EIT Food West’s Post

🚨 More than 130 organisations have just called for an EU Action Plan on Plant-based Foods by 2026 🚨 The groups, representing farmers, health professionals, consumers, animal welfare and environmental interests, signed a joint statement addressed to EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansen. Signatories, which included BEUC - The European Consumer Organisation, European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) and Freshfel Europe said an EU Action Plan for Plant-based Foods would: 🫘 Help the EU achieve strategic autonomy in proteins 🚜 Provide new business opportunities for farmers 🏥 Improve health 🌍 Protect the climate and environment 💶 Save money ♻️ Strengthen policy coherence The signatories want the Commissioner to make sure the development of the Plan is included in the Vision for the Future of Agriculture and Food, which is expected in late February. They say a plan, delivered by the end of the year, could: ⚖️ Help put plant-based foods on a more equal footing with animal farming 🇪🇺 Strengthen Europe's strategic autonomy and food security 🚜 Provide supported diversification for farmers Read their joint position below 👇 #SustainableFood #ClimateChange #PlantBased

🌍 New Scientific Publications to Foster Sustainability! 🌱 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐱𝐭: How small dietary changes can make a big positive impact for Planet? 🌍✨ I am glad to share newly published paper with pioneers. Using the recently extended Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) framework, which include animal welfare and human health indicators, an analysis was done to identify food consumption in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolis in Germany. This study also highlights the power of utilizing regional data with digital participation to promote sustainability (#Digitainability), fostering climate action through collaborative actions. 𝐖𝐡𝐲: 🌡️ Meat products: Top contributors to climate change and acidification. 🐟 Fish/seafood: Major sources of animal welfare loss. ⚠️ Sodium: Leading risk factor for life minutes lost. 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 & 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭:   Our optimized dietary scenarios show: 🌿 55% reduction in GHG emissions 💪 25% improvement in health indicators 🐾 52-97% reduction in animal welfare loss A shift to flexitarian and vegetarian diets can drive these changes, aligning with the EU Green Deal. Co-Authors: Juliana Minetto Gellert Paris, Neus Escobar, Timo Falkenberg, Christine Heinzel, Eliseu Verly Junior, Olivier Jolliet, Christian Borgemeister, Ute Nöthlings Link to Article in comments. #Sustainability #LCA #HealthAndWelfare #EUGreenDeal #DietaryShifts #OneHealth #EnvironmentalImpact #AnimalWelfare #FutureOfFood

A Europe where good food is accessible 👏 A Europe where good food is affordable 👏 A Europe where good food is sustainable 👏 Christophe Hansen, YOU could help make this version of Europe a reality by supporting a shift to a more plant-based future. By developing an EU Action Plan for #PlantBased Foods by 2026 with the European Commission, you could support the competitiveness and resilience of the EU’s food systems and its climate and environmental targets, as well as improve animal welfare, public health, and more 🌎🌱 The benefits are seemingly endless… and the time to act is now. Concrete steps to more #SustainableFoodSystems are needed now more than ever, and it’s in your power to take them. 🖋️ Feedback EU, alongside over 130 organisations, has signed a joint open letter urging Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen to develop an EU Action Plan for Plant-Based Foods by 2026, read more here: https://lnkd.in/dtxrSsap BEUC - The European Consumer Organisation IFOAM Organics Europe European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) Eurogroup for Animals European Heart Network (EHN) Fern NGO European Vegetarian Union Greenpeace International Madre Brava The European Institute for Animal Law & Policy Physicians Association for Nutrition (PAN) International Foundation European Environmental Bureau

One Health promotes sustainable production practices to maintain a healthy and balanced ecosystem. How animal production interacts with the environment influences the quality of human food.   Therefore, animals must be free from pathogens and contaminants to ensure food safety, prevent diseases, and maintain profitable production.   Interested in understanding how the concept of One Health can help increase the health of production animals and balance the ecosystem? Read our article: https://lnkd.in/dPa45MKi #Biorigin #OneHealth

Sneak Peek of today's episode 🌱🍴 In today's episode, our host Pam Leinmiller speaks with Chris Bryant, Director of Bryant Research, about the protein transition and social dimensions of food production. 📊 Key Takeaways from the episode: - The importance of reducing meat consumption for environmental, health, and ethical reasons 🌎 - The impact of institutional advocacy on animal welfare policies 🐾 - How alternative proteins can reduce cognitive dissonance and promote sustainable food choices - The challenges in animal welfare and industrial farming, and the need for independent certification 🚨 - The role of motivated reasoning in shaping consumer perceptions of meat and animal products 🧠 - The environmental and health benefits of plant-based and cultivated meat alternatives - The need for a reliable, government-led certification system for animal welfare 📜 - The economic and social implications of large-scale industrial farming on small farmers and rural communities 🌾 - The importance of understanding consumer behaviour and policy in driving the protein transition 📈 Tune in to the whole episode to learn more! Link shared in the comment section below 👇 #foodIndustry #AgriTech #FoodScience #Nutrition #Wellness #sustainability

Hello all! I'm thrilled to share my Certificate of Completion for the Vegan Outreach Webinar - Food Planet Health. This informative webinar enlightened me on the significant effects of our food choices on animal welfare and the environment. When it comes to the impact of food choices on animals and the environment, it's crucial to consider how our decisions can influence both aspects. Our food choices directly impact the welfare of animals in the food production industry. Opting for plant-based and sustainable food options can promote animal welfare and reduce the negative environmental effects associated with livestock farming. By choosing locally sourced, organic, and plant-based foods, we can contribute to a more ethical and environmentally friendly food system. It's all about making conscious choices that benefit both animals and the planet🌱🐾 I'm grateful for the knowledge gained and excited to apply it in making sustainable and compassionate choices.🌱🐾 #vegan #plantbasedproducts #saveenvironment #saveanimals

