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With regard to the food part of the Farm to Fork Strategy proposal, the Commission states that it will establish new nutritional profiles that will prohibit the promotion (through nutrition or health claims) of foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt. The Commission could also consider setting maximum levels for salt, saturated fats and sugar in certain processed foods. The Commission further states that current consumption patterns are neither environmentally nor health sustainable. In this context, the Commission stresses that while energy intake and consumption of meat, sugar, salt and fat continue to exceed nutritional recommendations, the consumption of whole grain cereals, fruits, vegetables, fish and nuts is insufficient. Given the increase in obesity, the Commission adds that moving away from eating habits from the preference for animal products towards plant-based alternatives will reduce the risk of life threatening diseases such as cancer, but will also reduce the environmental footprint of the food sector. In the Research and Innovation section, the Commission is proposing to focus on the development of alternative protein sources (plant proteins, marine proteins, microbial proteins or insects). The Commission's original intention to introduce mandatory nutrition labelling on the front of the food packaging remains valid, the country of origin mandatory labelling should be extended to milk and meat and milk used as ingredients in food. The Commission should also develop a comprehensive labelling system including nutrition, climate and environmental information.

On 17/02/2020, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the Roadmap of the Farm to Fork Strategy; the consultation was initially open by 16/03/2020, but the Commission eventually extended the deadline to 20/03/2020. 653 responses from a total of 26 Member States of the European Union (except Slovenia and Luxembourg), European interest organizations and national or regional institutions were sent for consultation by the deadline. A total of 140 contributions were submitted to the consultation by various European organizations including Copa-Cogeca (ensuring adequate budget, rejection of percentage reduction targets) or organizations representing organic farmers IFOAM (supporting the achievement of 20% of farmed land under organic farming by 2030). Representatives of environmental organizations most often called for a reduction in the consumption and production of animal products, including meat, milk, dairy products, eggs and fish (some of the contributions called for a reduction of up to 70% by 2030 and 80% by 2050); reduction or total elimination of pesticides (up to 80% reduction by 2030 in the case of reduction); promotion of organic farming (including the target of 50% of the area under organic farming by 2030 or the amendment of the CAP subsidy system so that aid is paid only to organic farmers and those who are switching to the organic farming scheme); and the strengthening of animal welfare (most often it was supported to stop the transport of live animals over distances longer than 8 hours, or to support the ban on cage farming). It also resisted criticism of intensive / industrial agriculture in the European Union. Farmers called for the establishment of Farm to Fork targets on a scientific basis; carrying out a risk assessment for each of the Farm to Fork objectives; refusal to set percentage targets; rejection of budget cuts; supporting the strengthening of farmers' incomes, and supporting the reflection of regional disparities in setting Farm to Fork objectives. Farmers also rejected the mandatory capping; promote the competitiveness and economic sustainability of the sector; stress the role of livestock production not only in a balanced diet, but also in the context of soil management; and drew attention to the strict rules applicable to European farmers, while the same rules do not apply to imports of commodities and food from third countries.

The Council of Ministers of Agriculture, originally scheduled for 23/03/2020, was cancelled due to the spread of coronavirus, replaced by a ministerial video conference to be held on 25/03/2020. The last Council of Ministers of Agriculture took place in January, and the next regular meeting should take place in April, if possible, with respect to coronavirus. There is therefore a risk that the Council will not be able to reach an agreement on the European Union budget and the Common Agricultural Policy after 2020 until summer 2020. Copa-Cogeca, Europe's largest agricultural organization, have been given the opportunity to speak during a videoconference of agriculture ministers.
The European Parliament also published its updated calendar - all Parliament's plenary sessions have been shortened and moved to Brussels until September 2020, with most other negotiations taking place remotely. Therefore, even in the European Parliament, it is now unclear whether it will be possible to reach an agreement on the CAP by July, as was originally planned.
More information is available here and here.

Given the spread of COVID-19, grocery stores are being redeemed in many parts of the EU, so EU governments re-assure consumers that there is still enough food, so there is no reason to buy stocks. Food producers are ready for increased production, companies have prepared contingency plans and will continue to ensure compliance with European food safety standards. However, the sector faces some constraints, notably labour shortages. Italy stressed that there is no evidence that coronavirus is spread by food, therefore calls for non-interruption of ordered food supplies from Italy, perceiving refusal of food supplies as a violation of EU measures against unfair commercial practices. Italy is currently also facing a labour shortage due to quarantine, restrictions on population movements between regions, and the closure of European borders. Both the Irish and the Luxembourg Ministry of Agriculture have put in place measures (available here) to ensure the continuity of agri-food production. In Ireland, orders increased particularly in the dairy, meat and vegetables sectors. Irish Minister of Agriculture Michael Creed urged Janusz Wojciechowski, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, to use the market support available under the CMO Regulation in case of market disruption. Ireland also calls for priority testing of agricultural and food sector workers, and farmers are also seeking to introduce new health insurance. Farmers in the United Kingdom are asking the government to classify food chain workers into the necessary workers category, which would strengthen the protection of the agricultural sector. Germany is self-sufficient in the production of basic foods - wheat, potatoes and pork - but there may be a problem with the shortage of seasonal workers due to the closure of borders because many of them come from other countries, seasonal workers will also be missing in Denmark. In Spain, the flower market has almost ceased to exist (there is no demand) and there is also a problem of providing transport for agricultural and food production due to labour shortages. The flower market is also facing a crisis in the Netherlands, Croatia and Belgium. In Austria, workers are mainly lacking in the fruit and vegetables sector.

On 18/03/2020, the largest European agricultural organization Copa-Cogeca and the European Council of Young Farmers (CEJA) called on the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to ensure the functioning of the single agricultural and food market in the EU. The call to the Commission is a response to several measures, including, for example, partial border closures that Member States have introduced in recent days to prevent the spread of coronavirus. At the same time, organizations are calling for extraordinary support for the agricultural and agro-tourism sector from sources outside the CAP, and for the implementation of an initiative to ensure stable food supplies (more information here). In addition, Copa-Cogeca, together with the representatives of FoodDrinkEurope and Food and Beverage Producers and the European Liaison Committee for Agricultural and Agri-Food Trade (CELCAA), issued an opinion requesting the Commission to ensure the distribution of food and packaging materials (more information here). The European Dairy Association (EDA) has asked the Commission to provide support to dairies to build strategic stocks through the private storage aid scheme (more information here).