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Biodiversity actions

Our battle : food for biodiversity

Biodiversity loss is the biggest environmental issue of this century.

Many people are now aware of climate change, yet don’t realise the extent of our biodiversity crisis.

With every species lost, the interconnectedness of all species is threatened, causing a chain reaction that can lead to the loss of entire ecosystems and precious resources and can cause health crises.

This tragic loss – of nature, beauty and wonder – is something our generation will be held to account for from future generations that will never have a chance to experience the diverse world we still live in.

Without a change, these factors will impact the lives of people and the fundamentals of how our planet works.

Of some 6,000 plant species cultivated for food, fewer than 200 contribute substantially to global food output, and only nine account for 66 percent of total crop production.

Food and Agriculture Organization

In the past 40 years global biodiversity has fallen over 68%. It’s an unprecedented rate of decline that hasn’t been seen on Earth for millions of years. This is in large part due to intensive agricultural practices and pesticides.

World Wildlife Fund

Biodiversity commitments and targets

Using all of our business, our voices and imaginations to protect and enhance biodiversity.

STORIES OF BOLD BIODIVERSITY

Cultivating biodiversity around everyday oat

The Bonneterre and Isola Bio teams are committed to challenging the way we farm oat.

Collectively the teams are experimenting with more biodiverse farming methods from longer crop rotations (more than 7 years), to practices enhancing soil organic matter content and creating more natural areas around their fields.

To make an impact far beyond your breakfast bowl.

Growing ancient almond varieties packed with new biodiversity thinking

To make your almond milk more biodiverse the teams across Bonneterre, Evernat and Isola bio are using ancient varieties. To date they’ve started using Genco, Filippo Ceo, Fra giulio, Cristo Morto, Montone, Rachele piccola, Catuccia, Antonio de Vito… to name just a few!

These nuts, are better adapted to the soil and environments where they are grown and in addition these brands are committed to developing traditional almond cultivation in a natural way using rainwater or micro-irrigation.

Showing those old nuts still have some new tricks.

Wildflowers around our facilities, a smart idea that’s grown into so much more

In 2012, a group of our colleagues at Allos started to plant wildflowers around the production facility on our farm in Drebber Blühwiesen.

Provide a quiet and undisrupted home for bees, bumblebees and small animals.

What began as a small idea has continued to grow. In 2020 cooperation with communities, farmers, associations and locals, Allos Hof-Manufaktur has planted over 12 hectares of flowers.

Sweet smelling and smart thinking.

Looking back to help the Provence region of France have a more biodiverse future

Almond trees used to be a prominent part of Provence region diversity of the south of France. Yet, due to disease and mass farming these diverse crops the industry has all but disappeared. Here the foundation team saw an opportunity to bringing almonds back to Provence.

Today they are working with farmers to cultivate the ancient almonds of the area and to create new environmentally sustainable solutions to combat the disease.

New thinking, better drinking.

Bringing biodiversity and bird song back to the farms of Peru

Our Alter Eco team has always searched for solutions to improve the social and environmental impact. When they took on the mission to make the delicious chocolate carbon neutral. They worked in partnership with the PUR project, Amazonia Viva Foundation and with smallholding farmers in Peru to integrate trees into their cocoa fields.

Over the years collectively they have planted over 2-million trees, improving water quality, bringing back rains, the birds and the bugs – all whilst increasing the value of the land for their farmers by 4x.

Happy farmers, happy wildlife, happy tummies.