Sustainable consumption

With the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015, the United Nations agreed on global sustainability goals (SDGs). In the following, we focus on sustainable development goal 12, which is to "Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns", and highlight some related activities that the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculure (BMEL) is carrying out.

Further information on Agenda 2030.

Overview of topics

The BMEL’s Commitment for Sustainable Cocoa

For Germany, one of the biggest exporters of chocolate products worldwide, cocoa as an agricultural commodity is of great economic importance. Almost ten percent of the cocoa produced worldwide is processed in Germany alone. It is thus useful to maintain the share of sustainably produced cocoa in the value-adding chain and to safeguard its availability and quality in the long term.

Certified sustainable palm oil in Germany – Forum for Sustainable Palm Oil

The aim is for all palm oil used in Germany to be from sustainable production. This is the express aim of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL). The successful work carried out by the Forum for Sustainable Palm Oil (FONAP), which is supported by the BMEL, was commended at the forum's annual general meeting on 27 April 2023. Parliamentary State Secretary Ms Müller emphasised in her speech to the AGM what challenges the EU Regulation on deforestation-free products holds and how important the role of FONAP is for its implementation.