Brussels, 15/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - The Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of Ministers is committed to wrapping up the work on the reform of the common agriculture policy (CAP) and is planning to start debates on fruit and vegetables and milk.
Presenting its priorities for agriculture on Monday 15 July, Lithuanian Minister for Agriculture Vigilijus Jukna confirmed that his number one priority was the formal approval of the regulations on the reform of the CAP and ensuring the timely implementation of the decisions made. Dacian Ciolos, the European commissioner for agriculture, hopes to see the swift finalisation of the legal texts underpinning the reform and their “formal adoption in November of this year”.
The Presidency intends to focus the talks on the interim rules for the CAP. Due to delays in the adoption process of the reform, the provisions on direct payments and certain rural development measures will not be able to come into force before early 2015. As the interim rules are to take effect from 1 January 2014, an agreement must be reached by the end of the year, the Presidency pointed out. It hopes to see the interim measures adopted by no later than the Agriculture Council of December. Ciolos added that the European Parliament is soon to present its draft report on the interim measures. Trialogue meetings on this matter are scheduled for the end of September and beginning of October. Adoption is expected for November, the commissioner clarified.
Fruit, vegetables and milk
The Presidency reiterated that the fruit and vegetable sector is extremely important to the agriculture of the EU. It plans to take steps to bolster the role of producer organisations and the negotiating power of farmers in the food supply chain. The Commission is to present a report on the implementation of the fruit and vegetable plank of the single common market organisation (CMO), plus a legislative proposal. Once these proposals are on the table, the Lithuanian Presidency will kick off negotiations on the dossier.
The Presidency is also planning talks on extending the distribution programmes for fruit and vegetables and milk in schools. The Commission will adopt a proposal on this by the end of the autumn.
The challenges of phasing out dairy quotas.
Under the Lithuanian Presidency, a conference will be held in Brussels on 24 September on the dairy sector, ahead of the end of dairy quotas in 2015. This conference will take stock of the “competitiveness of the sector and potential problems and challenges arising from the territorial distribution of milk production in Europe”, said Ciolos. Dairy production is extremely important for the continuing vitality of many rural areas. It is critical to ensure that the sector is ready for the post-quota period and that the CAP is able to respond to its expectations. The Commission will also adopt a report on the end of dairy quotas.
The Presidency also anticipates debates on the proposal regarding spirits. Additionally, the Presidency is planning debates at the Council on the awaited Commission proposal on programmes to promote EU agricultural products. Lithuania is also to continue work on bringing agricultural legislation into line with the Treaty of Lisbon (“Omnibus” trade negotiations, imports of olive oil from Turkey, various tariff quotas, imports of rice from Bangladesh, proposal on aromatised wines). A EURAGRO conference will be held in Vilnius from 29 September to 1 October on the challenges of scientific research in the agricultural sector.
The Presidency is hopeful that the Council will be able to adopt conclusions on the EU's new strategy for forests: respecting the principle of subsidiarity and national areas of responsibility, laying particular emphasis on climate change and issues related to renewable energy.
Animal and plant health
On 6 May of this year, the European Commission adopted a raft of measures aiming to guarantee better observance of health and food security standards throughout the agri-food sector (see EUROPE 10841). Jukna welcomed the package presented by the Commission. “We have some of the highest food safety standards in the world. But even so, there have been problems of fraud, incorrect labelling, crises and outbreaks of contagious animal diseases”, he stressed. The Presidency also hopes to make progress in the following areas once the Commission has presented its proposals: veterinary medicines, hygiene package and cloning for food production purposes. In Brussels on 15 October, a conference will be held on modernising inspections in the meat production sector. A further conference will be held in Brussels on 28 and 29 October on the welfare of cats and dogs in the EU.
The informal meeting of the agriculture ministers of the EU will be held in Vilnius from 8 to 10 September, to discuss the outlook for family farms in the context of globalisation. (LC/transl.fl)