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Healthy soils teeming microbes are the foundations of resilient, sustainable and global food production ecosystems. Credit: Fabiola Ortiz/IPS

By Esther Ngumbi
URBANA, Illinois, US, May 6 2026 (IPS)

A newly published review in Nature Reviews Earth & Environment has revealed disturbing statistics on the growing environmental threats posed by global food production. The global food system, designed to feed and nourish humanity, is now a major contributor to climate change via greenhouse gas emissions, and the largest driver of freshwater depletion, biodiversity loss, and nutrient pollution.

Alarmingly, this new review brings attention to a concerning cruel twist and a deeper problem manifested through feedback loops between environmental change pressures including climate change and global food production.

In this vicious hard to break feedback loop, farmers are forced to use more inputs including fertilizers and toxic pesticides to sustain high yields, which in turn ruins and further compromises the environment while making food production harder in the long term.

In this vicious hard to break feedback loop, farmers are forced to use more inputs including fertilizers and toxic pesticides to sustain high yields, which in turn ruins and further compromises the environment while making food production harder in the long term

The central question then becomes: How do we break these vicious feedback loops that threaten to undermine our global food system in the longer term? What specific foundational strategies stand a chance of reducing environmental pressures and improving global food systems and agricultural production resillience?

First and foremost, the foundations for breaking this cruel cycle begin in the soil, by investing in revitalizing and improving the health of soils and agricultural lands that power global food production. Healthy soils teeming microbes are the foundations of resilient, sustainable and global food production ecosystems.

Healthy soils store and filter water and cycle nutrients, support the growth of nutritious food while simultaneously helping agricultural crop plants to cope with water stress, combat diseases and pests, and use nutrients more effectively, reducing the need for additional inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides.

Convincingly, smart investments channeled towards improving soil health and soil microbiome can help farmers and food producers to produce more and healthy crops with less, limit environmental damage and simultaneously break the emerging feedback loops between global food production and environmental damage.

The good news is that improving and building soil health and soil microbiomes is a top priority for many stakeholders involved in food production in the United States and around the world including farmers, researchers, governments, philanthropists, non-governmental  and non-profit organizations, research funding agencies, the African Union and the United Nations.

Excitingly, adoption of several sustainable regenerative  practices including cover cropping, crop rotation, conservation tillage, planting diverse crops, integrating livestock and agroforestry, alongside with inoculation of soils with microbes including arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can improve soil health and quality, improving biodiversity, mitigate climate change, and extend soil longevity beyond 10,000 years. Moreover,  research is confirming that these strategies do indeed work.

Second, another intervention that can reduce environmental decline while improving global food production is investing in innovative  climate-smart agriculture and precision agriculture practices. Scientific evidence has shown that adopting these practices can sustain global food production while limiting environmental harm.

Complementing and accompanying these foundational strategies is the urgent need to prioritize breeding and developing  multi-stress and stress-resilient crops and integrating stress resilient traits from wild relatives of domesticated crops.

Additionally,  multi-stress and climate-resilient crops can be grown alongside other annual and perennial crop species while being integrated into broader sustainable and regenerative farming practices including agroforestry. Collectively, these practices can sustain food production while minimizing environmental harm, thereby breaking feedback loops.

Finally, these strategies must be paired with policies and incentives to ensure maximum adoption. Farmers who adopt regenerative and sustainable soil building, climate-smart, precision agriculture practices while planting stress resilient crops should be supported and rewarded.

Alongside policies and incentives, there is a need to ensure that farmers, who are central in global food production embrace and adopt these sustainable feedback loops breaking practices. Embracing these practices can improve agricultural productivity, resilience and efficiency.

Of course, it is critical to understand and be aware of the constraints that still hinder stakeholders in global food production including farmers from adopting these global food production and environmental pressures feedback loop breaking practices.

Feeding our growing world sustainably requires everyone to confront the vicious cycle of food production and environmental decline. Researchers, policymakers, governments, private businesses, civil society, and philanthropists must act with urgency.

We should view mitigation and adaptation as interconnected strategies to address the dual challenge of producing food while protecting the environmental systems that enable it. The most effective and sustainable solutions will strengthen agriculture and reduce environmental harm. Time is of the essence.

Esther Ngumbi, PhD is Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, African American Studies Department, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council will take place on 8 May 2026 at 12.00

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Foreign Affairs Council and the Foreign Affairs (Defence) Council will take place on 8 May 2025 at 10.45. 

President Costa and President von der Leyen received letters of credence from thirteen new Ambassadors to the European Union.

The representatives of the governments of the member states today appointed a judge to the General Court.

