Review of events

Last April, 18 European project partners of the OrganicAdviceNetwork project met for three days planning the first steps to set-up and roll out a European network of advisors specialised in organic to strengthen organic advisory services.  

Creating and animating a European network 

OrganicAdviceNetwork will organise 30 cross-visits with seasoned organic advisors and advisors interested in organic. They will visit sites relevant to advisors across five geographical zones and across topics: 20 visits for arable and ruminant and 10 for vegetable, fruit and viticulture sectors. The network will also develop continuous knowledge exchange activities ranging from soft skills trainings to online training modules on diverse agricultural topics to support both new and experienced organic advisors. 

The project will pay attention to conventional advisors and young graduates interested in acquiring skills in organic practices and advice. 

Strengthening organic advisory services 

Besides building a network and exchanging, the project will identify and promote successful business models for structuring and financing organic advisory services through an “Organic Advice Contest”. 

Read more in the project’s press release and watch the OrganicAdviceNetwork launch video. 

About the OrganicAdviceNetwork 

The OrganicAdviceNetwork project will create and animate a network of advisors and advisory services for the organic sector across Europe. It will do so via in-person and online trainings and courses on a wide variety or agricultural topics to help conventional advisors or young graduates interested in becoming organic advisors. Organic advisors with different levels of experience will exchange with their peers. The project will also research the finance and business-side of establishing a European network of organic advisory services.  

Advisory services from 14 European countries are involved in the project but all types of organic advisors and advisory services willing to join the network and/or attend the trainings are very welcome!  

As IFOAM Organics Europe we lead on this project. For more information, please contact [email protected] and [email protected]. 

Joanna Wierzbicka, Deputy Director at IFOAM Organics Europe and in charge of Strategic Initiatives, was invited to speak at the Natural Food Expo in London on 15 April 2024. The fair attracted thousands of retailers, category buyers, distributors, and exporters, covering over 500 natural and organic brands, with a significant presence of European exhibitors.

Joined by other experts such as Alex Cullen, Commercial & Marketing Director at Soil Association Certification, Anton Järild, Communication Strategist at Organic Sweden, and Hannah Gibs, Programme Manager at Sustain, the panel our Deputy Director was part of explored the trends shaping the European organic market. The panel also delved into the opportunities and challenges of organic industry growth in the UK. The conversation yielded valuable insights into supporting the organic sector and promoting an industry wide vision, making organic products accessible and affordable for all.

The 3^rd LiveSeeding online workshop on Organic Heterogeneous Material (or OHM) united almost 50 participants. Stakeholders from across Europe, ranging from researchers, breeders and seed producers to public authorities met on 29 April 2024 to take a step back and discuss challenges in OHM development, marketing and policies.

What is Organic Heterogeneous Material?

OHM refers to a genetically and phenotypically diverse plant grouping of a single plant species, e.g. wheat or maize, produced in accordance with Article 3 of the EU Organic Regulation. In contrast to varieties, variety mixtures or synthetic varieties, OHM is characterized by its dynamic nature to evolve and adapt to different growing conditions due to repeated natural and human selection.

Discussing common OHM issues across professions

The 3^rd OHM workshop discussed some of the shared challenges stakeholders are facing when it comes to OHM development, marketing and the policy framework.

In four presentations, experts in their respective fields introduced the following topics:

• EU policy developments: Our colleague Ilsa Phillips updated attendees on policy developments within the trialogue negotiations of the EU proposal on plant reproductive material;
• OHM value chains: Dr Odette Weedon from Kassel University presented the results of a research project studying examples of OHM value chains for bread baking in Germany;
• Traceability: Diego Guidotti from Aedit covered digital tools for managing OHM traceability developed within the LiveSeeding project;
• Market uptake: Sebastian Kussmann from the organic breeding initiative GZPK (Switzerland) concluded with an overview of first results on his survey on opportunities and challenges of the market uptake of OHM.

Following these introductions, participants took a deep dive into their concrete challenges and experiences with OHM in three breakout rooms. Among the breakout groups’s highlights:

• It is important to engage new partners in OHM development, seed production and marketing and clarify open policy questions, e.g., the responsible authorities for official seed controls;
• Stakeholders should work together to demonstrate the credibility and potential of the OHM concept;
• Often opposing concerns, e.g., there are too many or too few options to register intellectual property rights on OHM, need to be actively addressed;
• Modular solutions adapted to specific situations should be possible;
• On policies, partners interested in OHM should remain active in their countries – especially at this stage of the trialogue negotiations – ensuring an optimal policy framework for OHM.

