Marc Buckley in an interview for the Earth Trek Association – “Continuing the practice of growing food using chemicals, even for just one more month, has no justification.”

It is necessary to abandon bad business models and build sustainable systems

Marc Buckley, an expert for the World Economic Forum, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals advocate, an activist and an environmentalist, Germany’s largest organic food producer, talks about the alternatives to the use of chemicals in food production, providing his own example – on 12,500 ha of land Marc grows organic food, without the use of chemicals, which supplies over 20,000 stores in 12 countries of the European Union.
Marc also offers his expertise and experience to Croatian experts for Croatia to establish sustainable health food production systems.

The interview will premiere on the YouTube channel of the Earth Trek Association on 20 January 2021. at 11:00 a.m., at the following link: https://youtu.be/wopomTNKJcw.

Part of the interview will also be shown in Eko-Zona show on HRT1, 20 January 2021. at 11:10 a.m.

At a time when we are facing a crisis on a global level, when the stability and reliability of existing structures are questionable, and in addition, we are dealing with the consequences of strong earthquakes, Croats are forced to see a future we have never imagined. In that future, we will face completely different paradigms, completely different features will gain value.

Primarily – food systems. As in 2008, during the economic crisis, many companies reoriented to food production, because food, in addition to air and water, is our basic need, and therefore the demand for food is unquestionable and constant.
While tourism, entertainment, and sports can be put on hold, food will surely be sought every day.

The availability of healthy food should be a priority for every country. Food should support health, instead of being poison. Healthy food is the food produced by natural and harmless farming methods, and poisonous food is that which contains residues of chemical agents.

In addition to making food dangerous, chemicals destroy soil, biodiversity, pollute all water on Earth, as well as the air, and contribute to climate change.

The position of the Minister of Agriculture is that the replacement of pesticides by sustainable farming methods would have a negative impact on Croatian farmers, for example, that “a unilateral and immediate ban on glyphosate would put Croatian farmers in an unequal position.”

Our question is: what is, in this case, the position of Croatian citizens who consume toxic food, but also the position of food producers themselves who may be unaware of the dangerous effects of pesticides on nature and the environment and even on their own health, due to the lack of information. Every year, a large number of pesticide poisonings are recorded in the world, about 250,000 deaths, according to the World Health Organization.

Marc Buckley warns that we have done great damage with agrotechnical measures and tells us how much harvest we have left if we do not change the existing food production systems. He also mentions the problem of food waste which is not only an economic loss but also an environmental problem. Poor resource management entails a number of consequences, of which the unfair cost of labor because of cheapening the food should be mentioned.

Marc also suggests solutions to the current crisis and tells us what to expect if we switch from harmful existing practices that involve the use of hazardous chemicals and reorient to organic production: “You will be able to keep a healthy and biodiverse plethora of different types of crops on your agricultural land, which you will use, and it will be useful not only for you as an entrepreneur, farmer and those to whom you sell your products, but also for the environment and to human health. It will also help you reduce the amount of waste.

Organic apples and walnuts
In the photo: Antonio Svrtan
Organic food
Ecological farm in Zagorje, Croatia

Marc Buckley u intervjuu za udrugu Zemljane staze: “Nastavak prakse uzgoja hrane uz korištenje kemikalija, čak i samo još jedan mjesec, nema opravdanja”.

Potrebno je napustiti loše poslovne modele i izgraditi održive sustave

Marc Buckley, stručni savjetnik za Svjetski gospodarski forum, suradnik Ujedinjenih naroda na Ciljevima održivog razvoja, te najveći njemački proizvođač organske hrane, u intervjuu za udrugu Zemljane staze opovrgava stav o nužnosti korištenja kemijskih sredstava u proizvodnji hrane, što dokazuje vlastitim primjerom – na 12.500 ha zemlje Marc uzgaja organsku hranu, bez upotrebe kemijskih sredstava, kojom opskrbljuje preko 20.000 trgovina u 12 zemalja Europske unije.

Marc nudi svoju stručnost i svoje iskustvo i hrvatskim stručnjacima kako bi se u Hrvatskoj uspostavili održivi sustavi proizvodnje zdrave hrane.



