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On 13/01/2020, the Ukrainian government discussed a bill on land reform that would lift the ban on the sale of agricultural land in Ukraine for 29 years. However, the proposal has not been voted on because of the tabling of thousands of amendments. Currently, the Ukrainians can only own small land and cannot sell it. The proposed reform would make it possible to own up to 10,000 hectares of land and to sell them in the open market. The new rules should apply from 01/10/2020. Foreign investors would not be able to acquire the land yet, but this provision may be amended on the basis of a national referendum. The bill concerns land with a total area of 41.5 million hectares.
More information is available here.

On 14/01/2020, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the Guidelines on State aid measures in connection with the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) in 2021. In line with the European Green Deal, the draft EU State Aid Guidelines aims reducing the risk of carbon leakage associated with indirect costs of the ETS and incentives to modernize production processes. The existing guidelines will expire on 31 December 2020, therefore the rules for the next period from 01/01/2021 need to be revised. Consultation is available here, open until 10/03/2020, ETS Communication available here. Other open public consultations include the Consultation on Harmful Chemicals - Endocrine Disruptors for the Review of EU Rules, consultation is available here, to be opened by 09/03/2020; Consultation on the assessment of country of origin labelling, available here, will be open until 02/03/2020; Consultation on European climate change legislation - achieving climate neutrality by 2050, available here, will be open by 06/02/2020; and Consultation on the evaluation of EU food quality systems, available here, will be open by 17/01/2020.

On 14/01/2020, the European Commission published a call for proposals for the promotion of agricultural products within and outside the EU. The European Commission has earmarked € 200.9 million in 2020 (€ 191 million earmarked for 2019) in support of the promotion of agri-food products in the EU and third countries in 2020 (each campaign will be co-financed by the Commission at a rate of 70-85%). A total of € 118 million is earmarked for campaigns targeting high-growth countries - China, Canada, Japan, USA, Korea and Mexico, in particular for promotional programs for dairy products, olives, and wine.
More information is available here.

The Minister of Agriculture of Lower Saxony, Germany's second largest federal government, Barbara Otte-Kinast (CDU), supported the possibility of introducing a tax on meat and meat products last week. The aim of the tax should be to reduce the consumption of certain meats and to mitigate the effects on climate and the environment, which would help the agricultural sector to move towards a more environmentally friendly sector. The funds raised should be intended to strengthen support for animal welfare. The idea of a tax was also supported by the German MP Albert Stegemann (CDU), according to which the tax should be introduced at EU level. Currently, no European country has a meat tax in place, but in Denmark and Sweden a similar tax has been discussed for many years.
More information is available here.

Nestlé Food Company confirmed its plan to invest up to € 1.9 billion in the processing and production of recycled food plastics. The aim is to abandon non-recycled packaging materials (virgin plastics); to replace them completely with recycled ones by 2025, and subsequently to achieve the company's carbon neutrality by 2050. Achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 is one of the main objectives of the current European Commission.
More information is available here.