Antitrust: Commission invites comments on draft Guidelines for sustainability agreements in agriculture

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission today launched a public consultation inviting all interested parties to comment on its draft proposal for Guidelines on how to design sustainability agreements in the field of agriculture (‘Guidelines’) using the novel exclusion from EU competition rules introduced during the recent […]

New Common Agricultural Policy: set for 1 January 2023

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The approval of all 28 Strategic Plans (one for each EU country and two for Belgium) by the European Commission marks the start of the new Common Agricultural Policy, scheduled on 1 January 2023. €264 billion of EU funding will support European farmers in […]

How India can finance and scale digital innovations in agriculture

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Arindom Datta, Executive Director & Head, Rural and Development Banking/Advisory, Rabobank India, Abhay Pareek, Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution for Agriculture, World Economic Forum, India India’s agriculture sector is expected to sustain income for 100 million smallholders while facing […]

Can crops grow better under solar panels? Here’s all you need to know about ‘agrivoltaic farming’

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Stephen Hall, Writer, Formative Content Agrivoltaic farming is the practice of growing crops underneath solar panels. Scientific studies show some crops thrive when grown in this way. Doubling up on land use in this way could help feed […]

Commission proposes a temporary short-term derogation from certain agricultural policy rules to increase the production of cereals

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Following a request from EU Member States, the Commission is proposing today a temporary short-term derogation from rules on crop rotation and maintenance of non-productive features on arable land. The impact of such measure will depend on the choice made by Member States and […]

Millions of India’s smallholder farmers could soon access carbon credits — that’s good for them and the planet

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Dhruv Sawhney, COO and Business Head, nurture.farm Farming sustains half of India’s 1.4 billion population but is also a major contributor of greenhouse gases and pollution. Tech-fuelled initiatives are helping to sink and offset India’s sizeable carbon in […]

For secure, nature-positive food systems, Europe must invest in farmers

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Lisa Sweet, Head of Future of Protein, COVID Response, and Food-Health, World Economic Forum & Alexia Semov, Community Lead, Food Nature, World Economic Forum Short-term plans to prop up European food security must not come at the expense […]

How farming innovations can feed the world and protect the planet

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: J. Erik Fyrwald, Chief Executive Officer, Syngenta Group Approximately 40% of the global population cannot afford a healthy diet. Agriculture industry is vulnerable to climate impacts, making it harder to support a growing population. Innovative technologies and practices […]

MEPs endorse EU citizens’ call for gradual end to caged farming

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. Caged animal farming could be phased out in the European Union by 2027, say MEPs. In their response to the “End the Cage Age” European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI), MEPs asked the EU Commission to come up with legislative proposals to ban caged farming in […]

State aid: Commission publishes results of evaluation of EU State aid rules for agriculture, forestry and rural areas

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has published a Commission Staff Working Document summarising the results of an evaluation of the State aid rules for the agriculture and forestry sectors and for rural areas. The evaluation concludes that, overall, the existing rules work well, are fit for […]

How carbon-smart farming can feed us and fight climate change at the same time

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Poornima Parameswaran, Co-founder and VP of Science Technology and Innovation , Trace Genomics Soil is one of the least understood and untapped defenses against climate change. Soil is an efficient carbon sink. Switching to carbon-smart farming will help us […]

This farmer is saving the jungle by growing food in it

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Joe Myers, Writer, Formative Content “My dream is to create a sustainable farm, this is my work.” Alexander Retana is a farmer with a different kind of farm. His – where he grows around 22 different crops from bananas […]

Modern farming is harming the planet. Tech-driven permaculture could heal it

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Viktor Weber, Founder & Director, Future Real Estate Institute Healthy soil leads to healthy humans. Sir Albert Howard, one of the forethinkers of organic agriculture and composting, explored this link in the early 20th century. Sir Albert recognized soil […]

New state aid rules: Commission increases national support to farmers up to €25,000

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The ceiling for national support to farmers will rise significantly, allowing greater flexibility and efficiency, notably in times of crisis and situations demanding a swift response by the public authorities. Today the Commission has adopted revised rules on state aid in the agriculture sector […]

What is hydroponics – and is it the future of farming?

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Sean Fleming, Senior Writer, Formative Content While industrialized farming techniques have meant a more plentiful supply of cheaper, fresher food – most notably in the developed world – they can also be a threat to the environment, promoting waste, […]

Abandoned mines could become the farms of the future

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: John McKenna, Formative Content Coal mines and inner-city tunnels could be transformed into farms to help feed the planet’s growing population. Academics are exploring the use of abandoned mines and other subterranean facilities in the UK and China as […]

Fertilisers/cadmium: Parliament and Council negotiators reach provisional deal

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. New rules easing access to the EU single market for fertilisers made from organic or recycled materials and setting limits for cadmium were agreed on Tuesday. Internal Market Committee rapporteur, Mihai Ţurcanu (EPP, RO), said: “I am pleased that today we finally reached a […]

Food supply chain: A step closer to ending unfair trading

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. Parliament approved on Thursday its negotiating mandate for a new EU law to do away with unfair trading in the food supply chain. The Parliament’s negotiating team has now received a green light to start negotiating with the Council’s Austrian Presidency on the final […]

Can indoor farming feed the world?

This article is brought to you thanks to the strategic cooperation of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Matt Barnard, Chief Executive Officer, Plenty When the earth calls on us, as its tenants we have to listen. From the invention of the steel plow in 1837, to the industry-altering tractor in 1892, right down to more […]

The Fourth Industrial Revolution must not leave farming behind

This article is brought to you thanks to the strategic cooperation of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Grahame Dixie, Executive Director, Grow Asia The Fourth Industrial Revolution has disrupted industry after industry. Better information flows, lower transaction costs and faster communication have made doing business easier and more efficient, and have proven to be major […]