Intervju će se premijerno prikazati na YouTube kanalu udruge Zemljane staze 20.01.2021. u 11:00 sati, na sljedećoj poveznici: https://youtu.be/wopomTNKJcw.
Pretpregled intervjua dostupan na zahtjev.
Dio intervjua će također biti prikazan u emisiji Eko-Zona na Prvom programu Hrvatske radiotelevizije, 20.01.2021. u 11:10.

U vrijeme kada se suočavamo s krizom na globalnoj razini, te je stabilnost i pouzdanost postojećih struktura upitna, a uz to rješavamo i posljedice jakih potresa, prisiljeni smo vidjeti budućnost kakvu do sada nismo zamišljali. U toj ćemo se budućnosti suočiti s potpuno drugačijim paradigmama, potpuno drugačije značajke dobit će vrijednost.

Prvenstveno – prehrambeni sustavi. Kao i 2008. godine, tijekom ekonomske krize, mnoga su se poduzeća preorijentirala na proizvodnju hrane, jer nam je hrana, osim zraka i vode, osnovna potreba, te je stoga potražnja za hranom neupitna i konstantna. Dok se turizam, zabava i sport mogu staviti “na čekanje”, hrana će se zasigurno tražiti svaki dan.

Dostupnost zdrave hrane treba biti prioritet svake države. Hrana treba podržavati zdravlje, a ne biti otrov.
Zdrava hrana je ona hrana proizvedena prirodnim i neštetnim metodama uzgoja, a otrovna hrana je ona koja u sebi sadrži rezidue kemijskih sredstava.

Osim što kemijska sredstva hranu čine opasnom, ona uništavaju tla, bioraznolikost, zagađuju sve vode na Zemlji, kao i zrak, te doprinose klimatskim promjenama. 

Stav ministrice poljoprivrede je da bi se zamjena pesticida održivim metodama uzgoja negativno odrazila na hrvatske poljoprivrednike, primjerice, da bi “jednostrana i trenutačna zabrana glifosata dovela u neravnopravan položaj hrvatskog poljoprivrednika.”

Naše je pitanje gdje su u toj priči hrvatski građani koji konzumiraju toksičnu hranu, ali i sami proizvođači hrane koji su možda i nesvjesni opasnih učinaka pesticida na prirodu i okoliš pa i na samo njihovo zdravlje, a zbog nedostatka informacija. Svake se godine u svijetu bilježi velik broj trovanja prilikom primjene pesticida, oko 250.000 smrtnih slučajeva, prema podatcima Svjetske zdravstvene organizacije.

Marc Buckley upozorava da smo agrotehničkim mjerama napravili velike štete i govori nam koliko nam još žetvi preostaje, ako ne izmijenimo postojeće sustave proizvodnje hrane.
Također spominje problem bacanja viškova hrane što ne predstavlja samo ekonomski gubitak, već je to i ekološki problem. Loše gospodarenje resursima povlači za sobom niz posljedica, od kojih treba spomenuti i nepravednu cijenu rada zbog smanjivanja cijene hrane.

Marc ujedno predlaže rješenja za postojeću krizu te nam govori što možemo očekivati ukoliko napustimo štetne postojeće prakse koje uključuju primjenu opasnih kemijskih sredstava i preorijentiramo se na organsku proizvodnju:
“Moći ćete na svom poljoprivrednom zemljištu zadržati zdravo i bioraznoliko preobilje različitih vrsta usjeva, koje ćete koristiti i uz to će biti korisno, ne samo vama kao poduzetniku, poljoprivredniku i onima kojima prodajete svoje proizvode, već će taj način biti koristan i okolišu, kao i ljudskom zdravlju. Također će vam pomoći smanjiti i količinu otpada.”

Organske jabuke
Na fotografiji: Antonio Svrtan
Organska hrana
Ekološko imanje

International KnowHow / DoHow for Croatia

What makes Maltese more relaxed and happier than Croats?

We are located in Malta where we are working on the project “International KnowHow / DoHow for Croatia”.

