News

Since the beginning of 2019, the Belgian authorities have confirmed a total of 25 new cases of African swine fever (ASF), 14 of which were reported in the second half of January 2019. The four most recent cases have been confirmed in the Arlon region in the southeast of Belgium at the border with Luxembourg. According to the Belgian authorities, there is a real risk of spreading the disease not only to the west of the country, where the fence was built for preventive reasons, but also to France, which is one of the largest pig producers in the EU. In addition to the direct impact on commercial pigs, spreading of the disease can also affect producers of cereal feed for animals. The EC adopted new measures on 22/01/2019 which require the definition of new, high-risk areas of ASF infection of sufficient size in Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary and Poland. More information is available here.

On 23/01/2019, the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (COMAGRI) adopted a draft report on the protection of animals during transport within and outside the EU. A total of 22 Members voted for the report, 12 against, 4 abstained. COMAGRI claims that the implementation of the rules on the protection of animals during transport is still inadequate, the systematic violation of the regulations by the Member States leads to unfair competition and unequal conditions for economic operators in different Member States, the committee therefore encourages more stringent and harmonized enforcement of effective and dissuasive sanctions as essential to improving the welfare of animals during transport. COMAGRI further calls for shorter animal transport times, particularly for long journeys, and calls on the Commission to develop a strategy for the transition from live transport to trade only with the meat itself and butchered animal parts, taking into account the impact of the transport of live animals on the environment, animal welfare and food safety. The report will now be approved at the EP plenary session. More information is available here and here.

Denmark has introduced a voluntary meat labelling system on the product packaging indicating the animal's living conditions, using heart symbols from one to three. The pigmeat system was introduced in May 2017, and subsequently was extended to chicken in November 2018. One heart indicates that sows have plenty of free space and do not have docked poles, but the three hearts mean that the pigs have access to the outdoor enclosure as well. The label aimed to increase the interest of farmers in investing in better animal welfare, while responding to retailers' requirements to improve animal husbandry conditions. On 22/01/2019, the Danish Ministry of Environment and Agriculture informed about the results of the implementation of this voluntary labelling system. The survey revealed only a small percentage of frauds; more than half of Danish consumers are aware of this system and consciously search for products in stores. The manufacturing industry responds flexibly to growing demand, labelling in Denmark has become a new competitive parameter. Its use and reinforcement is therefore also planned for the future. More information is available here.

In December 2018, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the evaluation of the legislation on feed additives. The purpose of the consultation is to gather views on the extent to which the Regulation has achieved its objectives, the extent to which it is still appropriate for the purpose, and whether it needs to be updated. Contributions should be an important source of information to analyse the existing legislative framework prepared by the Commission. Contributions can be submitted until 03/04/2019. More information is available here.

On 21/01/2019, foreign ministers from the EU Member States agreed on a meeting of representatives of ten countries associated with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the establishment of a Palm Oil Task Force to address the palm oil sustainability issues and to ease trade relations. Last year, European institutions agreed that biofuels produced from deforestation crops, including palm oil, should be phased out by 2030. This ban would have an impact on ASEAN countries. By 01/02/2019, the Commission should present criteria for assessing which crops are causing deforestation. However, given that this is a very sensitive issue, it is unlikely that the Commission will meet the deadline of 01/02/2019. More information is available here and here.