Recent updates Archives - Page 34 of 86 - Agricultural and Rural Convention

Book Extract | Of Seeds and Land Seizures in Sicily

February 9, 2020 Helene Schulze

Platforming the dynamic ways rural Europe has responded the key challenges of this time, the new book by Forum Synergies is a call to get stuck in. Read the final chapter on how Sicilian youth have organised access to land for young people, how to confront political uncertainty, why to pay attention to seeds and the value of an experimental spirit. […]

Extrait de livre | La société civile face à un pouvoir caché

February 9, 2020 Helene Schulze

Un extrait du livre “L’EUROPE RURALE EN MOUVEMENT – Voyage aux pays des transitions”, édité par Forum Synergies, réseau européen de la société civile. Le chapitre final, écrit par Helene SCHULZE, traite de la Sicile. […]

Scotland | Organic Farming, Agroforestry Best for Emissions Reductions

February 6, 2020 Oliver Moore

Researchers studied 37 different measures to help Scottish Agriculture reduce its carbon footprint. Here’s what they found. […]

For Peat’s Sake – Paludiculture and a Wetter, Better CAP

February 3, 2020 Jan Peters

Fully functional, healthy peatlands are the most effective long-term carbon store and sink on the planet. But what sort of state are they in, and what role for agriculture and CAP. And just what is Paludiculture? Jan Peters and colleagues assess the terrain. […]

Wales | Joining the Real Food and Farming Conversation

February 2, 2020 ARC

The UK may have left the EU, but we will still maintain a focus on what’s happening there in food, farming and rural areas. In the spirit of cooperation, there will still be much to learn from each other. To this end, here’s a report from Wales on an event that’s emerged from the Oxford Real Farming Conference. […]

What Happened when an Archaeologist Started Goat Farming?

January 29, 2020 ARC

” I could analyze Big Data sets, linking changes in the physical landscape to natural and cultural processes, but how on earth a farmer knows where, when and what to plant remained a mystery. ” And so began an archaeologist’s trip into goat farming… […]

Rural Europe: Which Way to Go?

January 23, 2020 ARC

With the ongoing work on the CAP reform, Europe will have to respond to a wide range of new challenges, reflecting the ambitions of the EU Green Deal and Farm to Fork strategy. To this end, an event was held on 22nd January which took a rural perspective on what’s needed in the months and years ahead. […]

WHES2020 | 27,000 Take to Berlin’s Streets for a Better Farming and Food System

January 19, 2020 ARC

For the tenth year, tens of thousands have descended on central Berlin to demand changes in farming and food systems. This year, the 27,000 who turned up were focused on climate, a just transition for farmers, vetoing the EU Mercosur trade deal, and opposing many aspects of industrialised, corporate agriculture, from gene drives and pesticides to animal welfare and fairness for the global south. […]

Shifting Subsidies in Switzerland – the Clean Drinking Water Initiative.

January 12, 2020 Klaus Lanz

Switzerland is well known for holding referendums. A new one that’s coming up asks for a change in subsides to farmers, towards supporting more ecological priorities. If the Clean Drinking Water Initiative passes, payments will go to farmers who don’t use pesticides or antibiotics, and who carry lower livestock numbers on their farms. Klaus Lans has more. […]

Alan Matthews on the Current CAP process in Ireland

January 9, 2020 ARC

In this second of a two part series with Alan Matthews, we discuss his home country of Ireland and CAP. Oliver Moore speaks with Matthews on Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions; its increasing herd size, in particular in dairy; the success of the European Innovation Partnerships; the role of coops; issues facing the beef sector; diversification and more. […]

CETA Puts Pressure on Precautionary Principle, Glyphosate Implicated

January 9, 2020 Hans Wetzels

According to internal documents Canadian diplomats have used secret CETA-committees to weaken European regulation on glyphosate. Hans Wetzels reports. […]

China Invests in Montenegro – How are Farmer’s Impacted?

January 2, 2020 Hans Wetzels

Montenegro is investing heavily in a new highway to connect rural inlands with the coastal port city of Bar. But will farmers actually benefit from the hugely expensive project? Hans Wetzels has more. […]

The First and Last 10 years – Our ARChive and What’s Next

December 22, 2019 ARC

As we’re about to complete a decade – both ARC2020 and, well, everyone – please allow us to indulge in some retrospection. Don’t worry, we’ll also look forward too, to what should be an exciting 2020 and a defining decade. […]

How Gardeners are Reclaiming Agriculture from Industry, One Seed at a Time

December 19, 2019 ARC

Agriculture has changed significantly in the past century. Bigger machines, bigger farms and bigger budgets allow fewer farmers to produce more food. Changes in science and policy have also resulted in an industry in which power over what we grow and eat is increasingly held by very few. How have gardeners and seed savers responded? […]

Auditors – Measures to Stabilise Farmer Incomes have ‘limited effect’

December 17, 2019 Natasha Foote

The European Court of Auditors examined farmers income stablisation in a recent report. The findings were mixed, with direct payments, insurance, mutual funds all assessed. Many measures have failed to live up to expectations. What’s more, the uptake of these payments was found to be uneven, inefficient and, in some cases, unfair. And in some cases public aid and insurance may even be prolonging unsustainable practices. Natasha Foote has more. […]