At the Council meeting of EU Agriculture Ministers in Luxembourg on 15 April, several delegations, including Spain, Slovakia, Italy, Croatia, Austria and the Czech Republic, expressed their concerns about developments on the sugar market (see other news).
Germany, for its part, has stated its opposition to the activation of market measures for the benefit of the European sugar sector.
The European Commissioner for Agriculture, Phil Hogan, briefed Ministers on the development of several agricultural markets. The sugar sector is the most worrying: “There are few signs of a recovery in the European market”, said Phil Hogan. Sugar prices in the EU have fallen, mainly due to increased production and lower world prices. The High-level group on sugar, launched at the end of January, will examine the most appropriate ways to respond, the Commissioner said.
Regarding the pork market, Phil Hogan was optimistic with pork prices rising week after week.
The situation on the milk market is also considered to be generally balanced, despite risks in the context of the trade dispute with the United States.
With regard to the fruit and vegetable sector, the Commission is aware of the difficult situation of citrus fruit producers, particularly in Spain. As regards apples and pears, the situation is problematic, particularly in Poland (apples) and Belgium (pears). However, improvements are expected in the relatively short term.
While the olive oil situation is broadly stable at EU level compared to last year, it varies enormously from one Member State to another: in Spain, production reaches exceptionally high levels and prices have therefore fallen since the beginning of the harvest, while in Italy, the opposite is true, with a significant drop in production (due to unfavourable weather conditions and pest attacks) and historically high price levels. Here again, the Commission services will remain vigilant, the Commissioner promises.
Brexit. If the situation in the beef sector is considered stable, this could change radically depending on how the United Kingdom leaves the EU (Brexit). Irish Minister Michael Creed has called for exceptional measures to provide targeted support to producers. The Polish delegation also referred to the implications of Brexit for poultry, pork and beef, and also requested the possibility of using exceptional measures. The Netherlands expressed concern about their poultry exports to the United Kingdom. The Commission says it is ready to react to any destabilisation of markets, using the tools available under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
Ukrainian poultry. Finally, the Commissioner confirmed the forthcoming increase in the import quota for poultry meat from Ukraine from 17 600 tonnes (t) today to 50 000 t, to end the disputed arrival of a piece of chicken breast not identified under the EU's Free Trade Agreement with Ukraine. This is a “substantial” increase, Phil Hogan admitted, but it “remains lower than the 2018 imports of this cut, which had reached 55,000 t”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)