Promotional Features
Sharing innovation for net zero gain
The European Union (EU) is committed to reaching ‘net zero' CO2 emissions by 2050. To achieve this ambitious target, the EU’s environment strategy involves a holistic approach that focuses on resource efficiency, a clean circular economy, biodiversity restoration and pollution reduction.
Across the Member States diverse initiatives are being rolled out that address each of the challenges, from an Irish beef and dairy farm working to become an economically viable, climate-neutral farm; to an initiative to analyse the entire production chains of French Comté PDO and Italian Grana Padano PDO cheeses and share learnings with dairy farms across the EU.
Simon Atkins, an industry professional for more than 35 years and advisor to the EU’s ‘More Than Only Food & Drink’ campaign, explains: “In the EU we are seeing a growing use of regenerative farming methods, such as cover crops and companion crops. These practices not only improve soil health but also reduce the demand for chemical fertilisers, promoting a more sustainable agricultural ecosystem.”
By 2030, the target is to reduce pesticides and microbials by 50% and reduce fertiliser use by 20% from 2020. From 2018 to 2022, there was an overall decrease of 46% in the use and risk of chemical pesticides from the baseline period of 2015-2017. And there was an overall decrease of 25% in the use of more hazardous pesticides from the same baseline period, showing that the target of 50% reduction by 2030 is achievable.
The EU aims to have 25% of EU agricultural land farmed organically by 2030, reflecting a strong commitment to sustainability and the health of the environment. In Austria, 25% of the agricultural land is already under organic practice, and Germany has set its sights on 30% organic farmland by 2030.
Shared examples offer leadership and analysis that farmers who are concerned about the cost and risks of transitioning to more sustainable practices can follow and replicate.
The Farm Zero C project in Co Cork, Ireland
This working farm was established in 2021 to prove that sustainability and profitability can go hand in hand – and it has remained in Ireland’s top 5-10% of farm profitability.
The project is co-led by a multinational dairy manufacturer, a research centre with support from partners and funds from Science Foundation Ireland and the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine.
The project simultaneously focuses on greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction and ways of improving biodiversity, water and air quality.
Initiatives taken include a grass bio-refinery, decreasing nitrogen emissions in manure and targeting methane and nitrous oxide emissions from slurry, the introduction of anti-methanogenic in the diets of livestock and carbon sequestration.
The farm investigated the use of a chemical additive on GHG emissions from stored slurry, finding that treating the slurry could reduce methane emissions by 80%.
Anti-methanogenic was also introduced to the animals’ diets, one such additive showed a consistency in methane reduction of 30% when added to the feed for dairy cows1.
All the environmental inputs and outputs are analysed, helping farmers and scientists to understand carbon emissions and where savings can be made.
Boosting and sustaining organic production in Germany
The Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) presented Germany’s 2030 Organic Strategy in Berlin. The objective is to establish a sustainable agricultural sector that enables economically viable farming practices, while also ensuring environmental, animal, and climate considerations are adequately addressed.
The 2030 Organic Strategy includes 30 measures that outline how the BMEL, in collaboration with key stakeholders, can eliminate current barriers. Implementing these measures will provide significant new stimuli that will sustainably enhance the organic agri-food sector throughout the entire value chain.
The 2030 Organic Strategy encompasses several key areas, some of these include:
● Enhancing production via robust organic breeding initiatives;
● Advancing organic processing facilities focused on sustainability to enhance organic value chains, particularly in rural areas;
● Aligning the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) with the objectives of sustainability, environmental protection, and climate change mitigation, while also emphasising the superior qualities of the organic agri-food sector;
● Enhancing communication and education regarding organic farming practices;
● Implementing organic farming practices as a policy strategy for the Global South to fulfil the human right to adequate food.
World’s first methane-powered tractor pioneered in Italy
An Italian company was the first in the world to produce a liquid methane-fuelled tractor. The latest model can utilise methane and biomethane derived from livestock and slurry. Because methane combusts more cleanly than fossil fuels, the tractor does not necessitate a catalytic converter, hence providing additional space for fuel and allowing farmers to operate for extended durations without refuelling.
Learning from the life cycles of two cheese giants
LIFE The Tough Get Going (TTGG) project was established in 2017 to examine cheese manufacturing in France and Italy, enhance supply chain efficiencies, and assess and mitigate the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) of cheese. The term ‘Tough’ in the project name pertains to hard and semi-hard cheeses, and the research aimed to assess the lifetime of two of the world's best-selling Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) cheeses: Comté PDO from France and Grana Padano PDO from Italy.
LIFE TTGG brought together universities, start-ups, manufacturing firms, national institutions, and research organisations to enhance cheese production efficiency, disseminate findings across Europe, mitigate environmental impact, and attain more sustainable production and consumption practices.
Software was implemented to create a Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) database that facilitates PEF calculations and to establish an Environmental Decision Support System (EDSS). The EDSS is accessible to makers of EU hard and semi-hard PDO cheeses derived from cow’s milk to assist in calculating their product's PEF and evaluating their environmental impact reduction.
The heart of agricultural innovation
There are many examples throughout Europe of the innovation driving the EU’s ambition to reach net zero carbon emissions. By consolidating the creative and experienced mindsets of farmers, scientists and academics throughout its Member States, the EU is well-positioned to spearhead global environmental measures.
For more information on sustainable agriculture in the EU visit https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/sustainability_en
For more information about the ‘More Than Only Food and Drink’ campaign visit the website.
Source:
1 Melgar et al., 2021; van Wesemael et al., 2019; Yu et al., 2021
