IFOAM: 11th European Organic Congress

This Congress from 5 -7 September 2017 in the Estonian capital Tallinn will look at how stakeholders and policymakers can work together to reach the European Organic Vision 2030, with the launch of a roadmap for making it happen. Don´t miss the Early bird registration!

„Over the last two years, IFOAM EU has been working proactively with the organic movement and like-minded groups to devise strategies for developing organics in Europe“, says IFOAM EU Group on ist website. In Estonia, there will be a look at different initiatives already happening throughout Europe that demonstrate how policymakers and stakeholders already work together to inspire others. For instance on the first afternoon Pekka Pesonen, Secretary General of Copa Cogeca, Jeremy Wates - Secretary General of the European Environmental Bureau and Karl Falkenberg, Senior Adviser for Sustainable Development to the President of the European Commission will talk about their point of view relating to sustainability. The motto of the plenary will be „Sustainability Now! A European Vision for Sustainability“.

UN Sustainable Development Goals and the EU Climate Commitments

Part of this conversation will also look at how such initiatives can flourish, in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and the EU Climate Commitments expected to strongly influence the EU’s agri-food policy agenda in the coming years – from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to the development of food policies at national and regional level.

In parallel workshops smaller groups will discuss the topics:
- Organic on every table
- A holistic approach for agriculture & food
- Transparent & fair food chains
That will continue on the second day when the plenary will address the EU Organic Regulation with speakers from the Agriculture & Rural Development, European Commission (Elena Panichi, Deputy Head of Organics Unit), a Member of European Parliament (Martin Häusling) and a Board Member of IFOAM EU (Jan Plagge).

Re-thinking organic farming

The panel discussion – „Re-thinking organic farming in the transition towards a sustainable food system“and conclusions from the workshops Emile Frison (Independent Consultant, Agriculture, biodiversity and sustainable food system), Sergi Corbalan (Executive Director, Fair Trade Advocacy Office) and Bernhard Johannes Kahl - Food Quality & Health Association will close the EOC.

Don´t miss the Early bird registration till May 31
The IFOAM EU Organic Congress programme
An excursion is planned on September 7.