Food chain sustainability

Agrifood 28-04-2017

EU agricultural income since 2005

Challenges ranging from volatile markets, high input costs and the Russian ban on agricultural exports to sluggish Chinese demand, have put a great deal of pressure on the income of EU farmers

Agrifood 22-12-2016

Spanish agriculture in numbers

Spain is home to almost one million agricultural and livestock businesses, covering 30 million hectares of land and employing some 750,000 people.

Agrifood 04-12-2015

COP21: Millions more to go hungry if CO2 levels continue to rise

Est. 4min

Global food security is a crucial issue that will be addressed at the COP21 summit. Our partner Journal de l’Environnemment reports.

Cities & regions 30-11-2015

San Jeronimo and Edegem are proud of their compost project

Est. 8min

SPECIAL REPORT / The partnership between the Belgian town of Edegem, and the Peruvian municipality of San Jeronimo has been so successful that many other localities in the Latin American country come to visit and study the project that composts organic waste and uses it for agriculture.

Agrifood 20-11-2015

Food industry focuses on sustainable sourcing to mitigate climate change

Est. 8min

SPECIAL REPORT / Faced with a raw materials scarcity due to climate change, food and drink giants have turned to a sustainable management in order to protect the environment and ensure their future viability.

Agrifood 18-11-2015

Food giants shoot for 100% renewable energy target

Est. 7min

Unilever and Mars were among the first household names in the food and drink industry to announce plans for a 100% shift to renewable energy.

Agrifood 16-11-2015

Food sector looks beyond factory gates for deep CO2 cuts

Est. 12min

The European food and drink industry can boast a healthy track record in reducing its carbon footprint ahead of the COP21 conference, which opens in Paris later this month.

Regulators urged to promote trust in Europe’s food chain

Est. 4min

SPECIAL REPORT / As the agricultural sector faces mounting pressure to raise production, consumer trust in the safety of the food supply chain has been eroding, a European Commission official warned.

Chemicals
Agrifood 21-01-2015

EU’s food safety agency gives green light to Bisphenol A

Est. 4min

The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) re-evaluation of Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and toxicity states that BPA, an endocrine disruptor, poses no health risk to consumers of any age group at current exposure levels.

Cow
Agrifood 05-01-2015

Lifting of US beef ban ‘not a TTIP trade off’, EU says

Est. 3min

The United States' decision to lift its long-standing ban on EU beef imports is not a trade-off as part of the ongoing transatlantic free-trade talks, the European Commission has said.

Agrifood 13-11-2014

Researchers: Western lifestyle threatens health and the environment

Est. 3min

The Western lifestyle, which has proven to increase diabetes rates, obesity, cancer and carbon emissions, is both a global health and environment problem, according to a new study, but three diets can help reverse the trend.

Cows
Agrifood 24-07-2014

Scientists find beef production harmful to the environment

Est. 3min

Production of beef is nearly ten times more damaging to the environment than any other form of meat production, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Agrifood 21-05-2014

Big 10 food companies emit ‘as much as 25th most polluting country’

Est. 3min

The ten largest food and beverage companies, if combined, would be the 25th most polluting country in the world, according to a report by Oxfam.

The market in Brixton, London. [Flickr/firefightersdaughter].

Citizens not to blame for rising consumption, scholars say

Est. 5min

Academics say there are limits to blaming European citizens for their high levels of consumption, arguing that a societal shift is necessary for the continent to achieve a sustainable ecological footprint.

Food waste. [Taz/Flickr].
Agrifood 14-05-2014

Netherlands, Sweden call for review of ‘best before’ labels

Est. 3min

The governments of the Netherlands and Sweden have asked for an EU debate on ‘best before’ labels, citing the role they play in food wastage.

More consumption not necessary for human well-being, says UN report

Est. 3min

Greater food system efficiency and curbs to the expansion of cropland are necessary to prevent the collapse of global ecosystems, says a report presented today (24 January) by the UN at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Agrifood 04-12-2013

Health experts call for EU to move on eating habits

Est. 4min

SPECIAL REPORT / Health campaigners are calling for the European Commission to take action to alter people’s eating habits and curb rising obesity, but officials are wary that such a move may expose them to “nanny state” complaints, sources say.

Poto?nik bags UN ‘Champions of the Earth’ prize

Est. 2min

The United Nations will honour Janez Poto?nik, the EU's top environment official, with its Champions of the Earth prize for his efforts to promote a greener EU economy.

Health 16-07-2013

British lawmakers call for criminal probe of horsemeat scandal

Est. 3min

The contamination of meat products with horse DNA was most likely due to fraud and prosecutions should be pursued, according to a second British parliamentary report into the scandal.

Food rejected by Europeans provides a feast in Nairobi

Est. 3min

The United Nations treated government ministers and officials to a meal of blemished African fruit and vegetables to highlight how perfectly edible food is being rejected by European supermarkets.

Agrifood 10-01-2013

Almost half of the world’s food thrown away, report finds

Est. 3min

As much as half of all the food produced in the world – equivalent to 2bn tonnes – ends up as waste every year, engineers warned in a report published on Thursday.

Food waste, greening diets become EU policy goals

Est. 8min

SPECIAL REPORT / The European Commission wants to help consumers cut food waste by making 'best before' and 'use by' dates clearer on the packaging. But measures to green up our diets will not stop here, with policymakers' attention turning to the entire food chain.

Brexit 02-03-2012

Green is the new black at London eco-extravaganza

Est. 2min

Could "green" be the new black? Perhaps only if you can imagine wearing stilettos made from pistachio nuts and coffee beans, and clothes from orange peel, fungi and mould.

EU strategy seeks brisk development of bio-economy

Est. 4min

With warnings that Europe is “too slow and too piecemeal” in developing a sustainable economy, the EU executive has unveiled plans to encourage development of the ‘bio-economy’ through investment and innovation.