Ep. 21: Volkert Engelsman – CEO & Founder of EOSTA & Nature & More ||

 

Did you know that the thin walled produce you eat can be some of the most concerning foods in your diet. From everything we think we know – that just seems counterintuitive. How can Fruit & Veg possibly worse than processed food, high fructose sugar, feedlot beef?  Well, that may come down to the eye of the beholder.  Concerns with neurotoxins and hormone disruptors used extensively in common pesticides throughout conventional production, or that of glyphosate are real and are worthy of scrutiny.

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On Sourcing Matters episode 21 we welcome Volkert Engelsman, CEO of the EU’s largest importer of organic and biological produce – EOSTA of the Netherlands.  Engelsman is a global thought-leader fighting for cleaner food and healthier soils through a unique process of engaging more stakeholders in sourcing.  “When you commoditize products, you anonymize origin and backstory” explains Engelsman in describing why he launched trans & trace technology platform Nature & More to validate the integrity of his supply chain.  Now, as the backbone of their produce distribution – this framework brought mainstream through a “Sustainability Flower” is used to evaluate, manage and communicate the sustainability achievements of organic growers. The six flower petals deal with ecology: soil, water, air, plants, animals and energy. The heart of the flower shows the words “freedom”, “justice” and “solidarity”, which refer to cultural, societal and economical sustainability respectively.
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Along with the UN and Ernst & Young – Volkert Engelsman and the team at EOSTA have levered the Nature & More framework to prove healthier & cleaner food has greater value than the cheap stuff.  The pilot program has been labeled “True Cost Accounting for Food, Farming & Finance”.   We learn that French Government has calculated a 54b Euro impact of externalized costs from contamination on the water supply and environmental impact tied to conventional food production. More over, the UN calculates $2.8 Trillion of environmental externalized costs and $2.1 Trillion in social damage tied to extractive models of agriculture.  Engelsman explains that’s about the equivalent of the total revenues of all food products from around the world.  “The report makes clear that organic food is not too expensive, but rather conventional food is too cheap.” – details Engelsman.
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in 2015 Engelsman launched a viral initiative to engage everyday citizens, VIPs, and political leaders to Save our Soils.  With 30 football fields of soil being lost every minute to irresponsible farming practices, this UN-backed Save Our Soils initiative aims to inform consumers about the urgent need to halt the loss of irreplaceable soils. To amplify the impact Engelsman employs ambassadors like Prince Charles, Julia Roberts, King of the Netherlands, Dalai Lama, Bishop Desmond Tutu, activist Vandana Shiva and conservationist founder of North Face Douglas Tompkins to support efforts in preserving soils, and promoting clean food on a shrinking planet with a fresh look at true costs.
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Have a listen, and hear what’s going on around the world. There are some pretty exciting concepts ripe for change. This guy, Volkert Engelsman of the Netherlands, is a driving force teeming with insight and creativity set on changing the world for the better.
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natureandmore

SaveOurSoilFund

 

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photo source: William Taufic


 

Ep. 20: Robyn Hannigan, Founding Dean – School of the Environment at UMass Boston & Micheal Tlusty, Prof. of Sustainability & Food Solutions at UMass Boston ||

 

There’s been a citizens awakening to Ocean Health.  It’s a macro trend in the US, much instigated by an awareness of a younger generation to the problems we have on a shrinking planet.  On Episode 20 we welcome Drs Hannigan and Tlusty of the UMass Boston School for the Environment to discuss in detail.

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Over 70% of our planet is blue.  Unfortunately, these oceans have become a trash receptacle over the past 50 years, and it appears we’re running out of never-never-land to throw-out our growing waste stream.  You see, in that same half century time period – human population has skyrocketed from 3.5 billion to 7 billion.  Single-use non-biodegradable plastics are now everywhere; even forming its own landmass!  And, that’s just the beginning…

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During our discussion I learn about what’s going on at the new state of the art UMass School of the Environment campus on Boston Harbor.  Hannigan & Tlusty share how this New School Ocean Campus was “created out of a series of modified environmentally Ocean focused programs that we specifically designed to solve a Marine or Ocean health problem.”  Michael discusses his innovative background and past initiatives with the New England Aquarium, and now his goals within blue food economies. Robyn has great perspective on jobs creation throughout ecological & environmental markets.  We discuss solutions to funding, policy, practice, and awareness to problems local and abroad.

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@EnvSchool

@TlustyM 

 

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photo source: