Overview   COVID-19

Two thirds of the 3 million Venezuelan migrants in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru who have seen their jobs disappear and their incomes plummet during the pandemic will see their food insecurity worsen in 2020, according to World Food Programme’s COVID-19 projections.

he fight against the global COVID-19 pandemic is causing unprecedented uncertainties in global food supply chains, with potential bottlenecks in labour markets, input industries, agriculture production, food processing, transport and logistics, as well as shifts in demand for food and food services. In the short term, the economic and social impacts of the pandemic interrupt the generally positive medium-term outlook for global agricultural production and food consumption.

COVID-19 presents an opportunity for the world to make the transition to more biodiversity-friendly agriculture.

The BioMonitor project in partnership with the ICABR will have its first webinar which discusses the prominent role of the bioeconomy in the post-COVID-10 economic recovery actions.

63 BIC industry member CEOs and C-level representatives have signed an open letter addressed EU Commissioners calling for a stronger recognition of the bio-based sector in the EU's green recovery.

Parliament wants the Green Deal to be at the core of the EU’s Covid-19 recovery package. Find out more about this roadmap for a climate-neutral Europe.

EU environment and climate ministers had a policy debate on the contribution of environmental and climate policies to the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Biodiversity is vital to improving agricultural and food production and maintaining our planet's resources and ecosystems," said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, calling for more to be done to prevent the biodiversity loss undermining the resilience of many agricultural systems and posing a serious threat to global food security.

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have designed what could be the very first N95 mask that can be sourced and made entirely in Canada. It’s also possibly the world’s first fully compostable and biodegradable medical mask.

Ensuring that the Green Deal is at the core of the COVID-19 recovery strategy is a top priority for the Commission for the Environment, Climate change and Energy (ENVE) of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR).

Could tobacco help in the fight against coronavirus? As researchers all over the world race to develop a vaccine for COVID19, Futuris takes a look at how scientists in Spain are using molecular farming to help build tailor-made vaccines and antibodies.

The European Investment Bank on June 11, 2020 approved € 7.5 billion of new financing for projects across Europe and around the world. This includes investment to improve public health, hospital and elderly care facilities and dedicated new business lending programmes to support sectors most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Low wages, lack of job security and social protection make migrant workers more vulnerable to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

From research comes a green solution to ensure safe distancing at the beach in the COVID-19 post-emergency phase. The idea is to use Posidonia oceanica, a marine plant present in large quantities on the Mediterranean shores, to create ecological safety barriers.

The outbreak of the coronavirus is having an unparalleled effect on our society and economy. Farmers and every actor of the EU food supply chain are working hard to keep feeding Europe, despite the difficulties they face. The European Commission will continue to support farmers and food producers, collaborate with EU member states, and take whatever measures are necessary to ensure the health and well-being of the people of Europe.

The additional funding is part of the Recovery Package and follows earlier EU support measures to alleviate the immediate socio-economic impact on the sector. The Commission will work closely with EU countries to ensure that the additional funding contributes to a swift recovery, in line with the European Green Deal and the ambitions of the common fisheries policy.

The European Commission has put forward its proposal for a major recovery plan. To ensure the recovery is sustainable, even, inclusive and fair for all Member States, the European Commission is proposing to create a new recovery instrument, Next Generation EU, embedded within a powerful, modern and revamped long-term EU budget. The Commission has also unveiled its adjusted Work Programme for 2020, which will prioritise the actions needed to propel Europe's recovery and resilience.

EU regional innovation collaboration support-tools will play a key role during the next Multi-Annual Financial Framework period to achieve EU economic recovery. To this regard, European regions, clusters, RTOs and other innovation stakeholders jointly call on the European institutions to use the Interregional Innovation Investment instrument to unleash the innovation potential available in Europe’s regions.