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“The ecological crisis with climate change and the extinction of species cannot be separated from the global social crisis. we can only meet these challenges together. Therefore, we need the organic and social transformation of our global agricultural and food systems, and this is exactly what Naturland is fighting for as a member of the international organic family,” said Bartelme.
Naturland Vice President Bartelme represents the interests of organic farmers in Europe and around the world as a member of various committees within the international umbrella organization IFOAM. The General Assembly of IFOAM Organics International traditionally takes place after the Organic World Congress (OWC), this year on September 13th and 14th as a completely digital gathering.
Prior to this, the five-day OWC will focus on questions relating to healthy nutrition, resilient agricultural systems, social transformation and food sovereignty. According to the organizers, more than 2,500 bio-motivated people from all over the world and all areas - agriculture, politics, science and the food industry - will be discussing concepts for an ecological future.
Water management, insects and organic breeding: Naturland contributions to the congress program
The OWC begins with the so-called “Pre Conferences”. Scientists will present their latest research results on September 6th and 7th. The actual congress then runs from September 8th to 10th with more than 450 lectures in various specialist forums. Naturland is also represented here with a number of presentations on various topics.
Marco Schlüter, Head of Strategy and International Affairs at Naturland, will speak in the Leadership Forum about how developing local organic markets can be a way to support organic farmers especially in the global south, who are otherwise still heavily dependent on exports. Other Naturland contributions in the congress program deal, for example, with the development of the organic coffee sector in Burundi, or with organic breeding as part of a climate strategy. With respect to the challenge of increasing water scarcity, Naturland and BioSuisse jointly report on their experiences with the implementation of water management plans as part of their organic standards. Another Naturland presentation deals with organically bred insects as a protein source of the future, for example as feed in organic aquaculture. And finally, a workshop as part of the BIOFRUITNET project coordinated by Naturland deals with strategies for organic fruit growing in order to get a better grip on diseases that are increasingly occurring in the wake of climate change.
Find more information on the Organic World Congress 2021 here.
