Christophe Van Neste
Dr. Christophe Van Neste is a multidisciplinary researcher with a background in forensic DNA analysis, cancer research, and machine learning. He currently works at Meise Botanic Garden, where he integrates laboratory-based mineral analysis with Earth observation technologies to support traceability and regulatory compliance in agricultural supply chains.
With a long-standing interest in the intersection of ecology, data science, and international trade, Christophe’s path evolved from bio(diversity)-informatics into soil geochemistry. His work began focusing on remote sensing and open environmental data infrastructures, but the increasing urgency around land-use regulations—especially the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR)—spurred him to apply these skills in support of actionable monitoring tools.
Christophe played a key role in establishing an ICP-OES facility at Meise Botanic Garden, and currently collaborates with Ghent University on ICP-MS and isotope analysis of forest-risk commodities. His recent research explores the integration of spectral data and global soil models to estimate mineral baselines, with a focus on how post-harvest processing may confound or reveal key provenance indicators.
He is especially interested in how open science, harmonized datasets, and robust field-lab-satellite linkages can underpin the next generation of green supply chain governance.
Sessions
In response to the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), EU member states must verify that imported forest risk commodities (FRCs) such as coffee, cacao, soy, and timber are not sourced from deforested land. At Meise Botanic Garden, we have established an ICP-OES laboratory to determine the mineral composition of these commodities. In collaboration with Ghent University, we further enhance this analysis using ICP-MS and isotope ratio techniques. We connect our results to evaluation platforms and databases as those provided by World Forest ID. To further contextualize our findings and assess the plausibility of declared origins, we complement the lab work with dry lab estimations, drawing on global soil grids and satellite-derived spectral data to approximate local soil mineral compositions. We also present preliminary insights into how post-harvest processing, particularly decaffeination of coffee, alters the mineral signature of the final product and complicates provenance verification. This hybrid approach provides a valuable indication of origin in cases where our reference database is still under development. Ultimately, the integration of laboratory analysis with geospatial estimation offers a pragmatic tool for EUDR enforcement and opens new pathways for innovation in EU Green Deal-aligned services.