In a second response to a recent article published in the Ecologist, "Are the UK 'biomass sustainability standards' legitimising forest destruction?", SBP Chief Executive Officer Carstem Huljus debunks the myths in a right of reply
… by some and criticised by others. Energy producers, environmental advocates, policy … in the SBP scheme is the pellet/chip producer. The pellet/chip producer is assessed for compliance with the …
IKEA likes to sell itself as a principled, sustainable furniture producer. But has its low-cost, high-volume business model meant that it has had to compromise environmental concerns for money? Peter Salisbury reports
… itself as a principled, sustainable furniture producer. But has its low-cost, high-volume … stores, as energy-efficient and sustainably produced as possible as part of its programme … the materials it uses, and the labour used to produce it, is sustainably sourced and meets …
New study first to suggest reproduction levels of animals rather than on body size is crucial when calculating extinction risk.
… species of smaller body size as their females produce fewer babies per birth, research led … body size, but the number of babies a female produces per clutch that determines extinction … body sizes and the number of babies they produce per clutch. They found strong evidence …
New manufacturing technologies could revolutionise our food system, dramatically reducing it's environmental footprint.
… than in other countries. Why should British producers be tarred with the same brush? While … could totally revolutionise the way we produce food, not only avoiding the gross … bound by the laws of physics: they cannot produce something from nothing. Solution One …
‘I’ve been to a fair number this – this is a fantastic place to be based,’ says the Soil Association’s Lee Holdstock, fresh from a trip to the remote south west corner of the Isle of Mull in the Inner Hebrides.
… cent of the 35 million kilograms of raw wool produced in the UK became carpeting, while some innovative producers have created a market for wool-based … – sheep farmers are required to sell their produce to the Wool Marketing Board (WMB). On …
The EU's farming policy is being touted as 'greener than ever' - but it's no such thing, write Lynn Dicks & Tim Benton. The 'green reforms' pay farmers for actions (and often inactions) that do not benefit wildlife, and contain no real or effective measures to help.
… stewardship as a voluntary step. Land must produce more than just food While we depend … Land given over to agriculture should produce more than just food and profits, but … to recognise that we should pay farmers to produce both. Much of Northwest Europe's …
Our insatiable appetite for expensive coffee is causing a global trail of waste and destruction, writes Donnachadh McCarthy. Following the successful campaign for a 5p plastic bag levy, it's time to move on to a much larger 25p levy on disposable coffee cups - making those that profit from the waste carry the cost of its disposal.
… forests of east Africa. But now the two main producers are tropical Brazil and Vietnam. And … cup of coffee takes 140 litres of water to produce The forest removal and open sun … the West, uses up to 140 litres of water to produce! This is nearly the same as our entire …
For most of 2015 Walter Lewis travelled around England and Wales meeting and photographing people producing food outside the confines of mainstream agriculture - working out of a passion for the earth and the Earth rather than for commercial gain. He completed his exploration inspired, and determined to spread word of quiet revolution under way across the fields of Britain.
… raised beds - and new soil introduced to produce an array of salad and vegetable crops. … me the amazing changes that her methods have produced in the soil. Nine inches or so down …
To reduce the pressure on the world's productive land and to help assure long-term food security, writes Herbert Girardet, city people are well advised to revive urban or peri-urban agriculture. While large cities will always have to import some food, local food growing is a key component of sustainable urban living.
… many people become urban and peri-urban food producers, on a full or part-time basis. … these, 200 million were thought to be market producers, with 150 million people employed …
Campaign group calls for a consumer boycott of tropical prawns to stop environmental pollution and human rights abuse in Bangladesh
… in Bangladesh, reveals a new investigation produced in conjunction with the Ecologist's … far exceed the value of the prawns and scampi produced for western consumers. The prawn … is already among the least sustainable fish produced with frozen prawns peeled and shipped …
The recycling industry has been struggling for years, and the coronavirus crisis has underscored its weaknesses.
… it comes to plastic waste, most of the refuse produced isn't quality waste, meaning it … reuse them. This gap between the products produced and the ability to re-process them … from getting ill. While the amount of waste produced has not slowed down, the ability to …
I was told Finland wants to 'drive sustainable development globally'. I went to Helsinki to test these claims - here is what I found.
… first sauna experience made from sustainably produced wood. The following day was a … for the trees which means better timber is produced, he told us. After the discussion we … how one cubic metre of saw timber produces 35kg of CO2. This compares to over …
Since 2018 almost 1000 hectares of land around lake Bolsena, Italy, has been appropriated by the chemically-grown hazelnuts industry.
