Brussels, 16/01/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 15 January, the German Presidency presented EU Member States with a document setting out the eight areas on which its work programme in agriculture, animal welfare and consumer protection will concentrate over the next six months (see also EUROPE 9338 on the German Presidency's provisional six-month programme for the Agriculture Council). Horst Seehofer, German food, agriculture and consumer protection minister, will present the Presidency's priorities in detail to the European Parliament's agriculture committee on 23 January.
The eight priority areas in the document submitted to the Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA) are:
Simplification and cutting red tape: the Presidency notes that the Council will adopt conclusions on the implementation of the cross compliance regime, which links the payment of direct aid to farmers to compliance with environmental law, animal protection and food law requirements. The aim, it says, will be to ensure that these regulations are structured to serve practical needs. In addition, the Council will continue its work on the EU Action Plan for the Simplification of the Common Agriculture Policy and is expected, in June, to adopt a proposal bringing together the existing 21 market organisations to form a single Common Market Organisation (CMO).
Quality and competitiveness: the 27 EU Member States has some 15 million agricultural and forestry holdings, and the German Presidency highlights its desire to continue “the process of development and reform (of the Common Agricultural Policy) which has already been initiated”. Over the next six months, it hopes the Council will conclude the reform of the fruit and vegetables sector. The Council will also launch a debate (probably in June) on legislative proposals for the reform of the wine market, and could possibly conclude agreements on labelling and presentation of spirit drinks and on production rules and labelling of organic products. The main aim of the Presidency is to “continue to increase the European agricultural sector's competitiveness and to contribute towards available funds being invested primarily in future-oriented measures”.
Renewable resources: the EU should, according to the Presidency, develop and extend “the use of renewable resources in the production of renewable energy”. Germany's aims are to: - continue to improve general conditions for the practical application of renewable resources in the fields of heat, electricity and fuels; - continue developing the use of renewable resources; - significantly expand support for research and innovation in all areas where renewable resources are used. The Presidency will hold a conference in Nuremberg on 5-6 March on “Renewable Resources - New Opportunities for Rural Areas” (focussing on biofuels, the production of heat and electricity and the biomass). It will also support the activities for the continued implementation of the EU Action Plan on Biomass (see EUROPE 9135 on the reaction of Member States to this action plan) and will continue implementing the EU Strategy for Biofuels. Given that it is likely that the amount of biomass and biofuels produced and imported will rise in the future, the German Presidency will support the creation of a biomass-production certification system, with a view, in particular, to exploiting potential to reduce CO2 emissions.
International trade: the German Presidency “attaches great importance to the resumed WTO negotiations (Doha Round) being brought to a successful conclusion and will be energetic in its role as mediator within the European Union and internationally”. It welcomes the new export opportunities which greater liberalisation would bring. It is also aware, however, of “possible risks for the Internal Market and the Common Agricultural Policy”. The Presidency will also be open to the conclusion of further bilateral agreements. In addition, it regards the reform of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) to be very important, in order to enable the FAO to do greater justice to its role of fighting hunger in the world.
Investing in rural regions: over half of the European Union's population lives in rural areas. The German Presidency gives priority to measures which promote innovation and investment in sustainable economic sectors and in modern infrastructure facilities of rural areas. In the course of 2007, the Commission is due to approve and organise the implementation of Member States' new Support for Rural Development programmes (for 2007-2013). The Presidency also wants to see improvements in this aid, allowing it to be adapted to take account of particular regional needs.
Protection of animals and natural resources: to implement the European Action Plan for Animal Protection 2006-2010 the Presidency will carry out intensive work to ensure the Council adopts:
- a ban on importing and trading in dog and cat fur; - minimum requirements on the protection of chickens for fattening; - amendments to the Directive on the protection of laboratory animals. The Presidency also plans to hold an Animal Protection Day in Brussels on 28 March, when experts will debate the idea of an “animal welfare” label on products. The Presidency will also advocate “further harmonisation” in plant protection and plant health, and will focus on the following measures: - the framework for Community action on the sustainable use of pesticides; - the revision of the Pesticides Directive; - the amendment of a directive on the control of organisms harmful to plants (potato cultivation); - and the harmonisation of phytosanitary standards at international level. The German Presidency will also focus on the continued implementation of the EU Forest Action Plan and implementation of the resolutions of the United Nations Forum on Forests.
Food safety and a healthy diet: the Presidency aims to press ahead with the following: - the development of strategies for controlling animal diseases - new diagnostic methods could assist in significantly reducing the number of culled animals; - increasing transparency and coherence of the procedures which govern the approval of genetically modified organisms (GMOs); - speeding up negotiations on proposals for regulations on food additives, flavourings and enzymes in foods and putting in place a standard approval procedure for these substances; - the start of negotiations on the amended Regulation Concerning Novel (i.e. not having a significant history of consumption in the EU before May 1997) Foods and Novel Food Ingredients; - improvement in the monitoring of residues in veterinary drugs. Finally, a conference will be held in Badenweiler on 25-27 February on “Prevention for Health: Nutrition and Physical Activity”.
Consumer protection: the Presidency will pursue the integration of consumer rights into the various policy sectors. It plans to adopt conclusions on the Consumer Protection Strategy and the implementation of the Community's Action Programme in the Field of Consumer Policy (2007-2013). A conference will be held in Berlin on 14-15 March on how to increase the safety of consumer use of digital technologies (internet, e-commerce, bank and insurance transactions). (lc)