News
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…
22/03/2023
GMOs
EU environmental ministers give clear signal to Commission to maintain precautionary principle & risk assessment for NGTs
On 16 March, the Council meeting of environmental ministers sent a decisive message to the European Commission as a large…
Green claims: The fight against greenwashing must be based on methodologies promoting the transition towards more sustainable food systems
BRUSSELS, 22 MARCH 2023 – IFOAM Organics Europe welcomes the publication of the Substantiating Green Claims initiative by the Commission,…
08/03/2023
GMOs
We want to be able to choose! Ensure GMO-free food production.
Update 23.03.2023: Junges Bioland initiated an online petition on this topic, addressed to Olaf Scholz, Germany’s Prime Minister, and to…
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…
February 2023 Newsletter - Multilingual Edition
Read this Special Newsletter edition in CZ, DE, ES, FR, HU, IT, LT, NL, PL, PT, RO Welcome note Dear reader, Welcome to a very special edition of our newsletter. At…
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…
13/02/2023
GMOs
European Court of Justice decision on ‘in vitro’ mutagenesis strengthens 2018 ruling subjecting gene editing to EU GMO Directive
The recent ruling by the European Court of Justice, published on 7 February, closes a 2015 case brought forward by…
EU organic movement warns against greenwashing
BRUSSELS, 13 FEBRUARY 2023 – IFOAM Organics Europe warns against the misuse of claims, labels, or communication initiatives about food…
Study on the environmental impacts of achieving 25% organic land by 2030 published
The European Union’s ambitious Farm to Fork Strategy target of 25% organic farmland by 2030 is a clear statement of…
Successful GMO petition handover to the Commission
On February 7, environmental, agricultural, and consumer rights organizations gathered in front of the European Parliament in Brussels to officially…
06/02/2023
GMOs
New year, old narratives – Why genetic engineering is (still) not the solution to food security
The European Commission kicked off 2023 by publishing a report on the drivers of food security, recognising the value of…
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…
25/01/2023
Labelling
EU organic movement takes legal action to defend reliable environmental labelling of food products
[disponible en français ci-dessous / available in French below] BRUSSELS/PARIS, 25 JANUARY 2023 – Actors involved in the ecological transition…
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…
The European organic movement welcomes opportunities promoting organic agriculture in the European Commission's promotion policy work programme
The European organic movement welcomes the special attention reserved to organic agriculture in the European Commission’s promotion policy work programme.…
Reaching 25% organic land in Europe by 2030: Ten priorities for the new EU Organic Action Plan
The European Commission is set to publish the next European Organic Action Plan (OAP) at the beginning of 2021. A…
IFOAM Organics Europe Meets Business online – a successful event! 8-9 December 2020, online
On 8-9 December 2020, 80 participants, from all walks of the organic supply chain and beyond, joined the 3rd edition…
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…
Political hotspot November 2020 newsletter
The European Commission is set to publish the next European organic action plan (OAP) at the beginning of next year.…
Registration to IFOAM Organics Europe Meets Business 2020 closes next week. Secure your spot!
IFOAM Organics Europe Meets Business 2020 is around the corner! In a little more than two weeks we will meet…
23/11/2020
Biodiversity
Sign the petition to call on Europe to save the bees and farmers!
More than 400.000 participants have already signed the European Citizens’ Initiative to ‘Save bees and farmers’ and you can add…
1 million citizens are calling on the Commission: Our forests are in danger, act now!
One million people demand EU law to stop deforestation More than a million people have so far called for a…
Our suggestions for the new Organic Action plan
The Commission is set to publish the next European organic action plan at the beginning of next year and has…
18/11/2020
Food policy
Shifting urban food consumption & production: FoodSHIFT2030 webinar - 18 November 2020, online
FoodSHIFT2030 presented a webinar on how citizen-driven innovation can shift the way in which we produce and consume food. Among…
18/11/2020
Organic regulations
Rewatch the webinar on the regulatory changes of the new EU Organic Regulation relevant to the Global South
Did you miss the web meeting organized by the International Trade Centre on the new Organic Regulation (EU) 2018/848? Would…
Joint letter calling for balanced speaker representation at forthcoming EU Agricultural Outlook Conference
IFOAM Organics Europe, Slow Food, European Coordination Via Campesina (ECVC), and others call for balanced representation in terms of speakers…
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…
Interested to learn how public procurement can be a driver for a more regional, sustainable and healthy food system?
