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With Poland assuming the Presidency of the EU Council from January to June 2025, it has announced its interest in reopening discussions on new genomic techniques. Poland already issued a first draft compromise text in early January, and following comments from Member States, the Polish Presidency produced a revised version of 07/02/2025. This updated draft includes several key changes. First of all, the definition of NGT1 category plants, i.e. those exempted from GMO control, is maintained. According to the Polish proposal, this definition should be based on the biological characteristics of the plants and not on patents. Applicants seeking category 1 status will have to provide information on all patents related to the plant before placing on the market or deliberately releasing it. This information should be included in the database of decisions on category 1 status. The proposal also allows applicants to submit a statement from the patent holder confirming their willingness to license the patent on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. This declaration should also be part of a publicly accessible database. The Commission should regularly publish and update guidelines to help economic operators, in particular breeders, to better navigate in the field of plant intellectual property. When evaluating the implementation of this Regulation, the Commission should pay particular attention to its impact on SMEs and the breeding sector. It is further proposed that, when carrying out a study on the impact of patent practices, the Commission should invite the breeding industry to report on their experiences with commercial access to patented genetic resources. The publication of this study should be postponed in order to obtain more relevant data. Poland also proposes to carry out a second study on the impact of patent practices at the earliest four years and at the latest six years after the publication of the results of the first study. According to the Presidency, the proposed amendments provide a solid basis for reaching a compromise, the compromise text of the proposal will be discussed on 14/02/2025.

provided an overview of progress towards achieving them, based on available evidence and data. The JRC divided the targets into seven thematic categories: climate ambition; clean, affordable and secure energy; circular economy; sustainable and smart mobility; greening the Common Agricultural Policy and the Farm to Fork strategy; preserving and protecting biodiversity; and progress towards a zero pollution, toxic-free environment. Of the 154 targets, the JRC said 32 are now "well on track to be met", but a further 64 "need acceleration to meet the targets on time". For a total of 15 targets, the JRC found that they are "not progressing or even regressing", while no information is available for 43 targets.
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Last week, the European Commission set up a new working group called "Future EU Competitiveness" to coordinate work on operationalising the European Competitiveness Compass framework. The Task Force started its work on 01/02/2025, formally reporting to the Under-Secretary General in charge of Policy Coordination. Its main objective is to support activities within the European Commission on closing the innovation gap, the combination of decarbonisation of industry and competitiveness, and reducing overdependence and increasing security. The group should also develop a tool to strengthen competitiveness.
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Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, published data on farmland prices for 2023 on 28/01/2025. The average price of one hectare of arable land in the EU in 2023 was €11,791, with annual rent per hectare of arable land or permanent grassland averaging €173. The highest land purchase prices were in Malta (€283,039/ha), while the lowest were in Croatia, Latvia and Slovakia (below €5,200/ha). The highest annual rent was in the Netherlands (EUR 914/ha), while the lowest was in Slovakia (EUR 67/ha).
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The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, takes office on 20/01/2025 for a five-year term. In his inaugural address, he stated that the United States will thrive and be respected around the world. On his first day in office, President Trump also signed a number of executive orders, including the US withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement and the US withdrawal from the World Health Organization. According to Trump, the Paris Agreement is unfair and one-sided, and he says the US will not sabotage its own industries while China continues to pollute with impunity. Trump also said he will end the New Green Deal and repeal the electric car mandate in order to save the US auto industry.
More information is available here.