Kategorienarchive: Environment

environment

What is the “International Foundation Of Organic Agricultural Movements”?

  von Jens Baltrusch | 13. März 2012 - 22:02 | ,
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The “International Foundation Of Organic Agricultural Movements” (short IFOAM) is a major force behind the vision of a worldwide collaboration to promote organic agriculture.
The idea and work of IFOAM is based on 4 principles of organic agriculture, which are supposed to be “ethical principles to inspire action“:
IFOAM and its worldwide mission: principles of organic agriculture

The principle of health
The principle of ecology
The principle of fairness
The principle of care

Read more about the “Principles Of Organic Agriculture” on the website of IFOAM: http://www.ifoam.org/about_ifoam/principles/index.html

Bio Hotels – elegant and ecological time outs

  von Jens Baltrusch | 11. März 2012 - 18:35 |
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bio_topic_jensbaltrusch.com

Bio Hotels – elegant and ecological time outs

Bio Hotels (http://www.biohotels.info/en/) is an organization with the goal to promote hotels with ecological as well as sustainable management.
Find on their website a great choice of bio hotels across Europe and a treasure of information on various bio topics.

What is the meaning of the product label “BIO”?

  von Jens Baltrusch | 9. März 2012 - 18:17 | ,
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400px-Organic-Logo.svg_-300x201

This is a logo owned by European Union for products certified as “biological”.

A “BIO” logo is a label to control and mark organic products. The usage of a “BIO” logo is connected to adherence of certain food production standards, which are controlled by the European Union or, when using a logo of another bio association, by the related bio association. The term “BIO”, as well as some related terms, (biological agriculture) is a protected term by EU law.

“BIO” labelled food
- must be clean from preservatives
- must not be produced with genetically modified organisms
- must not produced with synthetic pesticides
- must not be produced with readily soluble fertilizers
- need to contain less than 5 % conventional created ihngredients
- must not contain any flavour enhancer, artificial aroma, dyestuffs or emulsifiers

Strict rules also apply for the keeping of animals. Animals need to be kept appropriate to the species feeded with organic food which is free of antibiotics.

For more detailed information on “BIO” labelling, production, restrictions, rules and associations, please refer to
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_certification

Watch “Food Inc.” – Do you really know where your food is coming from?

  von Jens Baltrusch | 18. November 2010 - 12:38 | , ,
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I have just seen “Food Inc.” which I find shocking, but inspiring at the same time. I can only recommend to watch the movie and support the Ideas of  filmmaker Robert Kenner. Find with this link the movie description and more information how to support the ideas of a more healthy food grown within a sustainable agriculture:

http://www.takepart.com/foodinc

In the end of the movie, some points are listed to make better food choices and support eco-friendly farmers:

  • buy saisonal food (to prevent support for long transportation of food)
  • buy organically (to support small farmers who respect environmental matters)
  • read the food labels and know what you buy
  • buy food which is grown locally
  • visit farms and buy the food at their door
  • keep an own garden and grow food by yourself

One argument of an organic farmer in this movie which I liked : organic food might be more expensive at first, but think about the hidden cost which you have with buying low quality food, such as:

  • hidden health costs - you get sick by eating low quality foos and pay later in form of bills for doctors and medical treatments
  • hidden environmental costs – you hurt your environment by supporting the wrong production system
  • hidden support – you support a production system which is often corrupt and does not care about human health, but only profit
  • more interesting aspects you will find in the movie

One more thing : the story about the tobacco industry shows that making right choices in the supermarket can really make a difference. When better products are bought more by consumers, the big companies will be more interested in supporting that (growing need will be followed by higher production to satisfy consumer needs). So actually, by making good choices, you can influence the market – and by connecting and sharing this idea with others, maybe even make organic food more affordable in the end.

My recommendation: watch it, it is worth to watch and opens your eyes about the reason why you should care about where your food is coming from!