News

Achieving Sustainable and Inclusive Growth at the G-20

After several years of favorable financial conditions, including low-interest rates and a free-for-all in credit access, corporate leverage is reaching unsustainable highs. Bank balance sheets across Europe still need repair following the global financial crisis and the faster-than-projected expansion in China, fueled by rapid credit and increased spending, risks excessive levels of public and private debt in the future. This pales in comparison to the more structural issues facing the world today, such as excessively high economic inequality, low productivity growth, intensifying demographic trends and a growing atmosphere of protectionism.

Representing 85% of the world GDP, two-thirds of its population and 80% of greenhouse gas emissions, the Group of 20 (G-20) nations met last week under the banner of achieving strong, sustainable and inclusive economic growth in the face of mounting global climate pressures.…

Empowering the Local Community with Agriculture

The very first class of local schoolchildren from the Ubiratan Diniz Aguiar School has graduated from Primal Group’s Sustainable Future Initiative. Celebrated on International Environment Day, this graduation marked the successful implementation of an educational program intended to share the latest innovations in sustainable agriculture and the significance of carefully nurturing the very ground we walk on. With parents, teachers and local politicians all gathering to see the thriving produce cultivated by students on-site at Primal Group’s agricultural projects in Brazil, the positive impact that this initiative has had on the local community and the environment is clear.

The Sustainable Future Initiative in action.

New Studies Confirm Neonicotinoids Harmful to Bees

The most comprehensive and peer-reviewed studies to date on neonicotinoid pesticides (neonics) confirm their harm to both honeybee and wild bee populations around the world. Honeybees experience a 24% decline in colony size the winter after exposure and wild bees demonstrate lower reproductive rates. What’s even more concerning is that beehives are easily contaminated with these synthetic pesticides through soil dissemination, regardless of geographic proximity. With an estimated three quarters of global crop species, ranging from apples to almonds, relying on pollination by bees and other beneficial animals, we must end our reliance on dangerous agrochemicals and opt for crop care solutions that pose no risk to the environment.…

Healthy Soils Produce Safer Crops and Healthier People

The very land beneath our feet is an incredible, yet finite resource. Providing critical services to humanity, healthy soil is essential for agriculture, water, carbon sequestration as well as the incredible biodiversity that exists in the world today. The maintenance and enhancement of global soil resources are essential if humanity’s overarching need for food, water, and energy security is to be met. Soils are one of the fundamental bases of life. There’s no denying that the living ecosystem beneath our feet has a major stake in the history and future of Planet Earth.

The soil is utilized globally for biomass production, including agriculture and forestry, as well as for storing, filtering and transforming nutrients, substances, and water.…

The New Frontier of Competitive Advantage

Corporate short-termism has reigned supreme across industry, despite hard evidence supporting the profound value of capitalism and commerce with the long term in mind. Business leaders, governments, and academic institutions are concerned that the corporate focus on quarterly earnings is preventing companies from investing in their workers, research and development as well as technological innovation. We must begin to drive the shift towards capitalism for the long-term in order to create true value; not only by adopting a multi-generational approach when solving the world’s grand challenges, but also by rewriting the very way in which we govern, manage and lead corporations.…

A Monumental Shift in the Global Food Market

“Millions of people love Whole Foods Market because they offer the best natural and organic foods, and they make it fun to eat healthy! Whole Foods Market has been satisfying, delighting and nourishing customers for nearly four decades – they’re doing an amazing job and we want that to continue.”

Jeff Bezos, Chief Executive Officer at Amazon, June 2017

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Amazon has just taken a giant leap into traditional retailing, purchasing the organic food chain Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion ($42 per share). That’s an impressive amount for a once local and always all-natural food store set up in 1978 by a twenty-seven-year-old college dropout and his then college sweetheart.…

The Dangers of Synthetic Pesticides

According to food specialists at the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and the World Economic Forum, the implementation of an environmentally sustainable food system is an international priority for the development of global health and food security. As further light is shed on the immense environmental and health damage of conventional agriculture, international organizations are increasingly backing organic food systems.

The latest review of scientific research by the European Parliament has found that eating foods with high levels of synthetic pesticides was found to directly impact brain development across the general population. At least 100 synthetic pesticides currently on the market around the world are known to cause neurological disorders.…