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23/12/2022
Food policy

Large share of EU funds available to promote sustainable agriculture in 2023 

On 16 December 2022, the European Commission has adopted the 2023 Annual Work Programme on the promotion of agricultural products.…

GMOs – An easy breakdown on common myths 

Global grassroots organization Slow Food International has recently published a short myth-busting article with the most common, but wrong and…

Member States call for ‘new impact assessment’ on the Pesticides Regulation (SUR), delaying strict EU pesticide regulation

On 19 December, Member States1 voted in favour of requesting complementary data to the existing impact assessment the Commission carried…

EU pesticides regulation (SUR) under attacks from Member States & industry

The EU Pesticide Reduction proposal SUR has been under attack by lobbyists. They developed a strategy to delay and possibly…

Promoting recycled fertilizers in Europe: IFOAM Organics Europe position paper & outcomes policy workshop on closing the nutrients’ cycle

On 28 February, IFOAM Organics Europe has published a new position paper on the Commission’s Integrated Nutrients Management Action Plan…

November newsletter: SUR, GMO-free event, and more!

Two weeks ago, we published our November newsletter and it’s rich in updates and information on the hottest organic topics!…

Bold pesticide reduction plan faces attack on Saturday

BRUSSELS, 6 DECEMBER 2022 – EU plans to cut pesticide use and risk by half and protect the most sensitive…

Green claims: better methodologies to assess environmental performance of food & textiles products

BRUSSELS, 29 NOVEMBER 2022 – IFOAM Organics Europe welcomes news about the Commission’s decision to postpone the publication of the…

Press conference: EU pesticide reduction under fierce attack

In June 2022, the EU Commission presented a legislative proposal on the “sustainable use of plant protection products” (SUR), which…

Political Hotspot - November 2022

The legislative process of revising the EU’s pesticide legislation, the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR), is full of hurdles,…

Welcome note November 2022

Dear reader,  I am happy to welcome you to this year’s last edition of our newsletter. I am proud to…

1 million EU citizens knock on EU’s door: No synthetic pesticides to save bees & farmers

Over 1 million EU citizens are asking to restore nature, provide healthy food, healthy soil and clean water. On Friday 25…

‘Way forward in organic plant health care strategies’ Conference, 17-18 November 2022, online

On 17 & 18 November, IFOAM Organics Europe, BÖLW and JKI Institüte organised an online conference on the ‘Way forward…

Commission's fertiliser communication, short term fixes, no long-term solutions

In its Communication on ensuring availability and affordability of fertilisers, the EU Commission postpones necessary changes to achieve more sustainable food systems by…

Organic movement asks for higher environmental ambition in the upcoming Fertiliser Communication & digitalization of pesticide use data in SAIO’s implementing act 

Upcoming Fertilizers Communication of the Commission  On 24 October, we co-signed a joint letter with 9 NGOs calling on the…

Sustainability labels, ”sustainable or not? That’s the question!” 

In the current food environment, labels are crucial to provide consumers with information to help them make the sustainable choice.…

Farmers at the centre of research, innovation & knowledge exchange in TP Organics new study 

Organic living labs and lighthouse farms in Europe is a brand new study by TP Organics, the European technology platform…
29/09/2022
Food policy

Political Hotspot - September 2022

September is the month of the first informal meeting of the Ministers of Agriculture in Prague, Czech Republic. The Czech…

Updates on pesticides and recycled nutrients: Regulation (SUR), statistics and data

IFOAM Organics Europe welcomed the Commission’s proposal on the revision of the Sustainable Use of pesticides Regulation (SUR). It could…

Got pesticides in your body? It’s your last chance to find out

Pesticides threaten our food and farming systems.They kill pollinators like bees, reduce the quality of soils, endanger the health of…
24/06/2022
Agroecology

Update on EU Research & Innovation Partnerships on Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems

TP Organics, follows the development and implementation of two new European Research & Innovation Partnerships that will be launched in…
23/06/2022
Food policy

Delving into public consultations: The sustainable food system framework initiative and the EU school scheme

July will be a hot month! In part because of deadlines to public consultations geared at transforming the European food…

They make it happen! Green public procurement in Copenhagen’s public kitchens

Organic contributes to promoting and delivering healthy and sustainable diets. This is part of our Vision 2030 set out and…

Contribute to the Commission’s consultation on the future EU integrated nutrient management action plan (INMAP)

The Commission is preparing an Integrated Nutrient Management Action Plan (INMAP) as announced in the EU Biodiversity and Farm to…

Environmental NGOs and organic movement call on Commission to develop a new indicator to measure progress towards the Farm to Fork pesticide reduction target

