Five of Europe’s leading agricultural, food, and life sciences institutions have come together to launch the European Science Alliance for Agriculture and Food (ESAAF), a new scientific coalition aimed at supporting the transformation and resilience of the EU agri-food sector.
The five institutions, including Aarhus University in Denmark, Julius Kühn-Institut in Germany, the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAE), Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands, and Warsaw University of Life Sciences in Poland, are committed to creating ‘sustainable, competitive, and resilient food systems’, according to a statement, and will serve as a dedicated scientific voice in policy discussions around the food sector.
“Science must play a fundamental role in transforming Europe’s food systems,” commented Sjoukje Heimovaara, president of Wageningen University & Research.
“ESAAF will provide a critical bridge between research and policy, helping the EU navigate the complex challenges of the agri-food domain. We firmly believe food and agricultural policy needs a fertile ground of facts to bear fruit.”
The alliance was formed in response to a growing recognition that EU food system transformation must be guided by independent, high-quality scientific evidence, with Philippe Mauguin, CEO of INRAE, noting that there is currently “no single, coordinated entry point” for policymakers seeking to engage with the research sector at a European level.
ESAAF will seek to fill that gap, operating scientific expertise to support the European Commission and stakeholders involved in the European Board for Agriculture and Food (EBAF), as well as other interested parties.
“We are firmly convinced that the excellence and practice driven scientific expertise that we provide under the auspices of ESAAF will play a crucial role in the current and forthcoming transformation of the European agri-food sector,” added Eskild Holm Nielsen, dean of Faculty of Technical Sciences at Aarhus University.
“As part of the founding team behind ESAAF, we are very keen to strengthen the link between research and policy to the benefit of the whole of Europe.” Read more here.