… and aromatic water. Chemically Agricultural produce from this area of Italy is considered … on Ferrero to regulate the quality of their produce and the market price for hazelnuts. … called Plankthotrix rubescens. This produces a microcystin which is harmful to …
With most of our food exports going to the EU, and most of our food imports coming from the EU, Molly Scott Cato wondered what plans the government had for the sector after Brexit. The answer? None! Two reports published today map out a positive future of sustainable farming, local food, thriving rural economies and abundant biodiversity. But is the government on the same page?
… to our family farmers and small scale food producers. Around 65% of total UK agricultural … aim to inform policy makers, farmers, food producers and rural communities. But the ideas … to factory farms and other larger scale producers; small-scale farmers selling meat …
'Ecoliteracy' is urgent and necessary if we are going to build resilient and sustainable human communities.
… the cell membrane, etc. — are continually produced, repaired, and regenerated by the … structures are very different from the ones produced by biological networks. They are usually produced for a purpose, according to some …
A new book, Fragile Web, reveals why the biodiversity crisis may be humanity's biggest challenge
… in Burkina Faso found that treated plots produced over 3 tonnes per hectare (1.2 ton … of plant dry matter, while untreated plots produced nothing at all. Plots with mulch but no termites produced only one-third the plant yield that …
The new People Need Nature report - published to coincide with this week's annual Oxford Real Farming Conference - warns that modern farming practices are not good for wildlife. But they're not good for humans either. And with predictions that we will need to produce 70 per cent more food to feed a third more mouths by 2050 the question of seed ownership and diversity cannot be ignored. KATHRYN HINDESS reports
… And with predictions that we will need to produce 70 per cent more food to feed a third … rape. Just 30% of this area is used to produce wheat good enough to mill for flour, … with more than 5 hectares, which excludes the producers it should be supporting". Is the …
The extraordinary environmental costs of freeports.
… in the future. Most hydrogen is currently produced by using fossil fuels – in 2021 … companies. Just four per cent of hydrogen was produced using electricity in 2021, with less … generate carbon emissions, it is expensive to produce, with fossil fuel companies asking for …
It’s 2008, and feeding ourselves has never been easier. We take for granted a supply of every agricultural commodity on the planet, 365 days a year. Food is cheap. Never in living memory have we spent less on it as a proportion of our total expenditure. Even our poorest citizens can afford the luxury foods of yesteryear, like salmon and chicken.
… or ‘webs’ of mutually supporting food producers and consumers will come into their … This would provide an incentive for food producers to jump off the chemical treadmill … independent shops and small- or mediumsized producers who have effectively been annexed …
For decades Israel has been driving Palestinian farmers off their land by imposing restrictions on agriculture, writes JONATHAN COOK. But one company, Canaan Fair Trade, has found an innovative way to resist peacefully, increasing resilience and prosperity in rural West Bank communities, and forging international alliances in the global movement for good food and farming.
… and finds local and foreign markets for the produce, as a way to bypass Israeli control … Palestinian exports while allowing Israeli produce to enter the territories tax-free. … With most farmers unable to export their produce outside the limited markets of Israel …
Nuclear energy is essential to preserve the world's biodiversity, according to 69 conservation scientists. But there's a mysterious omission in their analysis, writes Jim Green: nuclear weapons proliferation. And after a major exchange of nuclear bombs, and the 'nuclear winter' that would follow, exactly how much biodiversity would survive?
… reactor - operate it on a special cycle to produce good quality weapons material." IFR … and conventional uranium reactors continue to produce such materials. The reality of fast … a topical example: "India has a plan to produce such [weapon grade] plutonium in fast …
The spread of oil palm plantations has come at the expense of vast swathes of tropical rainforest. But the billion-dollar palm oil industry is now mounting a major PR offensive. Alex Helan reports
… contracts with Indonesia's largest palm oil producer Sinar Mas , after Greenpeace revealed … the Malaysian plantations minister, the ASI produced a report entitled ' Dispelling the … to protect its uncompetitive rapeseed producers and 'shackle competition from …
Many companies have felt the pressure over the past few years to go green - but some US corporations have made it their mission to help our planet and are making huge changes to our world.
… plants across 40 countries, IDE Technologies produces more clean water than any other … biggest. Every year, people around the world produce over 10 million tons of plastic that … to access. First Solar works hard to produce one panel per second and eliminate the …
Our economy demands that we make consumption our way of life, the that we seek our spiritual satisfaction in consumption…
… Then there’s the waste, or ‘embedded energy’, produced in the production process. Scientists … businesses embrace the notion of extended producer responsibility at a more fundamental …