Regenerative agriculture as a target towards sustainable agriculture and food production, supporting climate and biodiversity objectives

👨‍🎓The EU Youth Test at the EESC is being applied to this opinion. The National Youth Council of Slovenia was chosen by a group of interested youth organisations to represent all of them during the opinion-making process.

Practical information

1. Composition of the study group
2. Administrator / Assistant in charge: Martine DELANOY / Luca PITRONE
3. Contact

Background

Biodiversity represents the stock of genetic variety, the most important part of the natural capital that humanity inherited from mother nature. The existence and prosperity of humankind depend on our capacity to cooperate and respect planetary boundaries.

The main causes of biodiversity loss remain climate change, habitat loss from agriculture and urbanisation, pollution, and overexploitation of natural resources. Global efforts fall short of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) objectives, highlighting an urgent need for enhanced action.

The agricultural sector can contribute through regenerative agriculture, working in harmony with nature while maintaining productivity and economic viability. Revitalising rural areas, improving soil health, and enhancing carbon sequestration ensure long-term productivity and food security.

In this context, the objectives of this own-initiative opinion will be to:

• Develop a common understanding of the terms ‘regenerative agriculture’ and of the benefits of such practices for the society as a whole;
• Propose a strategy for the EU towards transforming current agri-food systems towards regenerative agriculture, including supporting measures for EU farmers and the strengthening of incentives in the Common agricultural policy post-2027 (evolving from compensation to incentives for ecosystem services);
• Define criteria to support this transformation through simple and comprehensive measurements using whenever possible existing tools and avoiding administrative burden for farmers;
• Build a new narrative for agriculture, highlighting the fact that agriculture is part of the solution towards fighting against climate change and biodiversity loss, enhancing the interconnection between healthy and resilient ecosystems and prosperity.