Europe Agri articles from February 2004

Europe Agri archives from February 2004

EU MONEY FOR STUDIES ON BSE RISK IN FOOD AND FEED.
February 13, 2004... The EU Budget will fork out financial support for a number of scientific projects aimed at investigating the risk of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) posed by animal protein in food and feed. The European Commission approved Euro 50,000...

COMMISSION APPROVES INFORMATION CAMPAIGN ON EGG STAMPING.
February 13, 2004... New rules on traceability that require eggs to be marked with a unique identifying code will be eligible for publicity campaigns aimed at consumers through the EU's budget for promoting products on the Internal Market. The European Commission...

FOOD SUPPLEMENTS: SEVEN MEMBER STATES HAVE NOT YET TRANSPOSED DIRECTIVE.
February 13, 2004... According to the Commission, five Member States transposed Directive 2002/46/ EC within the prescribed time limits: Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden. Last October, the Commission sent formal letters of notice to the other...

FOOD SAFETY: EUROPEAN AUTHORITY URGES BETTER COMMUNICATION WITH CIVIL SOCIETY.
February 13, 2004... Referring to a number of recent food safety scares, Geoffrey Podger maintained that it was particularly important for the EFSA and its partners to provide clear and precise information to people from various horizons, such as scientists, the...

PLANT GENOMICS: EUROPEAN UNION BACKS MULTI-STATE CO-OPERATION PROJECT.
February 13, 2004... The introduction of genetically-modified crops in Europe continues to be a matter of intense debate. While scientists generally agree on the benefits such crops can bring, consumers tend to be sceptical. Arguments about environmental risks and...

FIRST GM-BEER LAUNCHED IN SWEDEN.
February 13, 2004... The first beer carrying a label warning it contains genetically-modified ingredients was launched by a Swedish brewer on January 29. Observing new EU Regulation 1830/2003 (concerning the traceability and labelling of genetically-modified...

GENETIC ENGINEERING: SEED PRODUCERS OPPOSE ANY LOWERING OF TOLERANCE THRESHOLDS.
February 13, 2004... These thresholds, which as the seed industry points out are extremely low, "stem from a compromise between a desire for as low a threshold as possible and the need to preserve the economic viability of the seed industry, an indispensable basis...

COMMISSION APPROVES EURO 600,000 FOR BIRD 'FLU MONITORING.
February 13, 2004... EU Member States have until March 15 to produce a programme aimed at studying the prevalence of the virulent poultry disease Avian Influenza, according to the European Commission. The EU executive decided on January 29 that up to Euro 600,000...

EU MILK COLLECTION ROSE 0.8% IN NOVEMBER 2003.
February 13, 2004... Milk collection by dairies in the 15 Member States was up a modest 0.8% in November 2003 compared to the same month a year before, according to figures from Eurostat, the EU Statistical Office. In spite of small drops in collection volumes in...

SPRING 2003 CENSUS POINTS UP SLIGHT DROP IN EU PIG NUMBERS.
February 13, 2004... Pig herd numbers in the EU and the acceding states continued to fall slightly between April and June 2003 while pigmeat production remained stable. The latest survey of the pig population by the EU Statistical Office, Eurostat, showed that...

EU CATTLE POPULATION FELL BY 6.2 MILLION BETWEEN 1994 AND 2002.
February 13, 2004... The European Union's total cattle population declined steadily from 1995 to 2002, according to figures just published by the EU Statistical Office Eurostat. Records started in 1994 and show a slight upturn in 1995 when the number of cattle in...

CROP AND ANIMAL PRICES PUSH UP EU FARM PRICE INDEX.
February 13, 2004... Rising crop and animal prices were the driving force behind the 4.8% rise in the EU's agricultural price index for October 2003 compared to the same month in 2002. Crop products rose by 8.8% with prices increasing in all sectors except grape...

ITALY BLOCKS AGREEMENT ON FISH TARIFF QUOTAS FOR 2004-2006.
February 13, 2004... Italy's request to triple the tuna quota for 2004-2006 prevented a Council of Ministers' working party from agreeing on fish tariffs at the end of January. The European Commission originally proposed an annual quota of 4,000 tonnes for tuna...

COMMISSION APPOINTS STECF FISHERIES EXPERTS.
February 13, 2004... Twenty-eight fisheries experts from the EU Member States have been appointed to the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries, a body that provides the European Commission with scientific advice in the fisheries sector. The...

BUDGET: COMMISSION TABLES AMBITIOUS FINANCIAL PERSPECTIVE PLAN FOR 2007-2013.
February 13, 2004... The European Commission must balance the credibility of new political objectives which the EU has set itself, in particular the Lisbon Strategy, with the need to manage the legacy of current policies, notably the big-spending ones like the CAP...

