From droughts to disease, coffee and chocolate are under threat, but scientists and farmers are working together to keep these daily treats on the table. By Tom Cassauwers In the hills above Matagalpa, Nicaragua, farmer Juan Pablo Castro has been growing coffee for 25 years. His two-hectare farm, dotted with citrus trees, is typical of the … Read more
EU-funded researchers are working across countries and sectors to boost organic farming, support farmers and shape policy to help meet the target of 25% organic farmland in Europe and a significant increase in organic aquaculture by 2030. By Maria Vlastara From fancy oat milk lattes to organically grown produce at the local market, organic food … Read more
EU-funded researchers are scaling up sustainable production of microalgae-based proteins, lipids, pigments and carbohydrates that could transform food, animal feed and fragrance industries worldwide. By Kaja Šeruga On the outskirts of Lisbon, an abandoned industrial site has been given a new lease of life as a state-of-the-art biorefinery. It is scaling up the production of … Read more
Farmers and foresters across Europe are sharing sustainable bio-based practices and technologies, showing how local knowledge and European collaboration can help drive the transition to a greener future. By Sofia Sanchez Manzanaro Michalis Genitsariotis, a former salesman turned olive grower from the northern Greek region of Halkidiki, is constantly learning in his “second life” as … Read more
EU-funded researchers, firefighters and communities are pioneering innovative, collaborative approaches to build landscapes able to withstand increasingly extreme wildfires. By Maria Vlastara Asier Larrañaga Ochoa de Eguileor, a wildfire analyst at the Catalan Fire and Rescue Service, experienced the Solsonès wildfire in Spain in 1998 and still remembers it as a revelation. “I had basic … Read more
With support from the EU, artists, scientists and food companies are teaming up to find fresh, creative ways to make our food systems greener and more efficient. By Hannah Docter-Loeb New media artist Helena Nikonole is taking the art of sound to an unusual place – a city-based hydroponic plant farm. Together with a group … Read more