FoodShift’s Regional Lunch for All Lab is based in Avignon, France, and aims at shifting public procurement towards a sustainable…
How will the EU Green Deal change Europe’s food prices change? Join our colleague Silvia online to get an idea!
On 12 November from 15:30-17:00, Silvia Schmidt, our food policy officer, will take part to the online event “The Green…
The true price of food & its role in transforming the food system: FFA 2020 review - 26 October 2020
On 26 October 2020, our Director Eduardo Cuoco attended the Forum for the Future of Agriculture (FFA) event ‘Rewarding sustainability…
Political hotspot October 2020 newsletter
On 19–20 October, EU-27 agriculture ministers met in Luxembourg to adopt their general approach on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).…
IFOAM Organics Europe meets business – Agenda available! 8-9 December, online
Save the date for the next “IFOAM Organics Europe meets business” taking place online on 8-9 December 2020. “Bringing the…
27/10/2020
Organic regulations
EGTOP reports on cleaning & disinfection and potassium available on Commission website
The Expert Group for Technical Advice on Organic Production (EGTOP) published two new reports. The first one is a draft…
CAP ‘reform’: Parliament's small steps not good enough for a green transformation of food and farming
BRUSSELS, 23 OCTOBER 2020 – This week, Members of the European Parliament voted on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and Agriculture Ministers reached an…
Organic Movement calls on MEPs to align the CAP with the Green Deal ambitions
IFOAM Organics Europe has sent a press release to all Members of the European Parliament as they are voting on…
19/10/2020
Organic regulations
Organic movement welcomes one-year postponement of the new Organic Regulation (EU) 2018/848 implementation
The new EU Organic Regulation (EU) 20 18/848 was set to apply from 1 January 2021. As the development of…
The Commission’s first Farm to Fork conference – Review & highlights - 15-16 October 2020, online
The European Commission’s first Farm to Fork conference took place on 15–16 October 2020 and focused on how to build…
15/10/2020
Food policy
An Organic Action Plan: Commission roadmap and public consultation
It is possible to boost organic production and consumption through multiple policies. The Organic Action Plan (OAP) is one of…
15/10/2020
Biodiversity
Why is it important to save the bees and farmers? Watch this video
As part of their ongoing campaign, the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) ‘Save bees and farmers!’ has released a set of…
14/10/2020
Organic regulations
Webinar on the new EU Organic Regulation: What is going to change?
International Trade Centre organized a web meeting on the main changes that the implementation of the new Organic Regulation (EU)…
Open letter calling for full alignment of the reformed CAP with the European Green Deal
Together with NGOS and national coalitions from across Europe, IFOAM Organics Europe urges the President of the European Commission, the…
Welcome note September 2020 newsletter
Dear readers, On behalf of the European organic movement, I would like to welcome you back after the summer break.…
Launch of the Green Deal call at the European Research & Innovation Days 2020
From 22-24 September, the European Research and Innovation Days, the European Commission’s annual flagship event, brought together policymakers, researchers, entrepreneurs,…
25/09/2020
Organic regulations
Postponement of the organic regulation & Organic Action Plan consultation
On 4 September 2020, important steps on two important Commission’s files were taken. Firstly, the EU Commission submitted a proposal…
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…
17/09/2020
GMOs
Reveal of a detection method for a gene-edited rapeseed - What is the significance and why is there a controversy?
A regulation is only worth so much as it can be enforced. This is why on 7 September, an open…
Help protecting our forests by demanding deforestation free supply-chains – Together4Forests
Forests and other ecosystems are under pressure worldwide: A total of 13 million hectares are deforested each year and almost…