News

The International Platform of Insects for Food and Feed (IPIFF) published an opinion on 18/02/2020 calling for the inclusion of insect production support in the National Strategic Plans of the CAP to assist agricultural policy towards climate neutrality. Insect production could also help boost EU self-sufficiency in protein feed production, according to IPIFF.
More information is available here.

On 17/02/2020, the AGRI Committee discussed with the European Commission a study which the Commission commissioned to identify the possibilities for setting up, operating and supporting EU producer organizations (POs). The end goal should be to strengthen the position of farmers in the supply chain, in addition to POs, a directive against unfair commercial practices should also help achieve this goal. In the EU, over 70% of all POs are located in four Member States - DE, ES, FR, and IT; more than half of the total is targeted at the fruit and vegetables sector. Thanks to POs, farmers can secure higher prices for their own production or better conditions for storage, harvesting and marketing. In the discussion with AGRI Committee members there was broad support for strengthening the role of POs, MEPs also asked what measures should be taken to strengthen the role of POs and make farmers feel more motivated to participate in POs. However, the Commission does not plan to be more involved in the process - the Commission will provide a working framework, but it is not a marketing organization that should directly motivate farmers to participate in POs.
More information is available here.

Last year, the European institutions agreed on the text of the directive, which should strengthen consumer protection, while also addressing the issue of dual food quality. Member States now have 2 years to transpose the EU directive into national legislation; Slovakia will be one of the first countries to implement this step. According to the statement of the Slovak Ministry of Agriculture, Slovakia is now preparing a special test, which should reveal possible dual quality of different types of edible oils. The same brand oils should be tested on the markets in Germany, Austria and Slovakia. Testing will be made possible through financial support from the European Commission. The findings will be presented at a joint meeting of EU Member States, and the oil producers will be informed about the results. In the event of dual quality being found, producers may be penalized up to 4% of annual turnover.
More information is available here.

The European Commission report on food contact materials may be delayed for up to two years. The European Commission indicated this in a mid-February 2020 presentation. Adoption of the evaluation report was originally planned for the first quarter of this year, but the possibility of working on the document in parallel with the impact assessment is being considered. The aim should be to fully harmonize the laws on food contact materials and to increase transparency and accountability by producers.
Presentation of the European Commission is available here.

Food companies Nestlé and Danone joined the Association for Natural Water, according to which the use of the term 'single-use' plastic limits the recycling of plastic water bottles. According to a study conducted by the Association, 30% of British believe that plastic bottles, referred to as disposable bottles, are not fully recyclable and therefore often do not classify them as plastic waste. Although the study focused only on plastic bottles, the Association believes that this situation may lead to non-recycling of fully recyclable plastics of all categories. The association therefore recommends distinguishing between recyclable and non-recyclable disposable plastics and the use of unambiguous labelling which would not be misleading.
More information is available here.