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In December 2023, the European Commission presented a proposal for a delegated regulation setting new standards for the fish processing sector. However, the standards could have a negative impact on the quality and prices of smoked salmon in the EU. The Polish Fish Processors Association and the Danish Seafood Association are therefore calling for the rejection of this regulation and the adoption of a new regulation based on an analysis by the European Food Safety Authority that will protect food safety, industry and traditions.
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The world's largest fertiliser producer, the Norwegian company Yara, published its manifesto in support of the European Green Deal in early January 2024, just a few months before the European elections in the first half of June 2024. Yara President Svein Tore Holsether said that Europe is at an important moment for European agriculture, both in terms of strategic autonomy and the green transition. According to Holsether, technological solutions already exist, but they need to be better promoted and their use expanded. Yara's manifesto, entitled "Taking Europe's Green Deal to the Next Level", calls, for example, for European lawmakers to ensure a stable regulatory environment attractive to investment, with simple and predictable policy management initiatives. The European elections, which will not only result in a new European Parliament but also, in turn, a new European Commission for the period 2024-2029, are a key moment, Holsesther says. According to Yar, the European Union must now move from setting goals to delivering them, to taking action to help accelerate the green transition, sustain jobs in Europe and ensure Europe's strategic autonomy. Yara's manifesto therefore underlines his full support for the objectives of the European Green Deal, which Yara believes are feasible. The Manifesto also states that sustainable plant nutrition management practices should be implemented so that all supplied nutrients are used to the maximum extent, while reducing the impact on the environment. The eco-schemes set out in the CAP Strategic Plans should be available to the maximum number of farmers without increasing the administrative burden, and support for precision farming and low-carbon fertilisers should be strengthened.
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On 17/01/2024, the European Parliament rejected the European Commission's proposal to allow the importation into the European Union of products containing residues of the neonicotinoid thiacloprid, which is banned in the EU, from third countries. Thiacloprid has been banned in the European Union since 2020, following findings that it may affect human reproduction, harm fetal development or cause cancer. The neonicotinoid has also been found by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to be toxic to pollinating insects. The European Commission tabled a proposal to allow imports of products containing residues of the substance after pressure from third countries fearing a possible embargo on their goods. However, Parliament rejected the Commission proposal by a clear majority, with 386 votes in favour of rejecting the Commission proposal, 186 in favour of the Commission proposal and 52 abstentions. Parliament vetoed the Commission proposal, so the maximum residue limit for thiacloprid should remain at the technical zero level (0.01 mg/kg).
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During last week's plenary session of the European Parliament, Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski stressed that the European Commission's proposal to renew the special autonomous trade measures (ATMs) will consider concerns about the impact of trade with Ukraine on EU markets. The European Commission plans to present a proposal to extend the ATMs from June 2024 to 2025 to the College of Commissioners on 24/01/2024. Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for trade, has the main mandate on trade issues at the European Commission. Last week, agriculture ministers from Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia wrote to Dombrovskis and Wojciechowski urging them to renew tariff-rate quotas. In their letter, the ministers state that the abolition of tariff quotas has caused significant market disruption and damage in their countries due to a sudden and significant increase in imports of agricultural products. In addition, farmers have faced high production costs, higher income and price risks and changing market demand over the last few years. Trade liberalisation with Ukraine poses a significant challenge for European farmers as they are unable to compete with the prices of Ukrainian commodities, which are subject to different production standards.

Last week, Belgium presented its agri-food priorities for its presidency of the Council of the European Union, which runs from January to the end of June 2024. Belgium has identified six main priorities for its Presidency, which will focus on defending the rule of law, democracy and unity; strengthening the competitiveness of the European Union (with a focus on new technologies, long-term competitiveness and industrial policy, with particular attention to autonomy in EU food production); a green and fair transition (with a focus on energy and climate transformation, energy efficiency and renewables); strengthening the social and health agenda (with a focus on inclusiveness and gender equality and the development of the social economy); protecting people and the EU's borders and promoting a global Europe. In the agri-food area, in addition to the aforementioned food sovereignty, Belgium should focus on completing the still open negotiations, including the revision of the so-called breakfast directives and the proposal for new genomic techniques. Belgium has also decided to continue negotiations on the sustainable use of pesticides, despite the European Parliament's opinion in November 2023 supporting the return of the proposal to the European Commission. Spain, which held the Council Presidency until the end of December 2023, had originally planned to adopt the Council's General Approach on the sustainable use of pesticides, but in the end only the progress report was approved. Belgium is now reported to be focusing on continuing to negotiate the technical parts of the European Commission's proposal. Belgium will also start negotiations on animal welfare during transport, for which the European Commission issued a legislative proposal in early December 2023. In addition to animal welfare during transport, attention should also be paid to animal health issues, with a focus on disease prevention and vaccination. On topics that are not yet supported by legislative proposals already tabled (i.e. for which proposals are still pending), Belgium's programme should focus on launching negotiations on the shape of the future Common Agricultural Policy after 2027 (including an assessment of the implementation of the current rules and the potential impact of Ukraine's accession to the Union on the future CAP) as well as on promoting front-of-pack nutrition labelling using the Nutri-Score system (Belgium is one of the 7 Member States that apply Nutri-Score labelling on a voluntary basis at national level). Belgium will therefore organise a conference on Nutri-Score at the end of April 2024.
More information is available here and here.