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The Polish government has allowed catching up to 20,000 boars in an effort to stop the spread of African swine fever (ASF) infection in Poland and other EU countries. The PL Government estimates that the current number of wild boars is around 214,000. The Commission supported the plan despite the opposition of Polish scientists, environmental groups and animal welfare supporters. According to EC spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, wild boar reduction hunting is one of the measures that can be used to reduce the stock of feral pigs if done in the right place and in the right way. More information is available here.

On 11/01/2019, the Belgian government extended the ASF infection protection zone by almost 4,000 hectares due to two new cases of confirmed ASF disease outside the original area of infection. More information is available here.

The Polish and Lithuanian Agriculture Ministers will meet in Berlin at the Grüne Woche Fair held from 18-26 / 01/2019. They will engage in recent talks with representatives of the veterinary office of the two countries on the blocking of imports of Lithuanian pork meat into Poland for fear of ASF infection. More information is available here.

On 16/01/2019, the European Parliament (EP) adopted a European Parliament resolution on the Union's procedure for the authorization of pesticides. A total of 526 Members voted in favour of the report, 66 voted against and 72 abstained. EP has approved a proposal that would allow the public access to the studies used in the approval process with all the additional information about the application. The report, which, among other things, advocates that EU lead scientific advisers re-evaluate the carcinogenicity of glyphosate was originally drawn up by the EP's Special Committee on the Union's Pesticides Licensing Procedure, which was established in connection with the so-called Monsanto Papers scandal. The outcome of the report is not binding, but should trigger a debate on how EU law reform will be transformed after the EP elections in May 2019. No major changes have been made to the report compared with the early December 2018 vote when the Parliamentary Committee on Pesticides (PEST) voted on this report. More information is available here.

The Commission issued on 14/01/2019 its Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/49 of 4 January 2019 on the authorization of sodium selenite, coated granular sodium selenite and zinc-Lselenomethionine as a feed additive for all animal species. The Implementing Regulation is available here.

The Commission issued on 01/14/2019 its Regulation (EU) 2019/50 of 11 January 2019 amending Annexes II, III, IV and V of the European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) no. 396/2005 regarding maximum residue levels for chlorantraniliprole, clomazone, cyclaniliprole, fenazachine, fenpicoxamide, fluoxastrobin, lambda-cyhalothrin, mepikvat, onion oil, thiacloprid and valifenalate in and on certain products. The Regulation is available here.

The Commission issued on 15/01/2019 its Regulation (EU) 2019/58 of 14 January 2019 amending Annexes II, III and V of the European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) no. 396/2005 regarding the maximum residue limits for linuron in and on certain products. The Regulation is available here.

The Commission issued on 17/01/2019 its Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/66 of 16 January 2019 on the rules for uniform practical arrangements for the implementation of official controls on plants, plant products and other objects with a view to ensuring compliance with the Union's conservation measures against the harmful organisms of the plants that are related to these goods. The Implementing Regulation is available here.

The Commission issued on 18/01/2019 the Decision No 1/2018 of the EU-Algeria Association Committee of 27 December 2018 amending the conditions for applying the tariff preferences in agricultural products and processed agricultural products provided for in Article 14 of the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement The European Community and its Member States, of the one part, and the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, of the other part. The Decision is available here.

The global food system needs urgent reform, less meat consumption and more legumes, as three billion people worldwide are malnourished and food production is exceeding planetary boundaries, scientists have warned in a new report. Read the original post

Plans to boost trust in the EU approval procedure of pesticides, by making it more transparent and accountable, were put forward by Parliament on Wednesday. The Special committee report was adopted with 526 votes to 66 and 72 abstentions. Read more