EBBC - Biodiversity in Standards and Labels for the Food Industry

Biodiversity in Standards and Labels
for the Food Industry

From 2016 to September 2020 the project consortium of the LIFE Food & Biodiversity project collaborated with the private food sector in Europe to enhance biodiversity protection through food standards and procurement guidelines of food companies. Even though, the project officially ends, many activities continue.

Companies, standards and cooperatives improve their biodiversity policies

The LIFE Food & Biodiversity consortium of Global Nature Fund (GNF), Lake Constance Foundation, Fundación Global Nature, Instituto Superior Técnico, Agentur auf!, Solagro, agence good for good prepared "Recommendations for effective biodiversity criteria in standards and sourcing requirements" in collaboration with more than 90 representatives from standards, companies, NGOs, scientific institutions, and ministries. Based on these recommendations, 39 different food companies food standards and agricultural cooperatives improved their biodiversity criteria or are in the process of doing so. More are still to come, as the Global Nature Fund and partners continue the collaboration with the food sector, for example in national roundtables of the food sector!

Tools to assess and monitor biodiversity in the agri-food sector

The Biodiversity Performance Tool was developed to support farmers with the creation of Biodiversity Action Plans. Easy to use, it gives an insight into the current situation of a farm in terms of biodiversity and provides agricultural measures to specifically support biodiversity in this context. You find more information here.

The Biodiversity Monitoring System (BMS) enables the monitoring of impacts on biodiversity on an aggregated level. The target groups are standards, food companies and cooperatives aiming to monitor the biodiversity performance of their certified farms, suppliers or members. The BMS is accessible on www.biodiversity-performance.eu. The Biodiversity Monitoring System fills the current lack of monitoring in the food sector. The indicators cover the main aspects of biodiversity and are a good compromise between practicability and scientific standards. The BMS can be tested free of charge until the end of 2021.

Biodiversity Trainings and Biodiversity Action Plans

Over the period of the project, training on the topic of biodiversity has shown to be of outstanding importance. Be it in the form of seminars or train of trainer workshops, over 1.200 representative from the food sector attended these events. Meeting such an interest in biodiversity, all training formats will be offered in future, too.

Furthermore, support and guidance in setting up Biodiversity Action Plans at farm level are an important aspect, which may boost a supplier’s biodiversity performance.

For companies and standard organisations there are several opportunities to participate:

You would like to benefit from the project activities and learn more about the opportunities for companies and for standards?

LIFE Food & Biodiversity (LIFE15 GIE/DE/000737)
Countries:   Germany, France, Spain, Portugal
EBBC Partner:   Global Nature Fund, Agentur AUF!, Bodensee-Stiftung, Fundación Global Nature, Solagro und agoodforgood, Instituto Superior Técnico
Supported by:   EU LIFE porgramme of the European Union
Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU)

Fundacion Biodiversidad
Ministre de l'agriculture
Région l'Occitanie