IFOAM EU Group launches position paper on soil

Granada, 23/09/2011 – Criticising the ongoing deadlock in the European Council on the implementation of a Soil Directive, the IFOAM EU Group1 published its position paper on the proposed EU Soil Framework Directive2 at a three-day conference held in Granada, Spain, titled "Agro-ecological management of soils"3. The conference organised by SEAE4, bringing together experts and academics in the area of soil, reinforced the need for a coherent policy and explored several aspects and threats related to soil, along with the value of agro-ecological measures for maintaining and rehabilitating soil.

The International Conference of AgriBioMediterraneo - IFOAM for Organic Agriculture and Agro-Eco Tourism in the Mediterranean on 16-18 September 2011 at Zakynthos Island is organised by DIO organization and Region of Ionian Islands. The conference is held under the auspices of Region of Ionian Islands, Agrocert and the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, with the participation of the organizations IFOAM, ISOFAR and BIOLMED programme. Supporters and sponsors of the conference are numerous universities, organizations and individuals.

Source: Nyeleni Forum. 04/09/11

The Nyeleni European Food Sovereignty Forum in Krems, Austria, took place from 16 to 21 August 2011. The forum adopted the first European Declaration on Food Sovereignty. The declaration proclaims, "we are convinced that a change to our food system is a first step towards a broader change in our societies". The full text of the declaration is available here. Over 400 delegates from European countries committed to strengthening their collective capacity to reclaiming community control over food system, to resisting the agro-industrial system and to expanding and consolidating a strong European movement for Food Sovereignty. Over 120 organisations and individuals, representing civil society and social movements, discussed the impact of current European and global policies. Together they developed a comprehensive platform and a set of principles to achieve food sovereignty in Europe.

Source: IFOAM. 03/09/11

Resource efficiency is identified as one of seven flagship initiatives by the European Commission under the EU 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Recent reports by the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) and the European Commission Standing Committee on Agricultural Research (SCAR) have clearly underlined the challenges across the entire food chain, the necessary changes required and the potential for investment in agro-ecological approaches for food security in a resource scarce world. Working in accordance with agro-ecological principles, sustainable agricultural systems, including organic agriculture, have much potential to contribute to a more resource efficient Europe. The IFOAM EU Conference "Resource Efficiency and Food Security: Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable Food Systems" will take place in Brussels, Belgium on 9 November 2011. The conference will deal with the following key features: examination of the relationship between resource efficiency and food security and of the role of system approaches to sustainable food and farming (with global experts and regional speakers), knowledge sharing, exchange of ideas and development of solutions, and meetings with key decision-makers and high-level stakeholders. The draft programme for the conference is available here IFOAM

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