👉🏻 We would like to bring to your attention an interesting article that examines the impact of livestock production on the environment, human health, and animal welfare, suggesting that plant-based diets could offer significant benefits. It evaluates five plant-based diets (Mediterranean, flexitarian, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian) using two metrics. The study emphasizes the importance of a holistic approach to promoting sustainable diets in high-income countries. 📖 Title: What should we eat? Realistic solutions for reducing our food footprint ✍🏻 Author(s): N. Allenden, D. W. Hine, B. M. Craig, A. L. Cowie, P. D. McGreevy and A. D. Lykins. 🗓️ Year of publication: 2022 🔗 Link to the full article: https://lnkd.in/dCPwfnuG #ProsocialClima #climatemitigationbehaviors #environmentandclimatechange

📖 While you are enjoying the summer holidays, we would like to offer you an interesting and insightful paper about food security: «Food insecurity is a serious and immediate concern for the world due to challenges including overpopulation; conflicts; animal, plant, and human diseases; climate change; depletion of resources; and environmental degradation. Long-term solutions for food production must consider the impacts on the environment, water and other resources, human and animal health, and sustainable crop production. The fundamental cause of food insecurity is the rapid and unprecedented increase in human population from approximately 2 billion people in 1925 to over 8 billion in 2023. The need for food has led to major expansion of both crop and food animal production including movement into new areas; increased production requires more resources, some of which are being depleted. This paper focuses on food animal production. Humans depend on three major species for most animal-origin food: Chickens (meat and eggs), cattle (meat and milk), and swine (meat). Each species is currently threatened by diseases that can rapidly spread internationally, and some have zoonotic potential. Diversification of animal-based food, such as expanding aquaculture can help to protect against food shortages should an epizootic occur in one or more of the above species. Cutting-edge science is needed to improve food animal production and pathogen control. This requires an interdisciplinary one-world, one-health approach led by international organizations and funded by the developed world. An optimal response will involve scientists and policy experts from government, the private sector, and universities worldwide. Strengthening all nations' public health infrastructure and veterinary services is essential to this aim. Fortunately, concerns about worldwide food security are concurrent with rapid advances in nearly all aspects of science, which can be applied to sustainably increase food production both locally and globally. There must be a collective will to apply science and to implement policies to solve current food security problems and to prepare for future challenges.» 👉 Read the paper here: https://lnkd.in/e77XA8ju #learnwithfoster #foster #fosterproject #fosteringfoodsystem #innovation #horizoneuropefoster #citizenscience #citizen #food #foodscience #societyfood #horizonproject #horizon #policy #foodpolicy #governance #knowledgesharing #news #knowledgeinnovation #governance #experts

Next week I will be in Brussels alongside my colleague and dear friend Philip Lymbery for Eurogroup for Animals and Compassion in World Farming's joint event “From Dialogue to Vision to Action”. Register here: https://lnkd.in/dZaHVKaZ This will be a great opportunity to continue the discussion of the Strategic Dialogue and we truly believe that we have a unique opportunity now to build on that consensus and take tangible steps towards a future where the needs of animals, people, and our planet are truly aligned because, quite simply, time is running out. This joint event is more than just a conversation. It’s a platform for action, bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, and civil society to ensure a transition to more sustainable food systems. Among the speakers: - Animal Welfare Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi - MEP Annalisa Corrado (Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament) - Emma Calvert, Food Policy Officer at BEUC - The European Consumer Organisation - Maria Gafo Gomez-Zamalloa, Head of Unit - B3 (Social Sustainability) DG Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) - Miguel Ángel Higuera, Animal Health and Welfare Chair, COPA COGECA We will be also presenting our own vision with key priorities for the upcoming EU’s vision on agriculture and food expected this month. It is vital that animal welfare becomes a cornerstone of this vision, to create a sustainable, competitive and resilient agrifood system. Register here: https://lnkd.in/dZaHVKaZ

Causing dead zones, contaminating scarce water sources and harming people's health, #NutrientPollution - significantly from excessive and poorly managed Nitrogen and Phosphorus flows - poses a massive challenge across Europe⚠️💧 The EEB's water expert Sara Johansson is today at the 𝟱𝘁𝗵 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗣𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘂𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 #ESPC5 in Lleida, Spain, where a diverse mix, including researchers, farmer organisations, European Commission representatives, nutrient recovery technology providers - and the EEB have joined together to explore solutions to this growing problem💡🗣️ The good news? Many of the solutions are already there! EU governments must implement existing fit-for-purpose rules that protect water sources across Europe (namely the #WaterFrameworkDirective and the #NitratesDirective), and the European Commission must publish its promised Action Plan for nutrients in Europe #INMAP and enforce existing rules where needed! 🫵📃⚖️ With much of this problem originating from growing and out-of-control intensive animal rearing, EU policymakers must work to bring animal numbers to safe levels and promote shifts to healthier and sustainable diets! 🐷🥗🧑⚕️ Fresh evidence on why addressing #NutrientPollution is urgent ➡️ https://lnkd.in/euXFvhtR EEB positions: EU Integrated Nutrient Management Action Plan 👉 https://lnkd.in/e2dddzRQ Water (2024-2029) 👉 https://lnkd.in/ebcC6-TF Animal Welfare 👉 https://lnkd.in/epTpeUam Soil Health 👉 https://lnkd.in/eGhciFp6