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COP 15 in Copenhagen: Time to question industrial agriculture

Categories

Food

Food & Water Europe Fact Sheet Details Damaging Impact of Industrial Agriculture

As world leaders gather in Copenhagen to discuss climate change and strategies to prevent and alleviate effects on our planet, Food & Water Europe remains acutely aware of half-hearted solutions that such meetings typically bring.  A new factsheet issued today by the consumer group focuses on the lack of willingness to address in a meaningful manner the impact of industrial agriculture on the climate.

It is time to question the prevailing model of agriculture, one that is based on monoculture and factory farming.  Large-scale animal operations, whether using pigs or cattle, release lots of methane, which is known to be detrimental to the climate.  Furthermore, they rely on soya-based animal feed, usually imported from overseas.  Not only does industrial monoculture soya production contribute to climate change in terms of deforestation of the Amazonian region, it also uses tremendous amounts of energy for processing and transport to reach livestock in Europe and other parts of the world.  Studies estimate that feedlot cattle require twice as much fossil fuel energy to raise as grass-fed cows.  Producing one pound of beef in a factory farm results in the by-product of eight pounds (3.6 kilograms) of carbon dioxide in addition to other greenhouse gases and using a tremendous amount of water.

Food processing takes its toll on the environment as well.  Globally, the food & drink sector use about 23 % of energy resources.  This energy can be saved if local, sustainable food solution based on family farms are promoted.  Locally rooted food production, respectful of biodiversity, animal welfare and fair income for farmers can cool down the earth

To learn more about the perils of industrial agriculture on our climate read the factsheet, Climate Change: It’s what’s for Dinner.

Food and Water Europe is the program of Food and Water Watch, Inc (a non-profit consumer NGO based in Washington, DC), working to ensure clean water and safe food in Europe and around the world.  We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink.

Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels

[email protected], +32488409662

Bluefin quotas are meaningless – EU misses another critical opportunity

Categories

Food

Statement of Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter

FWE today said that quotas to limit the catch of bluefin tuna will not be enough to help save these fish, and that stronger leadership from the EU would be supported by many worldwide.

(Brussels, Belgium)

“Attempts to prevent the extinction of the Atlantic bluefin tuna received another setback this week in the run up to the EU fisheries council meeting, when the EU-led meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) decided to lower the annual catch quota rather than institute a temporary catch ban. The new catch “limit” is 13,500 tons, but between chronic failure to enforce quotas and illegal fishing, this number is actually meaningless.

“The ICCAT could pick a number out of a hat and call it a quota for what it will matter to the bluefin tuna. In 2008 when the quota was already set 42% above scientific advice, it is estimated that the total catch was almost three times the set quota due to “pirate fishing.” [1] The Japanese food industry alone imported amounts of Atlantic bluefin tuna almost equalling the entire 2008 quota[2], and Japan is not the only market driving the demand that far outpaces supply. It’s quite incredible that there is no accountability for these short-term decisions or the failure to enforce them.

“We need the EU and US to act to halt trade in bluefin so that stocks can recover and collapse averted. A moratorium is the only clear way forward, but this is the second time this Autumn EU leadership has failed to secure one. This is no longer a political question, but an ecological and economic imperative, unless the EU wishes to admit it has abdicated responsibility in this area to illegal fishing.

“Genuine artisanal fishing communities will need support, and may need special dispensation to protect their way of life. This can and should be done, but the industrial trade in bluefin must be halted.

“It has been suggested that measures to halt the industrial trade in bluefin will lead to illegal fishing. If so, then this prediction should be used to step up monitoring and enforcement, not as an excuse not to act.”

“Atlantic bluefin tuna are both an emblematic conservation and culinary species, being an important part of Mediterranean ecosystem, and highly prized for sushi and sashimi. However, strong demand from Japan has fueled industrial and illegal fishing practices that have pushed the species to the brink of economic extinction – effectively disenfranchising sustainable artisanal fishermen in the process.

“Food and Water Europe supports artisanal and historic fishing and an exception for traditional catch in a few Mediterranean countries. Coastal fishing communities who practice artisanal methods have centuries of experience balancing their harvesting behavior against available resources for long term management. Once the fish stock is rebuilt, if fishing is once again permitted, it should be conducted in a sustainable manner that promotes the livelihoods of responsible artisanal fishermen. It is industrial and illegal fishing that is destroying the delicate balance of the ecosystem.

“The March 2010 CITES meeting of its 175 parties could vote to ban bluefin fishing, but this would require the EU bloc to reconsider its failure to support a temporary ban in September. That proposal was tabled by Monaco and backed by 21 EU Members, as well as the US, but faltered due to a lack of support from Mediterranean countries. Food and Water Europe urges both the EU and US to do what they can to persuade opposing countries to see that the future lies in working together and heeding expert advice to list bluefin tuna in Appendix I as an endangered species. [3]

Food and Water Europe is a project of Food and Water Watch, Inc (a non-profit consumer NGO based in Washington, DC) working to ensure clean water and safe food in Europe and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink.

Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels
[email protected], +32 488 409 662

Notes

[1] “2008 scientific recommendation 15,5000 tons, quota set at 22,000, with illegal fishing estimated to bring the total catch to some 61,000 tons.” See http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article5237057.ece.

[2] “About half of the 43,000 tons of bluefin tuna supplied to the Japanese market in 2008 was imported Atlantic bluefin.” See .

[3] See Food and Water Europe press release “EU Member States Fail to Protect Bluefin Tuna”, 24 September 2009 at .

Cargill Poses Threat to Consumer Health, the Environment and Human Rights, New Research Finds

Categories

Food

Food & Water Europe Fact Sheet Details Damaging Impact of Agribusiness Giant

(Brussels, Belgium) A new fact sheet issued today by consumer group Food & Water Europe examines how Cargill, the agribusiness giant and one of the key players in the global food market, is posing harm to consumer health, workers and the environment and causing food instability around the world. Cargill, a leading oilseed and grain processor and top U.S. meat packer, is the largest private company in the U.S., with 160,000 employees in 67 countries and operations in 21 European countries. Cargill seemingly escaped the economic downturn in 2008 by reporting sales of over 83 billion Euros and record profits of over 2.5 billion Euros, its sixth straight year of record-breaking earnings. However, recently, its net profit for the fourth fiscal quarter was down by 69 percent from the same period last year. Maybe it is time for Cargill to rethink its operations, since it benefited from the race in commodities prices which started in 2002, particularly in the last two years when food prices swelled.

Cargill has gained control over huge swaths of the world‚ agricultural system, and its ability to influence food prices is pushing millions of people around the world to the brink of starvation,” said Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter.

Key findings of the fact sheet include:

  • Cargill‚ record earnings in 2008 were driven by its ability to influence high grain and fertilizer prices that year, which, in turn, caused food instability around the world.
  • Cargill‚ operations pose a threat to the environment, and its operations in Brazil and Papua New Guinea have been liked to a number of destructive environmental practices, including clearing rainforests to expand its production of soya beans and palm oil.
  • Cargill is linked to questionable food technologies, including genetically modified crops and foods.
  • Cargill is linked to human rights violations, including forced child labour in its cotton operations in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and Central Asia and child slavery in its cocoa operations in Cote dIvoire.

Food and Water Europe is the program of Food and Water Watch, Inc (a non-profit consumer NGO based in Washington, DC), working to ensure clean water and safe food in Europe and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink. 

Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels [email protected], +32488409662

EU Agricultural Council Fails Milk Farmers

Categories

Food

Statement of Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter

The 7 September Agricultural Council showed once again that the fate of small and medium-size dairy farmers in the European Union is of little concern to governments or the European Commission.

While milk farmers across the EU sell their milk below production costs, and many face bankruptcy, European Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel prefers to save the 2008 mini reform of Common Agricultural Policy known as “health check,” indicating that governments are either incapable of standing up for their farmers or indifferent to their pleas.

Dramatic protests by milk farmers seen across the EU for over a year now may not convince the European Commission and governments that decisions dating back to 2003 to phase out of milk quotas by 2015 were wrong, but they do show the anger and desperation of the farming community. Milk quotas, already too high, will continue to increase by 1 percent every year because the Commission and agricultural ministers appear to prioritise a supply of cheap milk for big, unsustainable corporations over the survival of small and family farmers.

In doing so, the European Union is following the disastrous footsteps of the United States, where family based dairies have been replaced with intensive operations that can house thousands of cows, who never see daylight and cannot move.

The biggest tragedy of small and medium-sized dairy farmers in Europe and the United States is that they are not responsible for the global overproduction of milk, but they are hit by it much harder than large, corporate producers. Consumers everywhere pay as much for milk as they did before the crisis since big food companies such as Kraft and Nestle preserve and increase their profits.

Dismantling an effective and relatively inexpensive supply management tool such as milk quotas is hurting farmers and worse still, export refunds contribute to dumping in the developing world, hurting families there too, who would normally produce milk to ensure their survival but are now driven out of business.

Food and Water Europe, which supports family farming in Europe and across the globe, has long been aware that the approach taken by the European Union towards milk is wrong. We have written to Commissioner Fischer Boel asking her to freeze the quota indefinitely while finding ways to protect small and medium-size dairy farmers and continuing the investigation into anti-competitive practices of distributors and retailers of milk before it is too late. It is clear what needs to happen to rectify past mistakes, so reluctance to do so exposes the Commission to accusations of driving small farmers out of business by neglect.

