The European Parliament’s Committee on Fisheries adopted its opinion on the ‘Farm to Fork’ strategy on Monday 19 April, calling for better labelling.
It regrets the lack of ambition of the fisheries and aquaculture component of the ‘Farm to Fork’ strategy, adopting the opinion of Izaskun Bilbao Barandica (Renew Europe, Spain).
The draft opinion highlights the “low impact of fisheries on certain environmental aspects” and its healthy food production (no antibiotics, fertilisers or chemical pesticides).
The pandemic has highlighted the need for the EU to improve and safeguard food security and sovereignty “so as not to have to depend as much on food imports from third countries”. MEPs support the development of a contingency plan to ensure the EU’s food supply and food security in the event of future crises.
They call on the Commission and Member States to improve and streamline the labelling, including via digitally readable codes, of all fisheries and aquaculture products also at EU level, whether fresh, frozen or processed, marketed in restaurants and through both retailers and wholesalers to “allow traceability from the place of origin, species and information on other aspects such as production methods also from third country imports”. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)