The presentations of the two previous OHM workshops are available on LiveSeeding’s YouTube channel.

About LiveSeeding

LiveSeeding is a 4-year Innovation Action on organic seed and plant breeding to accelerate sustainable and diverse food systems in Europe, which started in October 2022. It provides science-based evidence and best practice solutions to help achieve 100 % organic seed. The project has a budget of 6.6 million Euro, funded by the European Union, the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). To deliver on such an ambitious goal, LiveSeeding brings together 37 organisations from a wide range of sectors operating in 16 European countries.

Learn more about and follow the project on www.liveseeding.eu, LinkedIn, X and Facebook.

For two days, our members of the high-level retailers’ group (IGOR) met in Italy. Invited by EcorNaturasi they visited the facilities of the Italian pioneer in Bologna and Conegliano and learned more about their vision for agriculture and food retail.

Exchanging on retails’ role in sustainability

Members of the high-level IGOR exchanged on the organic movement’s vision and considered how retailers can play their part in making the agri-food system more sustainable. They looked at different angles of this question from supporting organic farmers in times of crisis to engaging customers so they can play a more active role in the much-needed transition to sustainable agrifood systems.

Visiting high-tech facilities and farms

While EcorNaturasi is firmly looking ahead and investing in modern technologies improving organic food retail, it remembers the organic movement’s principles. After visiting the company’s facilities of Bologna, the participants visited the Conegliano farm of one EcorNaturasi’s Presidents, which produces high-quality wines and cheese.

The group also visited a second farm in San Michele, supported by EcorNaturasi as part of their vision to ease farmers’ access to lands and provide them with the technical and financial support to do so – on the condition that they engage in organic farming. San Michele farm is a perfect example of a farm operating with nature, managing an adequate number of animals to work in harmony with the natural ecosystems of the land. The farm is producing different type of cheese and milk and selling this directly on the farm.

About our IGOR

IFOAM Organics Europe’s Interest Group of Organic Retailers (IGOR) is one of IFOAM Organics Europe’s four interest groups. Our interest groups provide direct input from the different sectors in IFOAM Organics Europe’s organisation. They formulate policies and positions relevant to their sector.

IFOAM Organics Europe’s members can access a list of its current members and the terms of reference on the member extranet.

Are you an IFOAM Organics Europe member who is:

• Active in processing and/or trade interested to become part of the IGOP? Contact [email protected];
• Having issues accessing the member extranet? Contact [email protected].

Are you interested in becoming part of the IGOP? You have to be a member of IFOAM Organics Europe to do so. Contact [email protected] for details.

For this year’s annual meeting, our interest group of organic farmers (IGOF) gathered in Switzerland on 2- 3 May. Bio Suisse graciously hosted this annual meeting attended by organic farmers’ organisations from all over Europe. On the agenda: electing a new steering committee, discussing the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and, of course visiting local organic farms.

Day 1: Electing a new steering committee & discussing the CAP

The first day took place in Frick, at the facilities of the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL). The IGOF learned more about Bio Suisse and their strategy to develop organic in Switzerland. It was particularly insightful to see how they operate, influenced by the EU but anchored in the Suisse national context. In Switzerland the “bud”, Bio Suisse’s label is a symbol going beyond the organic regulation. The group also learned about FiBL, its research, concrete outputs and processes related to the projects – including ongoing work on improving plants’ natural resistance through innovative breeding techniques and new varieties.

A new steering committee

After, the IGOF elected the following five (dual) applications to be the interest group’s steering committee:

• Michael Kjerkegaard: An organic cattle farmer and new chair of Organic Denmark;
• Aina Calafat Rogers & Isabel González:
  – Aina works for Sociedad Española de Agricultura Ecológica y Agroecología (SEAE) and is part-time farmer and seed producer in Mallorca;
  – Isabel González is an organic cattle farmer from the North of Spain;
• Hans Bartelme and Lea Ilgeroth-Hiadzi:
  – Hans is an organic farmer, producing eggs and pig meat and cultivating soy, wheat, spelt, triticale and rye;
  – Lea is policy consultant at Naturland;
• Katerina Urbankova: Manager of PRO-BIO Association of Organic Farmers in the Czech Republic;
• Fiona Marty and Hugues Loury:
  – Hugues Loury is an organic dairy farmer in Northwest of France;
  – Fiona is European affairs officer at the French organic farmers’ association (FNAB).

