from SUBSIDIES to SUSTAINABILITY

At Food Forward Europe, we use legal action to redirect public subsidies from harmful models to sustainable food systems.

Vision

A European Union where industrial animal farming belongs to the past and where public money supports sustainable, plant-based food systems for the benefit of people, animals, and the planet.

Close-up of green wheat plants in a field under a blue sky.

Mission

Food Forward Europe uses legal advocacy and strategic litigation to redirect EU agricultural subsidies away from intensive livestock farming and toward sustainable plant-based agriculture. By holding EU institutions accountable to their own binding targets on climate, environment and animal welfare, we aim to accelerate a fair and lasting food system transition.

Close-up of golden wheat stalks in a field under a blue sky with some clouds.
Black and white photograph of Holstein cows in a barn, feeding from a trough.

The Problem

  • 82% of EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funds — about €45 billion/year — go to the livestock sector.

  • The sector causes 84% of food-related greenhouse gases and 70% of agricultural emissions.

  • 70% of CAP funds come from taxpayers, yet 83–90% of citizens oppose factory farming.

  • Legal action remains underused due to complex CAP procedures and lack of transparency.

Our Solution

Food Forward Europe advances change through three pillars:

1

Strategic Litigation

Challenge CAP subsidies that violate EU climate law and force compliance with legal reduction targets (–55% by 2030).

2

Legal Advocacy

Produce expert briefs and engage EU decision-makers to reallocate at least 20% of CAP funds to sustainable plant-based systems by 2030.

3

Coalition Building & Mobilisation

Unite NGOs, experts, and sustainable producers to build public and political momentum for reform.

Field of tall, golden grass with a blurred background and a clear blue sky.

Impact Goals

20% of subsidies redirected to sustainable agriculture by 2030.

Assorted fresh vegetables including bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, garlic, onion, and avocado.

Reduced GHG emissions and improved animal welfare.

A legally binding shift toward climate-aligned, sustainable agriculture.

Vineyard rows on a hillside with trees and a partly cloudy sky.

Expansion of plant protein production and affordability.

Headline Goal

Reallocate at least 20% of CAP funds by 2030 toward sustainable, plant-based agriculture and deliver a 15–20% cut in livestock methane, a doubling of plant-protein human consumption share, and EU-grown plant-protein expansion, in line with the EU Climate Law and the Farm to Fork Strategy.

Our 2026 Objectives

Host an EU Legal Expert Roundtable (CAP & litigation experts).

Publish a Legal Report and Policy Brief on redirecting CAP subsidies.

Develop a Strategic Litigation Roadmap and prepare a test case.

  • Black and white portrait of a woman with long wavy hair wearing a white blazer and earrings, against a blue background.

    Dr Sabine Brels

    HEAD OF FOOD FORWARD EUROPE

    LinkedIn
  • A man in a suit sitting in an office chair, smiling, with a blue background.

    Alessandro Ricciuti

    HEAD OF EU STRATEGY

    LinkedIn
  • A young woman with long hair, glasses, and a casual shirt, smiling with arms crossed against a blue background.

    Caroline Defois

    HEAD OF LITIGATION

    LinkedIn

Why Now

The post-2027 CAP reform is currently under discussion — the EU’s most significant opportunity in a decade to realign agricultural subsidies with its highest objectives under the Green Deal, the Farm to Fork Strategy, and binding EU laws on environmental protection, public health and food security, animal welfare, and climate mitigation.

F0od Forward Europe acts now to make sure this critical window for reform is not missed.

Together, we can remind EU representatives that public money must serve the public good — not private industrial interests. European taxpayers fund these subsidies, and EU decision-makers have a legal and moral duty to ensure that every euro contributes to a just, sustainable, and forward-looking food system.

Aerial view of a lush green cornfield with tall, densely packed corn plants.

Let’s hold the EU accountable — and steer Europe toward lasting sustainability.

A landscape scene with a golden grassy field in the foreground and a partly cloudy blue sky in the background.

Get Involved

Join our coalition, support our legal case, or donate to help make EU food subsidies sustainable.

Contact Us