agriculture

Conference 26th June 2024: Farming without harming: policy action for resilient agriculture

by

Hosted by Pesticide Action Network Europe, Friends of the Earth Europe, The European Network of Scientists for Social and Environmental Responsibility and Agroecology Europe Where: Multiburo EU Parliament (Square de Meeûs 38-40, 1000 Brussels) and Online When: 26th June 2024, 14:00-17:00 CET Language: English Registration: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1rFGe8L87VzEXm0AcX7k1wFo9ry95Kym_t5JcVOIBnwk/viewform?edit_requested=true   Pesticide Action Network Europe, Friends of the Earth Europe, The European Network of Scientists for Social and … Read more

Der Schatz im Boden. In: Gen-ethischer Informationsdienst Nr. 267. Titelthema: Wassermangel in der Landwirtschaft.

by

Von Dr. agr. Andrea Beste, Diplomgeografin, Agrarwissenschaftlerin und Bodenexpertin. Ackerböden stellen ein komplexes Ökosystem aus Pilzen, Pflanzen und Mikroorganismen dar. Eine ganzheitliche Betrachtungsweise hat eine Vielzahl von Ansätzen zum Schutz von Wasserressourcen hervorgebracht. Insbesondere naturbasierte Lösungen haben sich als hilfreiche Strategien für die Klimaanpassung erwiesen. Read the full article

Agricultural GMOs and their associated pesticides: misinformation, science, and evidence

by

By Michael N. Antoniou, Claire Robinson, Irina Castro & Angelika Hilbeck Published in: Environmental Sciences Europe volume 35, Article number: 76 (2023) Abstract Misinformation has always existed, but it became a major preoccupation during the COVID-19 pandemic due to its ability to affect public health choices, decisions, and policy. In their article, “Misinformation in the … Read more

Pesticide drift mitigation measures appear to reduce contamination of non-agricultural areas, but hazards to humans and the environment remain

by

Abstract Pesticide drift onto non-agricultural land is a common problem in intensively farmed regions, and national action plans have been established across Europe to prevent it. Here, we analyzed official data on pesticide residues in grass samples collected over six years to determine whether implemented measures to reduce pesticide drift were effective. We used 306 … Read more

Unexpected air pollutants with potential human health hazards: Nitrification inhibitors, biocides, and persistent organic substances

by

Abstract To better understand the influence of land use and meteorological parameters on air pollutants, we deployed passive air samplers in 15 regions with different land use in eastern Austria. The samplers consisted of polyurethane PUF and polyester PEF filter matrices, which were analyzed for 566 substances by gas-chromatography/mass-spectrometry. In a previous article, we highlighted … Read more

Film Premiere with discussion: The Last Seed

by

A documentary feature film on the struggle for the control of seeds in Africa Film in English with German subtitles https://www.thelastseed.org/ Film premiere of The Last Seed followed by a discussion and reception The film premiere will be followed by a discussion and reception with the following guests– “- Daniela Trochowski, Executive Director of the … Read more

Greenwashing & high tech! FAKING IT: (UN-)SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS FOR AGRICULTURE

by

By Andrea Beste Commissioned by Martin Häusling, MEP (The Greens/ EFA)   Introduction Even though it has been clear for many years that conventional agricultural systems in Europe are unsustainable and need to be fundamentally changed1, time and again attempts are made to promote techniques or products addressing only parts of the system as the … Read more

France – portrait of an agriculture in transition

by

The French Council Presidency has made so-called “carbon farming” a priority. In the podcast, Dr. Andrea Beste talks about what to make of this and whether it has any effect on the climate in arable farming. From minute 8 in English https://soundcloud.com/foodforeurope/12-france-portrait-of-an-agriculture-in-transition Die französische Ratspräsidentschaft hat das sogenannte “carbon farming” zu einem Schwerpunkt gemacht. Was … Read more

Much ado about nothing: Angelika Hilbeck interviewed on the promises of genome editing

by

The German magazine Spektrum interviews ENSSER board member Angelika Hilbeck (in German) about the promises of genome editing for agriculture, under the title (translated) “This branch lives on making much ado about nothing”. The interview has also been translated into French and published by Les Amis de la Terre des Landes (Friends of the Earth).

Broadening the GMO risk assessment in the EU for genome editing technologies in agriculture

by

By Katharina Kawall, Janet Cotter & Christoph Then Environmental Sciences Europe volume 32, Article number: 106 (2020)   Abstract Genome editing techniques, especially the CRISPR/Cas technology, increase the possibilities and the speed of altering genetic material in organisms. So-called genome editing is increasingly being used to achieve agriculturally relevant novel traits and/or genetic combinations in … Read more

Report – Gene-edited organisms in agriculture: risks and unexpected consequences

by

In recent years, there has been much discussion of how gene editing techniques, such as CRISPR, can broaden the scope of genetic engineering in agriculture. However, it’s becoming clear that gene editing techniques are error prone. This new report from Friends of the Earth U.S., cowritten by ENSSER member Janet Cotter, compiles the growing evidence … Read more