The CAP post-2027

Following the elections, the group had long talks about the European organic movement’s position and next vision of the CAP post-2027. This process kicked off during the IGOF’s 2023 annual meeting after which they continued discussions in two online plenaries. In Switzerland the subgroup of farmers who prioritised the topic could present their work and discuss it with all members of the interest group.

What does the organic movement want for the next CAP? In June 2024, IFOAM Organics Europe’s internal democratic decision-making process is reviewing the concrete proposal, but these are the principles for the CAP post-2027:

• The CAP needs to build upon existing sustainable farming systems, organic on top. The CAP reform should enable a wide transition towards agroecological systems, building up on existing systems;
• Organic farming is the only legally regulated systemic agricultural approach and the most advanced sustainable farming system to benefit of legal protection. So, the CAP’s new structure should favour organic farming as the only legally regulated agroecological system in the EU;
• Introduce a whole-farm approach as CAP pillar. The future CAP should end the distribution of untargeted payments that are only conditioned by single practices measures. It does not make sense to compare a systemic approach like organic farming with single practices like the current CAP does. A whole-farm approach is the incentive for farmers to engage in a systemic transition and reward those already engaged;
• A new approach to basic income to ensure a better redistribution of the CAP funding  Because the current market and power imbalances in the agrifood supply chain, farmers cannot make a living from their work. Because of the current market and imbalances of power in the agri-food supply chain, farmers cannot make a living from their work. The new CAP should address this, notable by strengthening the Common Organisation of Markets Regulation and an ambitious revision of the Unfair Trading Practices Directive. However, while these measures are established and implemented, it is crucial to provide farmers with a safe, stable income so they can project and invest in the future. Therefore, IFOAM Organics Europe recognize the need for a basic income but proposes a change of metric in the calculation, since the hectare metric showed its shortcomings and does not favour an ambitions redistribution, whether in terms of the fund distribution for the farms but also for the repartition of funds between basic income and environmental measures.

Day 2: Farm visits

The next day, the group had the chance to meet and visit the farm of Urs Brändill, President of Bio Suisse, a dairy farm in the north of Zurich. Urs presented its farm, now operated and modernized by his son while his daughter in law was hosting a group of children in the farm as part of a project. Every Friday morning, children can come to the farm rather than childcare centre, to reconnect kids to the farms and the food they eat.

Urs discussed Bio Suisse’s relationship with Coop, one of the main retailers of Switzerland and emphasised the benefits of this cooperation for both sides. Bio Suisse is also engaged in protecting its farmers since it provides support and help when it comes to business negotiations, technical support on market prices, etc. He then received an award from Ecovalia for the work Bio Suisse does. Ecovalia organised a ceremony in Spain to reward organic actors for their outstanding work in the organic sector. Bio Suisse was rewarded for their work on setting and ensuring social standards in organic production.

Finally, the group finished this meeting by visiting the vineyard Weingut Besson-Strasser, a biodynamic vineyard producing one of the best quality wines of Switzerland. Here, the group saw the work realized on choosing the right varieties, especially local varieties of wine offering a better resilience in case of climatic events. The challenges experienced by the vineyard were also mentioned, whether in terms of the use of copper to protect the plants, or other traditional techniques used that are showing great results against the frost. The vineyard is exporting a significant share of its wine, while it can also be bought directly on the farm, also during some events (tasting, dinners organized). This farm shows a great example of diversification of the farm activities since it’s managing everything from the production, processing and selling of its products.

We would like to thank all farmers who took the time off at their farms to make this into a successful meeting engaged in making Europe more organic!

About our IGOF

IFOAM Organics Europe’s Interest Group of Organic Farmers (IGOF) is one of IFOAM Organics Europe’s four interest groups. Our interest groups provide direct input from the different sectors in IFOAM Organics Europe’s organisation. They formulate policies and positions relevant to their sector.

IFOAM Organics Europe’s members can access a list of its current members and the terms of reference on the member extranet. 

Are you an IFOAM Organics Europe member who is: 

• An organic farmer interested to become part of the IGOF? Contact [email protected]; 
• Having issues accessing the member extranet? Contact [email protected]. 

Are you interested in becoming part of the IGOF? You have to be a member of IFOAM Organics Europe to do so. Contact [email protected] for details.

