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Environmental Working Group (EWG) has just released an updated list identifying the most pesticide-laden and cleanest conventional produce. To compile the “2014 Dirty Dozen“ and the “Clean 15“ lists, scientists focused on 48 fruits and vegetables. Conventionally-grown apples topped the list of most pesticide-contaminated produce: 99% of apple samples tested positive for at least one […]

The European Union should support the eradication of world hunger as a priority for the post-2015 agenda, and push for a clear definition of a “Zero Hunger” goal, addressing all the root causes of hunger. This is one the key message of a new report Caritas Europa presented at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on

According to a new report published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), urban and peri-urban agriculture is widespread in Latin America and the Caribbean but it needs the support of government, from national to local levels, to realise its full potential. In 2009, representatives of ministries of agriculture, research institutes, NGOs and international organisations

Nearly a quarter of Europe’s bumblebee species could become extinct, according to a recent study examining all of the 68 bumblebee species that occur in Europe. The study, which is part of the Status and Trends of European Pollinators (STEP) project and the European Red List of pollinators, both funded by the European Commission, stresses

A High-level Roundtable, which brought together representatives from governments, UN agencies, civil society, farmers, and the private sector on 27-28 March in New York, has called for a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) on “Sustainable Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition.” Such a goal and the broader post-2015 agenda should address five SHIFT elements: Small-scale food producers

In Argentina, a camp protesting the construction of a Monsanto seed plant in Cordoba province was violently attacked and at least 20 people were injured. On Thursday morning, a gang of 60 people arrived in a bus at the campsite in Malvinas Argentianas, destroyed tents, set fire to parts of the camp and attacked anti-GMO

A new study has linked the growing crisis of antibiotic-resistance to the overuse of antibiotics in agriculture. The paper, published ahead of the European Antibiotics Awareness Day on 18 November in the medical journal The Lancet, calls for immediate action in human and veterinary medicine. The report reveals that in some countries huge amounts of

Good News: Since 2007, avoidable household food waste in the United Kingdom has been cut by 21%. According to a new report published today by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (Wrap), avoidable food waste has been reduced to 4.2 million tonnes, saving consumers £13 billion a year. “The UK is leading the way in

Climate change will pose sharp risks to the world’s food supply in coming decades, according to a leaked draft of a forthcoming IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report, writes the New York Times. The scientists found that climate change could reduce agricultural production by as much as 2 per cent each decade for the

In Brazil, a case of land grabbing in the state of Pernambuco will come under scrutiny by the Federal Public Ministry in reaction to an Oxfam report published earlier this month. The Brazilian State prosecutor for the State of Pernambuco, Silvia Regina, announced last week that the Federal Public Ministry will launch an investigation. The