The road to sustainability in agriculture 2023

More than 230 participants and 800 online viewers joined the Sustainability Conference of the EU-FarmBook partner CEJA, the European Council for Young Farmers in Brussels, Belgium to discuss the road to sustainability in agriculture.

In May, more than 230 participants and 800 online viewers followed the invitation of the European Council for Young Farmers (CEJA) to discuss the road to sustainability in agriculture in Brussels, Belgium. CEJA, as the representative of young farmers and partner of the EU-FarmBook project, brought together young farmers, stakeholders and decision-makers to discuss how to create sustainable agriculture for the future.

Diana Lenzi, former President of CEJA (2021 – 2023), welcomed Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal of the European Commission. He emphasized the importance of hearing the ideas of young farmers to create a sustainable future. In his speech he said: “The European Green Deal is actually only possible because young people, across the European Union, went into the streets and demanded a future.” The Conference was a great moment to state and strength the fact that young farmers want to be part of the debate also contribute to the solutions, said Diana Lenzi, former President of CEJA (2021 – 2023)

During the conference, young farmers presented stories from the field about topics included how to enable sustainability at farm level, the importance of soils for sustainability, animal welfare, smart farming and the challenges of the generational renewal.

In addition to the panels, there were also information stands where visitors could exchange ideas and network. Representatives of the EU-FarmBook Project gave information about the soon to be launched online platform, which will provide relevant information for farmers, foresters, and other rural actors and to support the objectives of the Green Deal and the Farm to Fork Strategy of the EU policy agenda. They took the opportunity not only to inform but also to listen. They were particularly interested in the expectations of young farmers and how the platform could serve them best. “It is important that we from EU-FarmBook support farmers on their road to sustainability by giving them the online platform that we are developing and that gives them the floor to exchange their best practices, all their challenges and solutions”, said Scientific Coordinator of EU-FarmBook Inge De Bo from Ghent University.