Sustainable agriculture: it’s possible

Agriculture is a complex sector that both depends on the environment and weather conditions, but also has many impacts on them. Europe has set three main goals in this area: making agriculture and food systems more sustainable, strengthening resilience to crises, and making food healthy and affordable. The main ways to achieve this have already been known for some time.

A sector with multiple challenges

The agricultural sector (crop production, livestock, viticulture, horticulture, aquaculture, and forestry) aims to produce food that is healthy and sufficient. But it must do so while protecting resources (water, soil, biodiversity), reducing fossil fuel dependence, helping to preserve air quality, reducing health risks for workers, cutting greenhouse gas emissions, and adapting to climate change. The list of requirements is therefore particularly demanding.

… and various impacts

Agriculture uses different inputs such as fertilizers, crop protection products (pesticides like herbicides, fungicides, insecticides), cleaning and disinfecting products, and animal feed additives. These inputs are found in agricultural effluents and can reach soils, groundwater, rivers, and eventually the ocean. Agriculture emits large amounts of ammonia (NH₃) and is one of the main sources of non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs). It also emits particles linked to plowing, harvesting, and poultry farming in buildings. Pesticides can also be found in the air, as shown by the Pestiriv study published in mid-September, which revealed the presence of substances in the air of wine-growing areas.

More sustainable agricultural practices

To address all this, it is essential to develop a system that stays within the planet’s limits in terms of natural resources (water, soil, nutrients), biodiversity, and climate. Several approaches exist, many of which are voluntary.

Some actions to make agriculture more sustainable are not new. Examples include long-term cover crops, optimized pasture management, planting trees and hedges, using organic fertilizers, and improving the management of livestock effluents for spreading.

Some measures are part of policy plans or strategies. The Green Deal, for example, aims to reduce by 50% the use of chemical pesticides and their associated risks, and by 50% the use of the most dangerous pesticides by 2030. It also states that by 2030, at least 25% of EU farmland will be organic, that the share of organic aquaculture will increase significantly, that sales of antimicrobials for livestock and aquaculture will be reduced by 50%, and that nutrient loss will be cut by at least 50% while maintaining soil fertility. This should lead to a 20% reduction in fertilizer use by 2030.

At the same time, to help the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reach the Green Deal goals, the EU has created new tools — the “eco-schemes” — which each country must define in its national CAP strategic plans. To qualify, farming practices must include actions related to the environment, climate, animal welfare, and antimicrobial resistance. These practices must be based on national and regional needs and priorities and go beyond existing obligations, helping to achieve the Green Deal’s objectives.

Established practices and new ones to develop

The EU recognizes two well-established practices: organic farming and integrated pest management. Organic farming uses natural and renewable resources, applies preventive methods, limits the number of authorized additives, and prohibits pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, and GMOs. A recent study conducted in France by the Institute for Organic Agriculture and Food (ITAB) showed the major role of organic farming in reducing negative agricultural impacts, helping to avoid costs linked to corrective measures.

The second established practice, integrated pest management, includes buffer strips without pesticide use, mechanical weed control, increased use of resilient crop varieties, and fallow land planted with specific species.

Other practices are emerging, such as agroecology (biocontrol, crop rotation, diversification), agroforestry (integrating trees or hedges in fields), high nature value farming, precision agriculture (using digital technologies to optimize inputs), better nutrient management, and water resource protection.

Certification systems are also expanding, such as France’s High Environmental Value (HVE) certification, which already covers more than 38,000 farms nationwide.

An essential corollary: changing consumption habits

Moving toward sustainable agriculture requires choices by farmers (reducing inputs, adopting agroecological approaches) but also by consumers. Everyone can help by eating more legumes, reducing beef and pork consumption, or simply choosing local, organic, seasonal, and less processed products. Rethinking agricultural models also means rethinking consumption patterns.

Good to know

Agriculture in the spotlight at Pollutec

Pollutec 2025 will highlight agriculture throughout October 8, with sessions on agrivoltaics, climate adaptation, carbon certification, water reuse in fields, and agricultural waste recovery. Alongside key players such as INRAE and the Carnot Institutes, several specialized exhibitors will present their innovative solutions: Microterra (soil management), Viewpoint (water biosurveillance), NPHarvest Oy (turning sludge into fertilizer), Phytopro (100% natural additives made from agricultural waste for poultry farms), and biogas and methanization experts such as Agraferm GmbH, BTS Biogas Srl GmbH, Charwood Energy, and Evergaz.