PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 underlines the importance of motivating the corporate sector to reduce its negative impacts on biodiversity. Intensive agriculture is one of the main drivers of biodiversity loss, through the use of heavy machinery, pesticides and synthetic nitrogen fertilisers, land consolidation, drainage, etc. Therefore, the food sector has both a negative impact on biodiversity and significant potential for improvement. Food processing companies and retailers can increase biodiversity performance within their supply chains by adjusting standards and labelling.
OBJECTIVES
The overall objective of the LIFEBioStandards project was to improve biodiversity performance in the food chain. In terms of EU added value, the project proposed a multinational approach in the implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020, by developing biodiversity standards and having them applied by pioneering companies in the food industry.
The food industry, in its role as customer, has a major impact on agriculture and thus on biodiversity issues.
The specific objectives of the project were as follows:
- Include efficient biodiversity criteria in standards and labels for the food sector and encourage food processing companies and retailers to include efficient biodiversity criteria in their sourcing guidelines;
- Improve biodiversity measures in certified farms by applying the “Biodiversity Performance Tool” and through capacity building;
- Train certifiers/auditors, assessors and managers of certified farms;
- Demonstrate the applicability of biodiversity criteria and measures to standard organisations by implementing five pilot projects in certified farms on arable crops, vegetable production, permanent crops, dairy production and meat production;
- Monitor the impact on biodiversity with a two-level monitoring system;
- Raise awareness of the issue among procurement and product managers;
- Establish a European wide sector initiative: “Biodiversity Performance in the Food Sector”; and
- Compile guidelines on how to ease approval procedures, and suggest operating conditions.
RESULTS
LIFE Food & Biodiversity developed biodiversity recommendations with the involvement of 65 standards organisations, companies and producer cooperatives, and 25 representatives of stakeholders in the food sector. As a result, 15 standards organisations, 15 companies and 9 farmers' cooperatives changed at least 30% of their criteria or requirements with relevance for biodiversity. By improving biodiversity criteria and guidelines in standards and companies in the framework of this LIFE project, an estimated number of 3.1 Mio. certified farmers and suppliers increased their contribution to the protection of ecosystems, species and soil biodiversity.
Further revisions are ongoing, and there is an increased interest in consultancy and pilot projects on biodiversity by standards organisations and companies.
A core output of the project was the "Biodiversity Performance Tool". It was tested by 88 companies and standards organisations. The tool supports informed decision-making on biodiversity management at farm level and the implementation of effective biodiversity criteria. Three training modules were elaborated, targeting advisors, auditors and product managers. The project team trained more than 1 200 participants, and training materials and information resources were made available online.
In four project countries (Germany, France, Spain and Portugal), 79 farms participated in pilot actions in arable crops, vegetables (tomatoes and melons), permanent crops (olive oil), pastures (meat and agroforestry) and grassland (dairy). The project team assessed biodiversity performance, developed individual “Biodiversity Action Plans”, and implemented biodiversity-friendly activities on the pilot farms on an area of over 5 363 ha. These activities included 41 ha flowering strips, 200 ha green covers, 166 ha of erosion control, 200 ha of olive production shifted to organic fertilizer use, reduced use of herbicides/pesticides on 88 ha, and soil improvement techniques applied on 203 ha, among other diverse actions.
Along with establishing or supporting national food industry initiatives, the project team developed the biodiversity monitoring system to improve the impact and effectiveness of standards and labels, to be completed post-project. The project helped increase awareness among food companies and also the public, and supported political activities at different levels.
Numerous dissemination and networking activities were implemented, with the project presented at 170 events. The results were being replicated before the project's end in Germany, Italy, Spain, and at global level, e.g in spices cultivation in India. Several agricultural projects have adapted the Biodiversity Performance Tool and the Biodiversity Action Plans. The approach is also transferable to other sectors, such as the textile industry.
The project contributed to the European Biodiversity Strategy 2020, Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), EU Farm to Fork Strategy, EU Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive and Nitrates Directive, and many national policies in the participating countries. The project also has important socio-economic benefits, in terms of employment in farming and the food industry, ecosystem services, organic and local products, and increased awareness of biodiversity. Members of the newly-installed German multistakeholder-initiative ”Food for Biodiversity”, for instance, committed to achieving fair and just incentives along the supply chain.
Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report (see "Read more" section).