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council will take place on 8 May 2026 at 12.00

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Foreign Affairs Council and the Foreign Affairs (Defence) Council will take place on 8 May 2025 at 10.45. 

President Costa and President von der Leyen received letters of credence from thirteen new Ambassadors to the European Union.

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council will take place on 8 May 2026 at 12.00

Press briefing ahead of the upcoming Foreign Affairs Council and the Foreign Affairs (Defence) Council will take place on 8 May 2025 at 10.45. 

President Costa and President von der Leyen received letters of credence from thirteen new Ambassadors to the European Union.

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Written by Tim Peters with Elena Bersani.

The European Parliament is fully committed to ensuring an ambitious EU long-term budget that meets the Union’s many challenges in the years to come. On 28 April 2026, Parliament’s plenary adopted an interim report on the 2028‑2034 multiannual financial framework (MFF), with 370 votes in favour, 201 against and 84 abstentions, establishing its mandate for negotiations with the Council. Parliament’s two co-rapporteurs, Siegfried Mureșan (EPP, Romania) and Carla Tavares (S&D, Portugal), steered the report to adoption.

Parliament calls for the MFF to be set at 1.27 % of EU gross national income (GNI), corresponding to €1 789 billion in constant 2025 prices, with an additional 0.11 % of EU GNI (€149.3 billion) for the repayment of debt created by NextGenerationEU (NGEU) above the MFF ceilings. This represents a moderate increase of €175.1 billion in constant 2025 prices (approximately 10 %) compared with the Commission’s July 2025 proposal, to be allocated evenly across the three operational budget headings. The MFF constitutes the EU’s long-term budgetary plan setting a maximum level of spending (‘ceilings’) for each major category of expenditure (‘heading’) in accordance with Article 312 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

In its interim report, Parliament maintains its firm opposition to the merging of different policies in ‘one plan per Member State’, warning that it would weaken EU policies, reduce transparency and create unfair competition between beneficiaries. Under heading 1, Parliament calls for separate, sufficient and clearly ring-fenced funding for the common agricultural policy (€385.12 billion), cohesion policy (€274.34 billion), the common fisheries policy and the European Social Fund.

Parliament welcomes the significant reinforcement of the policies included in heading 2, recognising the need to boost the Union’s capacity to act in key strategic areas, such as competitiveness, defence and security, research and innovation, the twin transition, infrastructure, health and crisis preparedness, education and culture. Parliament stresses that the consolidation of programmes in the European competitiveness fund must not reduce transparency or limit its ability to ensure appropriate funding for specific policy objectives. Parliament proposes a total increase of €62.08 billion, including €26.6 billion in additional resources for the European competitiveness fund. Parliament calls for adequate reinforcement of priority programmes under heading 2 and earmarked funding for EU4Health and LIFE-related actions within the fund.

Under heading 3, Parliament requests €21.24 billion in additional resources, alongside clear and separate budget lines within the Global Europe Fund. Parliament underlines that its proposal represents the minimum amount the EU needs to meet its commitments, respond to citizens’ expectations and address major challenges.

Parliament expresses serious concerns that the Commission’s proposals shift key policy and budgetary decisions to Commission work programmes adopted without co‑legislative involvement, and stresses that simplification must not come at the expense of transparency, democratic accountability or Parliament’s oversight role. Parliament warns that the widespread use of financing not linked to costs could hinder proper auditing.

On the revenue side, Parliament reaffirms its strong commitment to introducing new genuine own resources not only for NextGenerationEU debt repayment but also to finance the Union’s enhanced policy ambitions. It is concerned by the absence of progress on the reform of the system of own resources in the Council since 2020, and calls on the Council to unblock the stalemate on a basket of new genuine own resources generating at least €60 billion per year. Parliament emphasises that the new sources should not harm the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises or of Europe as a whole. Parliament considers that the revenue potential of a digital services levy aimed at major digital platforms, an online gambling and betting services levy, the extension of the carbon border adjustment mechanism, and a levy based on a uniform call rate to the capital gains of crypto assets should all be explored as possible solutions if other proposed own resources fail to gain support among Member States.

The European Commission presented its proposals for the 2028‑2034 MFF on 16 July 2025. The Commission proposed a budget of almost €1.8 trillion in commitments over seven years (in constant 2025 prices), corresponding to 1.26 % of EU GNI, including 0.11 % of EU GNI for the repayment of the debt created by NGEU grants.

Following the adoption of its position, Parliament is now ready to start negotiations with the Council. The MFF regulation requires Parliament’s consent for approval, while the sectoral legislation will be agreed under the ordinary legislative procedure. Negotiations with the Council can begin once Member States agree on a common position. Parliament urges a swift agreement to be reached by the end of 2026 to allow for timely adoption and implementation of spending programmes from 1 January 2028.

