With around 70 per cent of Europe’s soils in poor health, the European Union has launched the EU Soil Mission ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’ to reverse this deterioration and make soils more sustainable across the continent.

The European Commission’s effort to coordinate this vital work recognises soil as the essential foundation of our food systems and rural livelihoods, but the strategy also promotes a decentralised, local approach to find solutions that reflect the vast diversity of ecosystems and soils in Europe.

Episode 15 of Food for Europe travels to the Aisne départment in northeast France to speak to a cereal farmer making a commitment to conservation agriculture to safeguard the health of his soil. The podcast includes interviews soil experts from institutes in the Netherlands and Italy, an advocate from a leading NGO focusing on soil restoration and the head of unit for research and innovation at the European Commission’s DG AGRI.