On Tuesday 8 April, Olivér Várhelyi, the European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare, told the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture that he would be presenting his “line of action” in 2025 on deepening the reciprocity applied to agricultural products imported into the EU.
The Commission will endeavour, in accordance with international rules, to strengthen the alignment of production standards for imported products with regard to pesticides and animal welfare, said the Commissioner (see EUROPE 13603/19).
“We have established the principle that the most dangerous pesticides already banned in the EU for health and environmental reasons are not allowed to be reintroduced in imported products”, emphasised Olivér Várhelyi.
This year, the Commission will launch an impact study to examine the consequences of this change of policy on the EU’s competitive position and international implications, said the Commissioner.
Responding to Elsi Katainen (Renew Europe, Finnish) on how to enforce EU rules abroad, the Commissioner said that the EU could step up its involvement in monitoring the application of our rules abroad (sending experts and veterinarians on site for checks). “We want to increase checks at entry points”, said Olivér Várhelyi.
Farmers need new tools to protect their crops, and biopesticides are safer alternatives to synthetic chemical pesticides. In the last quarter of 2025, Mr Várhelyi will present proposals to simplify and optimise the rules applicable to biopesticides in order to promote their access to the market. These biopesticides “will not entirely replace other pesticides”, the Commissioner assured Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, Italian). Where they are a viable alternative, biopesticides must be available quickly, according to the Commissioner.
Another important theme is that new genomic techniques are making it possible to harness the power of biotechnology in the agri-food sector, said Olivér Várhelyi. “It is essential to adopt the proposal quickly if we are to reap the benefits”, said the Commissioner.
With regard to the proposal on animal welfare during transport, the Commissioner said he hoped that the interinstitutional process would result in a “balanced approach, improving animal welfare while maintaining the competitiveness of the agricultural sector”.
In addition, as set out in the ‘Vision for Agriculture and Food’, the Commission intends to modernise the rules on animal welfare and respond to the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) called ‘End the Cage Age’. “I am due to present the first sector-specific proposal next year”, said Mr Várhelyi.
He also referred to the recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Germany, Hungary and Slovakia. “We really must be even more vigilant than we have been in the past”, said the Commissioner. Foot-and-mouth disease remains one of the most devastating livestock diseases, particularly from an economic point of view. “Control measures were rapidly implemented, in full compliance with EU legislation”, he noted. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)