Valletta

The project is backed by KAIROS Mentor Andreas Wil Gerdes to boost CROATIA2.0 based on #healthyliving, #digitalization, and #empoweringpeople.

Andreas started visiting Croatia in 2017 and came up with what he calls CROATIA2.0 based on IOT (Integrity, Openness, and Transparency) as a brand and path to boost the country.

Marsaxlokk

With this project, the Earth Trek Association is raising the awareness of the citizens of the Republic of Croatia about the importance of upgrading the quality of life by improving environmental conditions and ensuring the availability of healthy food.

– With this project, we want to provide the residents of Croatia (but also all other interested people, regardless of nationality, religion, gender, race and other division criteria) with an insight into the way of life that has proven to be excellent and sustainable in Malta. We want to present the positive aspects of life in Malta and translate it into the life of Croatian citizens.

Valletta

Over the last 8 years, Malta has undergone numerous changes, primarily in the attitude of people towards everyday life, towards themselves, towards their health, but also about the environment in which they live.
Many Maltese have turned to food production and food preparation, choosing organic, healthy, plant-based food.
It is obvious that the people of Malta give a lot of importance to the so-called alternative methods of maintaining health and invest a lot in the prevention and strengthening of the body’s capacity to heal itself and defend itself against disease and to maintain the achieved balance. This is also noticeable in the names of restaurants and projects happening in Malta, so there are restaurants and shops called Balance Bowl, Dr Juice, Pure Living, etc., all of which point to the fact that Maltese are well aware that #healthyliving is closely linked to #healthyeating.
Malta is a great example of putting the #ImmunityWellness concept into practice.

Dr Juice restaurant

Maltese also turn to yoga, meditation, connecting with nature. In this way, they heal deeply engraved traumas that often keep us stuck in situations and places that are not good for us and do not allow us to progress and develop, and ultimately result in unfulfilled and unhappy living.

Valletta

And I can say that the results in Malta are actually visible.
The first thing I noticed here is that the Maltese are extremely kind and warm, in a way that is sporadically seen in Croatia.
Moving aside on the street (even when the obstacle is on my side), greeting even though we don’t know each other (with the obligatory smile, of course), chatting at the bus station, warmth and benevolence, are the characteristics of Maltese that I would definitely like to portray to Croatian citizens.
I was especially impressed by the kindness and accessibility of drivers in public transport, atypical for the Croatian climate, and the staff in restaurants as well as doctors in the hospital are equally friendly in ways completely different from the usual Croatian way of behaving.

Valletta

Ubiquitous nervousness, constant hustle and bustle, inability to find time for friends and socializing, feelings of heaviness and pressure, existential anxiety, are almost unknown in Malta.

Valletta by night

What ensures the Maltese such ease of living, low stress and a sense of peace we will try to discover in the coming days.

“Everything is better in Malta!” – maybe this is how this article sounds. But that doesn’t necessarily have to be the case.

I challenge you to find something we are better at than Malta!

And then to exchange the best of our sides and further improve the quality of life, both in Croatia and in Malta.

– Written by Natalija Svrtan

Najava edukativne emisije iz serije Učinci pesticida i održive alternative

Natalija Svrtan iz udruge Zemljane staze / Earth Trek upozorava na opasnosti nezdrave prehrane i najavljuje edukativni video u kojem gostuje poduzetnik Andreas Wil Gerdes

Natalija Svrtan u edukativnom filmu “Učinci pesticida na zdravlje ljudi i okoliš”
“Vekerica”, VTV, 12.08.2020.

U emisiji se govori o značenju pojma “zdrava hrana”, odnosno, razgovara se o tome koje uvjete hrana treba zadovoljiti da bi na naš organizam imala pozitivan utjecaj te o obrazovnom filmu snimljenom sredstvima organizacije Global Greengrants Fund.
Hrana opterećena toksinima iz pesticida organizmu čini više štete nego koristi, zato trebamo tražiti i konzumirati isključivo organsku, neštetnu hranu.

Covid-19 kriza pomaknula je fokus na važnost podizanja obrambenih sposobnosti organizma, a značajan čimbenik u tim nastojanjima predstavlja i zdrava hrana.

