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The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published on 03/11/2020 an analysis of the welfare of cattle at slaughter. The report entitled "Welfare of cattle at slaughter" was prepared by the EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW); reports on 40 identified errors, of which 39 were caused by staff fatigue and lack of expertise. EFSA identified the monitoring of animal welfare during the slaughter process as important. Many recommendations include improving buildings and their facilities, as well as better staff training. The report also deals in detail with the types of tools for slaughter itself, and emphasizes the need to stun animals before slaughter.
More information is available here.

On 26/10/2020, the World Trade Organization (WTO) formally authorized the European Union to increase tariffs on US exports to $ 4 billion as part of retaliatory measures in the context of the Airbus-Boeing dispute, the European Commission can impose tariffs from this week. The US has been addressing $ 7.5 billion in tariffs on EU production since October 2019, with US President Donald Trump supporting the move. Joe Biden was elected the new American president on 07/11/2020, who also called for an end to the trade war with the European Union as part of the election campaign. Customs duties imposed in connection with the Airbus-Boeing dispute should be reviewed by the US in February 2021, until then, the US and the EU have the opportunity to quell the heated dispute.

Last week, the Greens' political faction in the European Parliament sent a letter to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen calling for the rejection of CAP reform proposals. According to Base Eickhout (Greens, NL), the proposals should be withdrawn, and the Commission should develop new proposals more in line with the European Green Deal. Environmental NGOs and thousands of activists across EU Member States are also calling for the current proposals to be withdrawn and new ones developed. According to Greta Thunberg, an environmental activist who also promotes a petition to withdraw and recast CAP proposals, the current proposals are merely greenwashing, a "kiss of death" for the European Green Deal. For example, BirldLife, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and WWF are requesting a new draft CAP.
More information is available here and here.

Claire Bury, Deputy Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), confirmed last week that the Commission does not plan to carry out an overall cumulative impact assessment on the implementation of the Farm to Fork objectives. However, she also confirmed the Commission's interest in carrying out impact assessments on individual objectives, presented in the form of legislative proposals, on an individual basis. Impact assessments should be carried out, for example, for the reduction of pesticides, or for the labelling of food nutrition and animal welfare.
More information is available here.

The EP Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (COMAGRI) and the EP Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (COMENVI) will have shared competences for an opinion on Farm to Fork, like the opinion on CAP reform. Both Committees prepared their own opinions on the CAP separately. In the case of Farm to Fork, however, the EP has decided on a different approach - two opinions will not be drawn up, one for each of the Committees, but only one common position. Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, IT), on behalf of COMAGRI, and Anja Hazekamp (GUE / NGL, NL), on behalf of COMENVI, are now working on this work. According to Dorfmann, the opinion could be finalized in early 2021. Members of both Committees will then be allowed to table amendments. Dorfmann emphasized the need for a rational approach, realistic goals, and impact assessments. According to him, the strategy is mainly focused on the goals set for farmers, not consumers. Anja Hazekamp emphasizes the issue of animal welfare and intensive livestock production - she rejects long transports of live animals, calls for support for the production and consumption of plant proteins, refuses further support for intensive agriculture, especially intensive livestock production. According to her, the animal welfare rules must be revised earlier than planned by the European Commission (2023).