Save Our Soils: fight to halt land losses

The Save Our Soils campaign, founded by organic fruit specialist Eosta and 150 global partners including the UN, has announced that it is almost halfway towards it’s fundraising target to help farmers save millions of hectares of threatened land. Eosta, operating under its brand name Nature & More, together with its partners in the Save Our Soils campaign, has established a fund that will support farmers across the globe in saving fertile soils.

According to UN stats, every year approximately 10 million hectares (25 million acres) are lost to erosion, amounting to 30 football fields per minute. If the loss of fertile soil continues at this rate, agriculture will not be possible in 60 years, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The climate, fresh water resources and social cohesion also suffer badly from soil loss, and for this reason 2015 has been proclaimed as the International Year of Soils.

The Save Our Soils Fund, which was launched in February 2015 at the BioFach trade fair in Nuremberg, Germany, has now raised €200,000 euros thanks to contributions from Eosta/ Nature & More, Soil & More and Triodos Foundation (Netherlands), Lebensbaum (Germany), Ambootia (India) and Amfri Farms (Uganda). The target is to raise at least €500,000 euros.

Nature & More initiated the Save Our Soils campaign in late 2012, together with the FAO, to draw attention to the increasing soil problem and now has 150 international partners. The campaign’s core message is that every consumer can contribute to saving fertile soils by choosing sustainable and organic food. So far, Save Our Soils has principally been an awareness campaign. By establishing the Save Our Soils Fund, practical help can now be given to the other end of the production chain: the farmer.

Volkert Engelsman, CEO of Eosta/Nature & More and initiator of the Save Our Soils campaign, is pleased with the successful launch: "The money we have now raised is a great start. In the years to come we want to raise at least €500,000, so we're looking out for contributions from other parties. In this way, we can make a sound contribution to improving agricultural practices and supporting a future with more food security."

The fund will assist farmers worldwide in saving soil fertility with the help of organic
techniques. Initiatives include composting workshops for farmers, research into best
practices, and promoting cooperation and knowledge exchange.

For more information:
Michael Wilde
Eosta/Nature & More
Tel: +31 (0)180 63 53 63
Email: info@soilandmorefoundation.org.
www.saveoursoils.com.