Earth Trek’s educational movie on the pesticides impact

The Earth Trek NGO recorded 3 educational movies on the effects of pesticides and sustainable alternatives

HR version

The global impact of pesticide use has long been too much of a burden on the environment and nature, and especially on human health

In order to raise the awareness of the citizens of the Republic of Croatia about the effects of pesticides on human health and the environment, we recorded 3 educational movies, with support from Global Greengrants Fund.

The first of them is bilingual, in Croatian and English, in order to reach as wide an audience as possible, and it will be premiered on the Earth Trek https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfBaq3SooW2PVUU0aYrN5igNGO’s Youtube channel on Thursday, August 6, 2020. at 10:00 a.m.

Link to premiere: https://youtu.be/sVGTWzsnMqY

The guest of the first show is the Malta based German entrepreneur Andreas Wil Gerdes, who brought ideas for the recovery and progress to Croatia and connected with Croatian entrepreneurs and activists.

Andreas is interested in bringing progress to Croatia, with ideas and innovative solutions that are simple and scalable.

#AndreasWilGerdes

In the interview, he talks about the importance of boosting health/ immune systems. He shares his experiences and believes in Croatia’s unique potential e.g. living a healthy and happy life. He paid special attention to the Covid-19 crisis.

“The goal of filming these educational movies is not to make money, but only to reach as many viewers as possible, in order to raise citizens’ awareness of the consequences of pesticide use, and encourage relevant institutions to react quickly and adapt to European trends, and enacting the laws and strategies which are protecting human health, nature and environment,” said Natalija Svrtan, the president of the Earth Trek NGO.

Natalija Svrtan
Natalija Svrtan, the Author

Premijerno prikazivanje prvog edukativnog videa iz serije “Učinci pesticida i održive alternative”

ENG version

Udruga Zemljane staze snimila je 3 edukativne emisije o učincima pesticida i o održivim alternativama

Globalni utjecaj upotrebe pesticida već dugo vremena predstavlja preveliko opterećenje okolišu i prirodi, a osobito zdravlju ljudi

Da bismo podigli razinu osviještenosti građana Republike Hrvatske o učincima pesticida na zdravlje ljudi i na okoliš, snimili smo 3 edukativne emisije.

Prva od njih je dvojezična, na hrvatskom i engleskom jeziku, kako bi se obuhvatila što šira publika, a bit će premijerno prikazana na Youtube kanalu udruge Zemljane staze u četvrtak, 06.08.2020. u 10:00 sati.

Poveznica na premijeru: https://youtu.be/sVGTWzsnMqY

Gost prve emisije je njemački poduzetnik Andreas Wil Gerdes sa sjedištem na Malti, koji je u Hrvatsku donio ideje za oporavak i napredak te se povezao s hrvatskim poduzetnicima i aktivistima.

Andreas je zainteresiran za napredak u Hrvatskoj, s jednostavnim i mjerljivim idejama i inovativnim rješenjima.

Andreas Wil Gerdes
#AndreasWilGerdes

U intervjuu govori o važnosti jačanja zdravstvenog / imunološkog sustava. Dijeli svoja iskustva i vjeruje u jedinstveni potencijal Hrvatske, npr. u mogućnost življenja zdravim i sretnim životom. Posebnu pozornost posvetio je Covid-19 krizi .

Video je snimljen sredstvima organizacije Global Greengrants Fund i bit će besplatno dostupan za emitiranje.

“Cilj snimanja ovih edukativnih videa nije zarada, već isključivo dopiranje do što većeg broja gledatelja, kako bi se podigla svijest građana o posljedicama upotrebe pesticida, te potaknulo relevantne institucije na brzu reakciju i prilagođavanje europskim trendovima, te usklađivanje sa zakonima i strategijama koje za cilj imaju zaštitu zdravlja ljudi, prirode i okoliša.”, rekla je Natalija Svrtan, predsjednica udruge Zemljane staze.

Natalija Svrtan
Natalija Svrtan, autorica videa
Edukativni video