News

More than 600,000 respondents have signed a petition in France calling for a referendum to ban intensive livestock production, fur farming, traditional hunting, and cage farming. The petition for the referendum, initiated by fifty animal welfare organizations, was also signed by 133 French politicians, with the support of 185 MEPs needed to call a referendum. However, the French Minister of Agriculture and Food, Julien Denormandie, does not consider the referendum to be the right means of leading to the required changes.
More information is available here.

Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides confirmed that Member States had supported the implementation of a pesticide impact assessment on bees based on an approach that considers the natural variability in colony size. This is one of the four possible approaches proposed by the European Commission. Under this approach, a pesticide would be considered acceptable if the size of the hive exposed to the substance remained within its natural variability. This deviation is decided by a computer simulation called BEEHAVE. NGOs argue that this approach will lead to a relaxation of the 2013 bee guidelines.

Agriculture Ministers will meet at the Informal Council of Ministers from 30/08/2020 to 01/09/2020. The Council is chaired by Germany, which has included on the agenda a discussion on the effects of the coronavirus crisis on the agricultural sector, strengthening the resilience of the agri-food sector, the sector's ability to respond to future crises. According to German Agriculture Minister Julie Klöckner, animal welfare labelling should provide consumers with information on how meat and meat products are produced. It should be discussed which animals should be included in the labelling, whether only their breeding on farms or also the method of slaughter and transport will be monitored and labelled, and whether labelling should be mandatory or voluntary. The topic of local food production will also be discussed. Germany will support the transformation of the food system to speed up the transition to sustainability, support steps to make it easier for consumers to make healthier nutritional choices and consider banning the use of plastic packaging materials.
More information is available here and here.

On 21/07/2020, the European Council reached agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework, the EU budget for the next seven years. For the new budget to enter into force, it must be approved by the European Parliament, which did not express its support during July. Joint negotiations between the Council and the European Parliament were opened on 27/08/2020. The European Parliament is working to make changes to the wording, which was supported by the prime ministers and presidents of the Member States in July, in particular by seeking to increase funding for certain programs and initiatives related to climate protection. Joint talks between Parliament and the Council will take place during September, with two to three rounds of talks planned.

The German Federal Cabinet has approved the nutrition labelling of foods using the NutriScore system, which should be mandatory for all foods sold in Germany. The proposal should be approved by the upper house of the Parliament in October 2020 and should enter into force in November 2020. Germany’s Agriculture Minister Julia Klöckner plans to promote a harmonized nutrition labelling system at European level, with agriculture ministers discussing it in December 2020 during the Council of Agriculture Ministers. With this move, France is gaining a significant ally in promoting the NutriScore system in the EU, and Italy, for example, continues to oppose it. Germany also plans to introduce a new system of origin marking for wine, the system should use a graphic representation of the pyramid. On the lower, longest side of the pyramid, it should be stated that it is a wine originating from Germany, above, for example, a wine region. A specific winery should be listed on the top floor of the pyramid. Public support for the wine sector will also be increased from EUR 500,000 to EUR 2 million.
More information is available here and here.