Minerva Communications has helped draw international attention to the devastating impact of livestock production on the future of the planet on behalf of client, Compassion in World Farming (CiWF).

The Extinction & Livestock Conference, organised by CiWF in partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF), was the world’s first ever conference to explore the impact of livestock production on animals, people and the planet. It attracted more than 500 people from 30 different countries who heard from many world leading experts on the environment, conservation, food policy, animal  welfare and human health.

The event, which took place at the QEII Centre in London in October 2017, achieved widespread national and international media coverage including reports on BBC R4’s Today Programme, BBC R4’s Farming Today, BBC World Service, and in-depth articles in The Times, The Guardian, and The Independent and on BBC News Online. It also attracted media coverage in 26 countries around the world and the conference-dedicated Twitter account, managed by Minerva, trended in the UK during the event.

Minerva’s Charlotte Reid, who led communications for the conference on behalf of CiWF, said: “It has been a pleasure working with Compassion in World Farming and we feel privileged to have been involved in this landmark conference and to have played a part in highlighting the important issue of safeguarding the future of our planet.”

The key message to come out of the conference was that in order to safeguard the future of life on Earth we must all eat less and better meat (such as free-range, organic or pasture-fed) as well as more plants. Actress Joanna Lumley attended a food innovation event at the conference, which show-cased plant-based foods, and became one of the first people in the UK to taste the new Beyond Burger – currently only available in the US.

Carol McKenna, Senior Advisor at Compassion in World Farming, who organised the conference, said: “The work of Minerva Communications was key to our success in publicising the conference in advance and securing high profile media coverage to advance our call for a transformation of global food and farming systems towards humane and sustainable models.

“It was a pleasure to work with them to effectively convey our message that agriculture and the way we produce food is the most serious threat to wildlife worldwide and that governments and intergovernmental organisations urgently need to address the issues of meat production and consumption if we are to save life on Earth.”

The event was supported by Birdlife Europe, the European Environmental Bureau, the Alliance of Religions and Conservation, and the University of Winchester.

It attracted a world-class line-up of speakers including: academic and food activist Professor Raj Patel; award-winning author and academic Professor Carl Safina; Cheryl Queen, of Compass Group US; ecological egg farmer Ruud Zanders; Ignacio Blanco, Senior Director, Global Sustainable Sourcing, at McDonald’s Corporation; and Tony Juniper, Senior Advisor, The Prince of Wales’s International Sustainability Unit.

For further information about the conference go to https://www.extinctionconference.com