From 11-19 May, IFOAM Organics Europe’s President, Jan Plagge and Director, Eduardo Cuoco were in the US at the Organic Week. Besides attending and speaking at this event, they reconnected with the American organic movement and had dense agenda. 

Connecting with a pioneer: The Rodale Institute 

During their stay our President and Director called on the Rodale Institute, a Pennsylvania-based non-profit institution working on organic farming research since its founding in 1947. Together with CEO Jeff Tkach, and Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Andrew Smith they inspected the long-term Farming Systems Trial, which has been researching organic and conventional farming practices over the past 43 years. 

The trial’s data showcased how organic yields can match conventional ones and that an organic manure system is the most profitable one. They also exchanged on organic and regenerative organic agriculture, and how it can transform the food system. 

Sharing an EU perspective at the American Organic Week 

On the first day of the Organic Week, our President and Director meet with key stakeholders in the North American organic sector, such as the University of Wisconsin, Whole Foods Market, and the Canada Organic Trade Association.  

On day 1, our President Jan Plagge spoke at the Organic Week on Organic export opportunities & challenges together with Sarah Gorman (Organic Trade Association), Chris Anderson (Sustainable Strategies Advisor), and Tia Loftsgard (Canada Organic Trade Association). During his speech, Mr Plagge highlighted the importance of good trade and equivalency agreements to favour the import and export of organic products and the development of organic markets. Later they attended an award ceremony recognising leading individuals in organic for their work in developing USA organic. 

On day 2, our Director Eduardo Cuoco inspired the audience on Ambitious Goals: Learning from Europe’s Organic Action Plan providing an overview of the EU’s strategy and policies set in place to reach the EU Green Deal & EU Farm to Fork’s objective of 25% agricultural land under organic management by 2030. He discussed the “push and pull” measures to boost both production and consumption and took stock of where the EU is at and what the challenges are ahead.  

Jan Plagge also took the time to interview Bob and Chris Anderson, two of the first organic farmers in the US who have had an important influence on organic initiatives in the states.  

We hope this visit will lay the basis for stronger overseas cooperation and build a shared vision for organic. 

On 31 May, the NGOs who are part of the Good Food Good Farming coalition gathered in Brussels for its annual gathering. For one day, several national coalitions and Brussels-based organisations discussed the Common Agricultural Policy and the different roles and learnings of the farmers’ protests. They learned about the current CAP’s revision – from its implementation until the last reform – from experts like Natasha Foote (Arc2020) and Andrzej Nowakowski (The Greens/EFA) and got critical insights from a mixed panel of farmers and environmental NGOs. The coalition’s work monitoring changes of the CAP Strategic Plans will continue. As IFOAM Organics Europe we will of focus on the changes impacting organic farmers.   

We can’t eat promises! On Saturday 1 June, some of our staff attended a demonstration calling for both climate action and a fair transition of our agri-food systems. Along with NGOs and grassroots movements, all participants gathered at Place de l’Albertine in Brussels, urging politicians to improve farmers’ conditions, halt environmental rollbacks, and strengthen climate policies.  

Good Food Good Farming (GFGF) and Climate Action Network Europe (CAN Europe) organised the demonstration  uniting environmental and agrifood movements ahead of the EU elections. It was a highlight in Good Food Good Farming’s months-long campaign to keep food and farming on the agenda of the EU elections on June 6-9. Since January 2024, GFGF representatives from 27 EU countries have hosted events including film screenings, panel discussions and farm visits to raise awareness about the huge influence European politics have on our food and farming systems and the critical nature of the elections.  

Read Arc2020’s report about the demonstration. 

Annual action month 

October, Europe 

Since 2018, every October marks Good Food Good Farming Action Days . Groups and initiatives active on agri-food topics from across Europe organise a local event and become part of a broad movement at the same time.  

There are no strict rules for the event, everything that is related to good food and farming works: a harvest festival, seed fair, film screening, farm-visit, picnic, protest or public discussion – everything is welcome! 

Interested to join? Is it simple: Register your event via an online form (available over the summer). Your event and all the others will be available on an interactive map, a great opportunity to make noise around your own demands for European #GoodFoodGoodFarming! 

About Good Food Good Farming 

The alliance Good Food Good Farming (GFGF) campaigns for sustainable food and farming across Europe. Since 2023 it focuses on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) and the Sustainable Food Systems law (SFS). The campaign organises annual European Days of Action 1-31 October. Are you interested to learn more or take part? Subscribe to the GFGF newsletter or find your national contact for the Good Food Good Farming alliance.