Ukraine crisis: European Commission must stay on course with Farm to Fork Strategy

 

Food awareness organisation ProVeg International has today signed a joint open letter with other NGOs calling on the European Commission to stick to the course laid out in the Farm to Fork Strategy of shifting Europe towards healthy and environmentally friendly farming practices.

The letter is a response to voices within the farming industry and the European Commission itself suggesting that the strategy should be revisited in light of the war in Ukraine and the food security concerns raised by the conflict. 

More than 85 national and international organisations have signed the letter urging the European Commission not to water down the strategy.

The letter comes as a reaction to the statement by EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski that “if food security is in danger, then we need to have another look at the objectives of the Farm to Fork strategy and correct them”. We believe the opposite to be true: the crisis in Ukraine is yet another reminder of how essential it is to implement the Green Deal and its Farm to Fork and Biodiversity Strategies.

“We must stick to the path that has been set out in the Farm to Fork Strategy,” said ProVeg Vice President Jasmijn de Boo.

“The strategy is at the heart of the European Green Deal and is designed to make our food system resilient against crises such as wars, pandemics, and the climate crisis. Let’s not throw away the enormous effort that has gone into ensuring Europe’s food system is future-proofed.” 

The letter states that healthy, socially and environmentally friendly farming practices such as agroecology, organic farming, and agroforestry provide the only path to ensuring long-term food security, food sovereignty, and the overall sustainability of the food systems.

“We must turn away from intensive agriculture, industrial fisheries, and aquaculture,” it states.

The letter goes on to suggest that the transition towards agroecology should be combined with policies that foster a reduction in the production of industrially farmed animals and promote a shift towards small-scale extensive and animal-welfare-friendly practices  – through a just transition respectful of the right to farmers to have a fair income – while promoting healthier and more plant-based diets. 

The most recent IPCC report made it crystal clear that “while agricultural development contributes to food security, unsustainable agricultural expansion, driven in part by unbalanced diets, increases ecosystem and human vulnerability and leads to competition for land and/or water resources”. 

ENDS

 

Notes to Editors

Press release contacts:

Jasmijn de Boo at [email protected]

 

About ProVeg International

ProVeg is an international food awareness organisation working to transform the global food system by replacing conventional animal-based products with plant-based and cultured alternatives.

ProVeg works with international decision-making bodies, governments, food producers, investors, the media, and the general public to help the world transition to a society and economy that are less dependent on animal agriculture and more sustainable for humans, animals, and our planet.

ProVeg has permanent-observer status with the UNFCCC, is accredited for UNEA, and has received the United Nations’ Momentum for Change Award.

 

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