News

On 06/11/2019, the European Union and China agreed on the protection of GIs, a total of 100 EU-produced foods and 100 foods produced in China will be protected. From Czech production, the protected foodstuffs include České Budějovice beer and Žatec hops, from the Slovak wine region Tokaj. China is the second most important export destination for the EU; between September 2018 and August 2019, EU exports to China reached EUR 12.8 billion. The agreement should now be approved by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, and then the trade agreement could enter into force by the end of 2020. Four years after the entry into force of the agreement, the protection of geographical indications should be extended by an additional 175 entries for both parties.
More information is available here.

On 05/11/2019, the EP Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development approved a proposal for imports of high-quality beef from the United States of America and imports of chicken meat from Ukraine. The proposal to import 35,000 tons of high-quality beef from the US (out of a total of 45,000 tons) was adopted by 33 votes in favour, 7 against and 3 abstentions. Imports will be increased gradually over seven years, with a quota of 18,500 tonnes for the first year. In the coming years, the quota will be gradually increased by 2,000 to 3,000 tonnes per year. The Committee also recommended the approval of a proposal for the import of chicken meat from Ukraine, according to the proposal it should be 50,000 tonnes of chicken meat. The proposal was adopted by 34 votes to 9 with 2 abstentions. Proposals should be put to the vote in plenary of the European Parliament, probably on 25-28/11/2019.

Budget and Human Resources Commissioner Günther Oettinger said on 30/10/2019 that Member States are unlikely to reach agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework, the EU budget for 2021-2027, by the end of 2019. According to Oettinger, some progress will be made by December, but the agreement will not be achieved. This is due, among other things, to the change in leadership of the European Council, the current President of the European Council Donald Tusk (PL) from 01/12/2019 replaced by a new President, Charles Michel (BE). According to Oettinger, it is highly unlikely that the new President will reach an agreement on the budget during his first European Council (12-13/12/2019), so that agreement could not be reached until the first half of 2020 under the Croatian Presidency.
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The new Commissioners were to take over their mandates on 01/11/2019, but due to the disapproval of several candidates, the takeover of the mandates was postponed to 01/12/2019. France has already nominated Thierry Breton, former FR Minister of Finance, as Internal Commissioner; Hungary nominated Oliver Várhelyi, Deputy Permanent Representation of HU, as Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, approved both candidates. The last candidate is now awaiting the Romanian candidate for transport as commissioner. Following the failure of the European Parliament to approve the candidate Rovana Plumb, the current government has fallen in Romania and the vote on confidence in the new government should take place on 04/11/2019. The nomination of a new candidate should be followed by a vote of confidence, but in case of censure of the government there may be further delays in the whole process - the remaining candidates must undergo a public hearing in the relevant committees of the European Parliament and then approved by the EP plenary. The plenary session will be held in the week after 25/11/2019, so the public hearings must be held by 22/11/2019. The UK has not nominated any candidate yet, given British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's intention to withdraw from the EU by 31/10/2019. Given the extension of the Brexit deadline to 31/01/2020, it is not yet clear whether Britain is nominating its candidate or not, but nomination is one option.
More information is available here and here.

Last week, the European Commission published a study on the contribution of producer organizations to empowering farmers in the food supply chain. According to the main findings of the study, producer organizations and associations of producer organizations help to strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply chain while providing technical assistance to their members; these organizations also benefit other actors in the food supply chain and local communities (employment, quality of local agriculture), and according to the study often help promote sustainable farming practices. According to the study, there are around 42,000 producer organizations in the EU, of which 3,500 are recognized by national governments. The most recognized producer organizations (altogether over 60% of the total) are in France (759), Germany (658) and Spain (588). Most recognized organizations focus on the production of fruit and vegetables (1,850), milk and dairy products (334), olives and olive oil (254), wine (222), and beef and veal (210). The activities of producer organizations are aimed at planning production, adapting production to demand, collecting production and placing it on the markets. In addition, organizations help producers negotiate with other actors in the supply chain. According to the study, agricultural cooperatives are the most common form of producer organization.
More information is available here.