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Representatives of pig breeders' associations and retailers in Lower Saxony in Germany are asking the land’s minister for Agriculture, Barbara Otte-Kinast (CDU), to provide further assistance to pig farmers in a crisis they consider to be the worst in 30 years. They call for additional help during a coronavirus pandemic and clear framework conditions for improving animal welfare standards. Due to the African swine fever, several countries have introduced restrictions on meat imports, which has caused German producers’ losses in export markets, especially in Asia. Due to the pandemic and reduced meat purchases in the hospitality industry, breeders also face low purchase prices for meat. According to the state agricultural association Landvolk, the purchase price per kilogram of pork is currently €1.25, but production costs are €1.80.
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France continues to refuse to ratify the trade agreement with Mercosur. According to French President Emmanuel Macron, the agreement does not respect the EU's climate and biodiversity agenda. Macron emphasized that the aim of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU, which begins on 01/01/2022, is to work with the European Commission to set a new trade policy (and to include climate and biodiversity clauses in agreements) in line with EU. The agreement with Mercosur will not be definitively ratified until it has been ratified by the parliaments of all EU Member States.
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Last week, the European think tank Farm Europe responded to a study published by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) during the summer months. The JRC study focused on the possible effects of implementing the goals of Farm to Fork and biodiversity strategy on agricultural policy, and the JRC was criticized by European agricultural organizations, including Copa and Cogeca, for publishing the study during the summer holidays. According to the Farm Europe think tank, the results of the study show that agricultural production in key sectors, such as cereals, oilseeds, beef, and milk, could fall by more than 15%, and in the pig meat, poultry, and vegetable sectors by more than 5%. This will also have a negative impact on European agri-food exports and farmers' incomes. According to Farm Europe, the decline in exports and European production will lead to a strengthening of imports from third countries, where the production of greenhouse gas emissions will increase due to the strengthening of agricultural production, which the European Commission is trying to reduce in the EU through Farm to Fork strategy.

On 01/09/2021, members of the EP's Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (COMAGRI) discussed with the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Janusz Wojciechowski the new EU Forest strategy for 2030. Several MEPs criticized the new strategy, calling the strategy vague, artificial and beyond the competences of the European Commission. Wojciechowski argued that its main goal was to ensure healthy and resilient forests for years to come through a coordinated, consistent, and science-based policy. According to him, the strategy is not intended as an intervention in the sovereignty of states, but as support for the implementation of measures at the national level.
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Last week, a panel of experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) for the fight against cancer supported the introduction of nutrition labelling on the front of packaging using the French Nutri-Score system. The WHO Panel on Cancer has called on the European Commission to choose the Nutri-Score as a standard label indicating whether a food is healthy or not. According to WHO experts, the Nutri-Score is an effective tool for improving consumer preferences when buying food from a health point of view; its introduction could also help reduce the risk of cancer.
More information is available here.