Brussels, 04/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - Agricultural organisation Copa and Cogeca made clear on the sidelines of the informal meeting of the Agriculture Council in Riga on Tuesday 2 June that the rules on organic products should evolve but there must be no revolution (see EUROPE 11326).
Copa President Albert Jan Maat commended those member states which, in their rural development programmes, have put in place measures to support organic farming. He welcomed the changes made by the Italian and Latvian Presidencies of the Council to the proposal revising organic farming legislation. “The new rules need in particular to allow the 250,000 organic farmers to earn a living from their activity and also to attract new farmers to convert into organic farming, whilst ensuring consumer confidence. We need evolution and not revolution of the rules”, he said.
Christian Pèes, president of Cogeca, said it was crucial to ensure that imported products comply with production and that control standards are at least equally as strict as those which apply to organic farming in the EU. He drew attention, for instance, to the fact that the EU has recognised the use of synthetic amino acids used in animal feed in the US, while this is strictly forbidden in Europe when certifying organic production. He noted, too, that prices paid to organic farmers were falling. “Strengthening the negotiating power of organic producers is another must. … the production sector is very fragmented and lacks bargaining power. The sector should be encouraged to concentrate itself by creating and developing cooperatives and other producer organisations”, he argued. (Lionel Changeur)