AlimenTerra:

• Acting as a pole of information and coordination: connecting people and structures, seeking financing, increasing its own capacity of expertise, sharing expertise on project methodology, supporting members in their actions and providing convenient services to management project.

• Assisting the emergence of a political and philosophical path for the future, for the organization and the support of exchange of information and discussion, both for AlimenTerra as for the great movement for an ethic, solidary and sustainable world. 

• Serve as a catalyst to new ideas and new projects. 

• Undertake concrete actions: collect data, communicate, develop and coordinates projects.
  
  

Principles:

1. Every individual and society as a whole has the right to a good and balanced diet

2. Consumers have a right to access of all information on the origin and production conditions of the food they eat

3. The food system should prioritise human values, preserve and support multi-functionality and the responsible management of rural areas. Food production therefore can not only be governed by the rules of the market

4. Food production must develop towards a ecological and socially sustainable system that promotes the health of individuals and society that ensures animal welfare and that supports family and co-operative production systems

5. Farming and fishing are and should be inextricably linked to seasonality and the uniqueness of each locality; production should prioritise proximate and co-operative markets

6. A fair pricing system for agricultural products should operate that reflects the real social, economic and environmental cost of food production; producers have the right to fair prices and support that reflect their fundamental contribution to society, the economy and their role in managing the rural environment
   Food producers have the right to fair prices and support that reflect their fundamental contribution to society, the economy and their role in managing the rural environment

7. Genetic resources are the patrimony of all humankind. Unscrupulous pillaging of indigenous varieties, the patenting of life and the introduction of sterile varieties should be prohibited

8. Food quality must include references to the diversity of food production; the rich diversity of its food systems is one of the cornerstones of European culture

9. Sustainable and healthy food must be a cornerstone of public policy and food education must be prioritised by private and public institutions at all levels

Proposals:

• To foster local and co-operative initiatives in all sectors at all levels of the food chain that strengthen sustainable food and farming systems
• To create a complementary system of food and farming standards that take into account the sustainability of agricultural holdings, which recognises the importance of social standards and which takes into account the full life time costs of production
• To develop a European charter for public sector food provision which takes into account the well-being and health of our communities
• To ensure that access to good food and a healthy diet should be prioritised in the formulation of food policy
• To develop community actions and mobilise public opinion to demonstrate that another food system is possible
• To develop a coherent food education programme at all levels that links healthy diets with sustainable production, food culture and biodiversity
• To develop a proficient and effective European network that involves all organizations and individuals at local, national and European level that ensures that the proposals of AlimenTerra proposals are put into action
• To create a European food system that is integrated into a sustainable global food system and which can provide an alternative to the industrial food model at all geographical levels

For AlimenTerra a sustainable food system must be:

• Proximate - originating from the closest practicable source, with parallel social, environmental and economic benefits
• Healthy - part of a balanced diet, with no harmful biological or chemical contaminants
• Fairly or co-operatively traded between producers, processors, retailers, consumers
• Non-exploitative of employees in the food sector in terms of pay and conditions
• Environmentally beneficial or benign in its production (eg through organic methods and use of biological controls)
• Accessible in terms of geographic access and affordability
• High animal welfare standards in production and transport
• Support the food security of communities, at all geographical levels
• Socially inclusive of all people in society
• Encouraging knowledge & understanding of food and food culture
• Encouraging and supporting bio-diversity
• Any label or product information above all must tell the truth