BRUSSELS, 9 JUNE 2022 – The organisers of the European Citizens’ Initiative Save Bees and Farmers (signed by 1.2 million…

Do you have pesticides in your body? Join the pesticide check-up and find out

Pesticides are a serious threat to our food and farming systems. On the field, they kill pollinators like bees and…

Agreement on agricultural statistics (SAIO)

On Thursday 2 June, the Council of the EU and the European Parliament reached an agreement on the new EU…

Alternatives to contentious input in organic - Heritage of RELACS project

The RELACS project developed and researched alternatives to contentious inputs in organic crop production – copper and mineral oils, nutrient…
16/05/2022
Food policy

Public consultation on the Sustainable Food System law: stakeholders invited to provide feedback!

On 28 April, the European Commission opened its public consultation for the sustainable food system framework initiative. All stakeholders, including…

IFOAM Organics Europe’s roundtable on organic canteens gathers torchbearers for fruitful exchanges

On 28 March, IFOAM Organics Europe organised a roundtable on organic canteens, bringing together relevant actors in the field to…
10/05/2022
Food policy

Opening of a public consultation on EU school fruit, vegetables, and milk scheme

On 5 May, the European Commission opened its public consultation for the revision of the EU school scheme, that supports…
06/05/2022
Food policy

European Commission’s promotion policies: 157 projects submitted in 2022

The European Commission has recently published the results of its call for tenders under the 2022 edition of the promotion…
04/05/2022
Food policy

European Parliament report on the organic action plan published

On 3 May, the European Parliament’s Plenary voted on its own initiative report on the Commission’s organic action plan (OAP).…

Wrapping up the RELACS project: Policy roadmaps, videos & other publications

The RELACS project, which aims at finding alternatives to contentious inputs in organic farming, came to an end on 29…

Sustainable nutrient management: our contribution to the European Commission’s public consultation

In Europe, surplus nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in the environment are already exceeding safe planetary boundaries – for N…

EU Parliament AGRI Committee supports organic farming in vote on Organic Action Plan report

BRUSSELS, 31 MARCH 2022 – IFOAM Organics Europe welcomes ComAGRI’s vote on the Parliament’s Organic Action Plan (OAP) report. AGRI…

Policy instruments & voluntary initiatives for reducing contentious inputs in organic farming

The RELACS project released a new scientific paper by Varga et al., 2022, analysing existing policy instruments and voluntary initiatives in…

Commission delays proposal for Regulation on the sustainable use of pesticides

On 23 March, the European Commission was supposed to publish a proposal for a Regulation on the Sustainable Use of…

Expert on recycled fertilisers? Join our Task Force on Recycled Fertilisers

IFOAM Organics Europe’s Board created a Task Force on Recycled Fertilisers. This decision comes in the context of the “Integrated…

Soil Health Law: Organic movement’s contribution to public consultation

60-70% of soils in the EU are not healthy and the EU still lacks a comprehensive soil protection policy. In…
14/03/2022
Food policy

Buy Better Food campaign wants to put sustainable food on all public plates

The time has come to make public food procurement a mainstream issue at European level. To this end, we participate…

The 7 key policy recommendations on sustainable food public procurement

The Food Policy Coalition’s policy recommendations on food procurement support procurement as a tool that contributes to the systemic transformation…

Latest IPCC report: Agroecological practices support food security

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has published its latest report Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. The…

EU organic movement calls on Member States to provide reliable data on organic and other Farm to Fork targets

BRUSSELS, 2 FEBRUARY 2022 – As the first trialogue on the Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural Inputs and Outputs (SAIO)…

Trialogues on Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural Inputs and Outputs to start

On 10 December, the Council of the EU approved its mandate for negotiations on the Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural…
24/01/2022
Food policy

Have your say! European Commission public consultations on nutrition labelling & nutrient profiles

Until 7 March, the European Commission is consulting stakeholders on two public consultations: Revision of rules on information provided to…

Revised Directive for a Sustainable Use of pesticides expected on 23 March

The indicative calendar of the European Commission for the first half of 2022 mentions the launch of a “Nature restauration…

Join pan-European testing for pesticide residues during #GoodFoodGoodFarming action month in October 2022

In the bodies of farm workers and city inhabitants, in people’s bedrooms and children’s playgrounds – pesticide residues at harmful…

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…

Are you an expert on plant protection products and/or fertilisers? - Join the new IFOAM EU expert group!

A call for experts is now open to join an IFOAM EU expert group on Plant Protection Products and Fertilisers.…
 
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