Sustainable agricultural and food policy

The Farm to Fork Strategy presented by the EU Commission in 2020 called for the food system in the EU to be reorganised from field to fork as part of the ‘Green Deal’ with a view to sustainability. It set out important targets for reducing the use of pesticides and fertilisers and called for an increase in organic farming to 25%.

Measured against the numerous reports in recent years at the German and European level, which have highlighted major deficits in the sustainability of the current agricultural and food system, this was an important and timely signal.

Even if the Green Deal is now partly criticised and the EU Commission has changed its green agenda, there is no getting around the need to make our food systems significantly more sustainable, regardless of what we call it. This is backed up by numerous expert opinions in recent years.

If we do not change anything, the ecosystem services that ensure our survival are in great danger, be it climate, water, soil or biodiversity.

The Common European Agricultural Policy (CAP) is particularly important in this respect. At EU level, the last reform failed to link essential sustainability goals with the CAP. Instead, a bureaucratic monster was created. In order to change this, we must not simply remove our sustainability and environmental protection goals, but instead design a CAP that enables sustainable agriculture and food production without too much bureaucracy.

You can find a good proposal for this (in German) here

Consulting, research, seminars, workshops….

Sustainable food systems

What are sustainable food systems?
What is the status quo?
Where do changes need to start?
What does this mean for the Common European Agricultural Policy (CAP)?
Which legal acts need to be further developed?
What does this mean for European trade agreements?

*Agricultural policy

What does the new CAP look like?
What are “strategic plans”?
Do the first and second pillars still exist?
What has been decided?
What does science say?

Up to date! Agroforestry
Agroforestry as the flagship of the new Eco-Schemes?
Is agroforestry already supported via direct payments?
Or only in the second pillar?
In which federal states does support already exist?
What are the advantages?
Are there disadvantages?

I’m looking forward to discussing with you all these topics, prepare research or provide an overview of selected legal acts and regulations.