Agrifood Archives

A dozen EU countries backed Germany and Austria's push to extend mandatory origin labelling to a wider range of food products at a Council meeting on Monday (27 May), despite concerns from some countries about disrupting the market and raising prices for consumers. 

Arnaud Rousseau, the head of France's largest farmers' union, is delighted to see food sovereignty taking centre stage in the political debate, and calls for the appointment of a Commissioner for Agriculture who would also be Vice-President of the Commission.

Our tour of the EU this time focuses on unfair trade practices (UTPs) in the food supply chain, such as late payments or sales below production costs.

Austrian diplomats will present a note pushing for quick adoption of the proposal to lower the protection status of wolves at a Council meeting on Monday (27 May) but EU countries are split on the issue, with a group of capitals calling for more data on the level of threat posed by the species.

Despite the presentation of a new compromise text from the Belgian presidency, national experts could not find an agreement to unblock one of the agrifood unfinished dossier of the legislature.

EU specific support to oilseeds production and a joint public-private effort in research are key elements to increase the supply of EU-made proteins for animal feed, the bloc's executive recommended in a study published today (24 May).

Food and agriculture stakeholders are asking the European Commission to finalise the details of the EU's deforestation regulation while a group of agriculture ministers seek a postponement, a move opposed by NGOs and ruled out by the Commission for now.

The European Commission fined US confectionary giant Mondelez €337.5 million on Thursday (23 May) for engaging in anti-competitive behaviour which inflated food prices and exacerbated the cost of living crisis across the EU.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's initiative to tackle polarisation in the agricultural sector is expected to reach its conclusions by September, but sources close to the talks told Euractiv that stakeholders are still not close to defining concrete agreements.

In a compromise text seen by Euractiv, which will be discussed until Thursday (23 May), the Belgian presidency of the EU Council aims to overcome the main obstacle for EU countries to reach a common position on the controversial rules on last-generation biotech crops.

The first article of the national agricultural orientation law has been voted through French parliament, removing the targets of 15% of farmland for organic agriculture and 8% for legumes.

The volumes exported to the bloc have already reached the limit established in the new 'trade benefits' regulation, Ukrainian producers said calling for the EU to stop importing sugar from their country for 2024.

The agriculture ministers from Nordic-Baltic countries urge the EU to strongly support Ukraine’s ability to export its agricultural products to the EU and to world markets.

On 16 May, the European Commission, in partnership with Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, and the US, inaugurated a renewed Ukrainian-Moldovan border crossing point in Reni, Ukraine.   

The Dutch farmers’ party BoerBurgerBeweging (BBB) put agriculture among the top priorities in the coalition agreement signed on Thursday (16 May) with far-right PVV, liberal VVD, and anti-corruption NSC.  

According to experts at the European Maize Congress, Ukraine’s reinvigorated capacity to export cereals raises questions about competition with EU producers, but future integration can be an opportunity for the bloc to increase the influence in the food global markets.

The end-2023 MEPs failure to approve a comprehensive reform of the rules on pesticides epitomizes the difficulties of the Green Deal in agrifood policy. Two big agrifood policy files are pending for the next Parliament.

The European Commission wants to tighten the leash on emergency use of EU-banned pesticides, according to a draft version of a new guidance document seen by Euractiv, which states that countries cannot allow the use of substances that are explicitly prohibited within the bloc.

Following the UK Parliament's approval of a ban on the export of live animals, European NGOs are welcoming this "historic" step forward and urging the EU to follow suit.

Including local and sustainability criteria in public procurement of food would be compatible with WTO rules and would also bring significant climate and economic benefits, according to a report published on Wednesday (15 May) by consultancy Carbone4.

EU ambassadors will debate lowering the protection status of wolves on Wednesday (15 May), a controversial move that has no scientific justification, according to conservationists, who denounced it in an open letter.

French president Emmanuel Macron announced the project aiming at producing decarbonised nitrogenous fertilisers at the "Choose France" summit, an annual meeting of international business leaders at the Château de Versailles, on Monday 13 May.