“The food system is under pressure. Food safety must be guaranteed and it is vital to move towards a sustainable system”, said European Commissioner for Health Stella Kyriakides on Monday 24 April, referring to upcoming proposals on new genomic techniques (NGTs) and animal welfare.
In a debate in the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture, Mrs Kyriakides also defended the proposal on the sustainable use of pesticides.
NGT. The proposal on NGTs will take into account scientific evidence and will be based on three pillars, she said: - maintaining very high safety standards; - achieving sustainability through innovation; - strengthening the competitiveness of agriculture.
“The plants resulting from the use of these NGTs can contribute to sustainability”, said Stella Kyriakides. In response to questions from MEPs, including Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, Italian) and Martin Häusling (Greens/EFA, German), she assured that the forthcoming proposal would be presented “in June”, without specifying whether it would be on Tuesday 6 June, as last expected.
The Commission is currently finalising the impact assessment on NGTs.
Pesticides. Acknowledging the concerns expressed in this parliamentary committee, the Commissioner expressed her willingness to discuss solutions.
Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, Italian) further criticised the proposal, which would put food safety at risk. “Your text can be improved”, he said (see EUROPE 13154/9). Clara Aguilera (S&D, Spanish) said that other sources of funding than the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) should be found to help farmers reduce pesticides.
Veronika Vrecionová (ECR, Czech) again asked the Commission when it would produce the additional impact studies on the agricultural effects of the pesticides proposal. “We are in the process of collecting the additional information” requested by the EU Council, the Health Commissioner replied.
Animal welfare. The Commission will also present in the autumn a “pragmatic and balanced” package on animal welfare on the farm, at slaughter, during transport and with regard to labelling. Mrs Kyriakides spoke about the end of cages and specific rules for dogs and cats, dairy cows and fish stunning practices.
The impact on farmers must be taken into account and they must be given time to adapt their practices, the Commissioner stressed, referring also to CAP support to ensure this transition. A draft impact assessment was leaked to the press (see EUROPE 13167/4).
Furthermore, Clara Aguilera criticised the Commission’s plan to reduce Community cofinancing rates for EU veterinary and phytosanitary programmes.
See the Commissioner’s speech: https://aeur.eu/f/6ih (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)