organic seed
LIVESEED’s international workshop on 25-26 June put the spotlight on North-West Europe and the EU organic regulation’s implementation on organic…
Help us identifying the needs and knowledge gaps in organic fruit growing – Fill out BIOFRUITNET’s questionnaire
Plant protection against pests and diseases is a big issue for organic fruit growers, as fruit is a very sensitive…
European Patent Office: No patents on conventionally bred varieties
On 14 May 2020, the enlarged board of appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) has released an opinion that…
Welcome note April 2020
Dear readers, For all of us, these days are really challenging. We are facing a crisis where no one can…
Political hotspot April 2020
The current COVID-19 pandemic has far reaching effects on Europe, life as we know it, agriculture and the organic sector.…
21/04/2020
COVID19
COVID-19 – A double-edged sword for the European organic sector
The coronavirus is causing the biggest and most acute crisis Europe faced in the last decades, and it is also…
Open Letter: CSOs open letter on the importance and urgency of publishing the Farm to Fork strategy: no further delays, keep April 2020 as publication date
Brussels, 14 April 2020 To:Executive Vice-President Frans TimmermansCommissioner Stella KyriakidesCommissioner Janusz WojciechowskiCommissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius CC:Anne Bucher, Director-General of DG SANTE…
01/04/2020
COVID19
JOINT LETTER: Measures to support farmers in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic
To: Commissioner WojciechowskiCc: Commissioner Sinkevičius and Commission Executive Vice-President TimmermansEuropean CommissionBerlaymont, Rue de la Loi 2001000 – Brussels 1st April…
European Organic Congress - Registration opening postponed to April 2020
The 2020 edition of the European Organic Congress is scheduled to take place on 1 and 2 July 2020 in Berlin, Germany.…
BIOFACH session on organic seed and organic heterogenous material in the New EU Organic Regulation
On 14 February, IFOAM EU organized a session on Organic Seed and organic heterogenous material in the new EU Organic Regulation at…
How much and which natural inputs does the organic sector need? – A lively debate during BIOFACH 2020
A lively discussion on natural inputs suitable for organic farming as well as future obstacles and opportunities for the sector’s…
30/01/2020
Plant health care
The organic movement and the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA) call for better regulation of natural origin plant protection technologies
IFOAM EU and the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA) published a five years roadmap for collaboration to promote the uptake of…
17/04/2018
Plant health care
Plant health care in organic farming
The revision of the European legislation on “plant protection products” will be the chance to highlight the specific approach of…