Food & Water Europe, a nonprofit consumer organization, works to ensure clean water and safe food in the United States and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink.

Adobe PDF Image Read the letter Food & Water Watch sent the Commissioner


Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels
[email protected], +32488409662

EU Member States fail to protect Atlantic Bluefin tuna

Categories

Food

2009-09-24

Statement of Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter

(Brussels, Belgium) The failure of EU Member State representatives on Monday (21 September) to reach an agreement on how to handle the proposal to temporarily ban the international trade of Atlantic Bluefin tuna is disappointing.

21 countries supported the proposal by Monaco to place the fish on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), but despite recommendations from environment and fisheries experts at the European Commission, six Mediterranean countries did not back the proposal. EU environment ministers will now need to decide on a final position at the October or December Environment Council.

While a ban requires a vote of all CITES parties, the EU votes en bloc on these issues. A strong backing from the EU would be a clear political signal to the other 175 contracting parties. Food and Water Europe believes that US support for Monaco’s Bluefin proposal is critically important, both at the ICCAT (The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas) meeting in November and at the CITES meeting when Spain will be at the helm of the EU Presidency. EU Environment ministers should heed expert advice and support the listing in Appendix I of Atlantic Bluefin tuna as an endangered species and the US should use its influence to push for this outcome.

Food and Water Europe supports artisanal and historic fishing and an exception for traditional catch by a few Mediterranean countries. Coastal fishing communities which practice artisanal methods have centuries of experience balancing their harvesting behavior against available resources for long term management. Once the fish stock is rebuilt, if fishing is once again permitted, it should be conducted in a sustainable manner that promotes the livelihoods of responsible artisanal fishermen. It is industrial and illegal fishing which is destroying the delicate balance of the ecosystem and driving this beautiful animal to a point of no return.

Atlantic bluefin tuna are both an emblematic conservation and culinary species, being an important part of Mediterranean ecosystem, and highly prized for sushi and sashimi. However, strong demand from Japan has fueled industrial and illegal fishing practices that have pushed the species to the brink of economic extinction — effectively disenfranchising sustainable artisanal fishermen in the process.

The next CITES meeting takes place in March 2010 — the International Year of Biodiversity, in Doha, Qatar. In this time, Food and Water Europe hopes that the opposing states will re-evaluate their stance and see that the position taken by the majority of the European states is the only way forward if Europe is to take its leadership role in sustainability seriously.

Food and Water Europe is a project of Food and Water Watch, Inc (a non-profit consumer NGO based in Washington, DC) working to ensure clean water and safe food in Europe and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink.

Adobe PDF ImageDownload this press release

Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels [email protected], +32488409662

Cargill Poses Threat to Consumer Health, the Environment and Human Rights, New Research Finds

Categories

Food

Food & Water Europe Fact Sheet Details Damaging Impact of Agribusiness Giant

(Brussels, Belgium) — A new fact sheet issued today by consumer group Food & Water Europe examines how Cargill, the agribusiness giant and one of the key players in the global food market, is posing harm to consumer health, workers and the environment and causing food instability around the world.  Cargill, a leading oilseed and grain processor and top U.S. meat packer, is the largest private company in the U.S., with 160,000 employees in 67 countries and operations in 21 European countries. Cargill seemingly escaped the economic downturn in 2008 by reporting sales of over 83 billion Euros and record profits of over 2.5 billion Euros, its sixth straight year of record-breaking earnings. However, recently, its net profit for the fourth fiscal quarter was down by 69 percent from the same period last year.  Maybe it is time for Cargill to rethink its operations, since it benefited from the race in commodities prices which started in 2002, particularly in the last two years when food prices swelled.

“Cargill has gained control over huge swaths of the world’s agricultural system, and its ability to influence food prices is pushing millions of people around the world to the brink of starvation,” said Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter.

Key findings of the fact sheet include:

  • Cargill‚ record earnings in 2008 were driven by its ability to influence high grain and fertilizer prices that year, which, in turn, caused food instability around the world.
  • Cargill‚ operations pose a threat to the environment, and its operations in Brazil and Papua New Guinea have been liked to a number of destructive environmental practices, including clearing rainforests to expand its production of soya beans and palm oil.
  • Cargill is linked to questionable food technologies, including genetically modified crops and foods.
  • Cargill is linked to human rights violations, including forced child labour in its cotton operations in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and Central Asia and child slavery in its cocoa operations in Cote d’Ivoire.

Food and Water Europe is the program of Food and Water Watch, Inc (a non-profit consumer NGO based in Washington, DC), working to ensure clean water and safe food in Europe and around the world. We challenge the corporate control and abuse of our food and water resources by empowering people to take action and transforming the public consciousness about what we eat and drink.

For more information, download the factsheet.

Contact: Gabriella Zanzanaini, Food and Water Europe, Brussels
[email protected], +32488409662