OVERVIEW OF EPRS PUBLICATIONS ON THE 2028‑2034 MFF PACKAGE: AT A GLANCE NOTES:

• Karoline Kowald and Marianna Pari, 2028‑2034 EU budget: Parliament’s position
• Marianna Pari, 2028‑2034 EU budget: Comparing Parliament’s position with the Commission proposal

LEGISLATIVE BRIEFINGS:

• David Ashton and Pieter Baert, Single market and customs programme
• Bruno Bilquin and Eric Pichon, Global Europe instrument
• Krisztina Binder and Tarja Laaninen, Erasmus+
• Steven Blaakman, Union support for asylum, migration and integration
• Alessandro D’Alfonso, Karoline Kowald and Marin Mileusnic, National and regional partnership plans, European territorial cooperation and EU facility 2028‑2034
• Alessandro D’Alfonso, Marin Mileusnic and Tim Peters, Budget expenditure tracking and performance framework
• Alina Dobreva, System of own resources: Multiannual financial framework 2028‑2034
• Costica Dumbrava, Union support for the Schengen area, European integrated border management, and EU visa policy
• Clément Evroux, Horizon Europe 2028‑2034: 10th EU research and innovation framework programme
• Clément Evroux, Euratom research and training programme for the period 2028-2032
• Alina Georgescu, AgoraEU 2028‑2034: Funding for culture, media and EU values in the new multiannual financial framework
• Mathias Gullentops, Connecting Europe Facility 2028‑2034: Financing EU infrastructure networks
• Issam Hallak, European competitiveness fund
• Karoline Kowald and Marianna Pari, Next long-term EU budget: 2028‑2034 multiannual financial framework
• Gabija Leclerc, Support for associated overseas countries and territories, including Greenland
• Rafał Mańko, Justice programme 2028‑2034
• Rafał Mańko, Pericles 2028‑2034: Exchange, assistance and training for the protection of the euro against counterfeiting
• Vasilis Margaras, ERDF – Cohesion Fund and conditions for EU support to regional policy
• Marketa Pape, European Social Fund 2028‑2034
• Martina Prpic, Union support for internal security
• Nikolina Šajn, Regulation on the common agricultural policy for the period 2028 to 2034
• Frederik Scholaert, Conditions for EU support to the CFP (2028‑2034 programming period)
• Agnieszka Widuto, Instrument for Nuclear Safety Cooperation and Decommissioning
• Agnieszka Widuto, Nuclear decommissioning assistance programme of the Ignalina nuclear power plant in Lithuania
• Dessislava Yougova, Union Civil Protection Mechanism: 2028 2034 programming period

INITIAL APPRAISALS OF COMMISSION IMPACT ASSESSMENTS:

• Irmgard Anglmayer, Civil protection, preparedness and crisis response
• Irmgard Anglmayer and Esther Kramer, MFF 2028‑2034: Quality analysis of the Commission’s impact assessments
• Josefina Capdevila Penalva, Regulation establishing Global Europe
• Andriana Efthymiadou, Nationally pre-allocated envelopes
• Dieter Frizberg, Reinforcing competitiveness in the EU
• Esther Kramer, Single Market and Customs Programme
• Nikolaos Sarris, Budget expenditure-tracking and performance framework
• Mari Tuominen, The AgoraEU, Erasmus+ and Justice programmes

MONTHLY DIGEST:

• Balazs Hopp and András Schwarcz, Background information on the post-2027 MFF – April 2026
• Balazs Hopp and András Schwarcz, Background information on the post-2027 MFF – March 2026

FURTHER READING:

• Brief up-to-date state-of-play information on all legislative proposals of the 2028‑2034 MFF package: EPRS Legislative Train Spotlight on 2028‑2034 MFF package
• Legislative observatory, Interim report on the proposal for the multiannual financial framework for 2028‑2034 2025/0571R(APP)
• Website on the EU long-term budget by DG COMM of the European Parliament
• European Commission draft legislative proposals: The 2028‑2034 EU budget for a stronger Europe
• Interim report on the proposal for a Council regulation laying down the Multiannual Financial Framework for the years 2028 to 2034 (COM(2025)0571 – C10‑0000/2025 – 2025/0571R(APP)), adopted by the European Parliament on 28 April 2026 (A10‑0105/2026), co-rapporteurs: Siegfried Mureșan, Carla Tavares.

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Voici une liste de 7 petits pays du monde que vous pouvez visiter presque entièrement en une journée ou en quelques heures.

Voici une liste de 7 petits pays du monde que vous pouvez visiter presque entièrement en une journée ou en quelques heures.