COGECA TO CARRY OUT EU-WIDE SURVEY OF AGRICULTURAL CO-OPERATIVES.
February 13, 2004... The General Confederation of Agricultural Co-operatives in the European Union (COGECA) said on February 12 it would survey the current situation of agricultural co-operatives and present its findings to the new European Commission and...

FISHERIES: PARLIAMENT REJECTS COMMISSION'S VIEW OF HAKE IN DANGER.
February 13, 2004... The Commission proposal on fishing management is a parallel piece of legislation to the hake and cod plan discussed at the Fish Council. The Parliament has no co-decision powers over the issue but it attacked the proposal, cutting out all...

EU/ACP: MOZAMBIQUE TO BE ADDED TO SUGAR PROTOCOL.
February 13, 2004... The Sugar Protocol is contained in Annex V of the ACP-European Community Partnership Agreement, signed in Cotonou, Benin, on June 23, 2000. It guarantees its signatories a certain quantity of their sugar will be bought by traders in the EU at...

INTERNATIONAL GRAINS COUNCIL FORECASTS RECOVERY IN WHEAT OUTPUT THIS YEAR.
February 13, 2004... The International Grains Council (IGC) on January 29 forecast that world wheat output will recover to 601 million tonnes in 2004, 47 million more than 2003. The London-based IGC estimated last year's wheat production at 554 million, 13 million...

ITALIANS ARREST EX-CIRIO CHIEF FOR FRAUD.
February 13, 2004... Italian authorities have arrested Sergio Cragnotti, the former chairman of Cirio Finanziaria SpA, and both his son and son-in-law, for possible fraud and fraudulent bankruptcy in the scandal surrounding Cirio, a conglomerate that includes...

NEW PUBLICATION.
February 13, 2004... World Trade Organisation and Protection of the Environment The entering into force of the Marrakesh Accords and the establishment of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in January 1995 have produced some considerable upheavals in the...

TOMATOES: RESEARCH PROJECT SEEKS NEW OUTLETS FOR PROCESSING WASTE.
February 27, 2004... Around 8.5 million tonnes of tomatoes are cultivated every year in Europe. Nearly 18% (1.5 million tonnes) is sold directly to consumers and the rest is processed into foods, such as ketchup, pasta sauce and canned goods. However, during...

NEW SPANISH BAKERY PRODUCT GOES ON PGI REGISTER.(protected geographical indication )(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... The European Commission has agreed to record the name Ensaimada mallorquina or Ensaimada de Mallorca (baker's/pastrymaker's product) as a protected geographical indication (PGI) in the context of Regulation 2081/92 on the protection of...

PROTEIN STANDARDISATION COULD IMPACT INTERVENTION PRICE FOR MILK POWDER.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... A European Commission report suggesting a standard level of protein for powdered milk has divided Member States in the Special Committee for Agriculture. In a meeting on February 16, most Member States expressed their support for the protein...

EU/UNITED STATES: EU MEDIATION TO RESOLVE oMISUNDERSTANDINGo ABOUT MEAT PRODUCTS.(European Union)
February 27, 2004... The American Department of Agriculture quotes in its defence non-conformity with US health and safety system as well as problems noted during the veterinary inspection missions on January 15 and February 5 to a number of French producers of...

FARM PRICES: OUTPUT PRICE INDEX FOR NOVEMBER 2003 UP 5% ON 2002.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... The index of prices of agricultural products rose 5.4% in November 2003 over the same month in 2002, a result of price increases for crop products and both livestock and animal products, according to figures from the EU statistics agency...

FRANCE OUTLINES HOW IT WILL IMPLEMENT CAP REFORM MODEL.(common agricultural policy)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... France on February 18 outlined how it would implement the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy agreed by EU Ministers under the Mid-Term Review in June 2003. Direct aid payments will be coupled as far as the reform allows and the new...

HOT SUMMER IN 2003 TRIGGERS 10% FALL IN EU CEREAL PRODUCTION.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Cereal production in the European Union fell to 188.8 million tonnes in 2003, a drop of 10.7% on 2002 and the lowest level recorded since 1995, according to figures released by the EU statistics agency Eurostat. Spring frosts and an unusually...

FLOWER INDUSTRY NEEDS EU HELP TO REMAIN COMPETITIVE.(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... The European flower industry needs help from the EU to cope with new market demands and a flood of duty-free imports, EU Standing Group on Flowers and Plants President Ennio Fazio told a horticultural seminar in Brussels on February 19-20. He...

FARM COUNCIL: AVIAN FLU, PRICE PRESSURE AND ANIMAL WELFARE DOMINATE FEBRUARY SESSION.
February 27, 2004... Animal welfare. The Irish Presidency presented a progress report on the controversial animal transport proposal and each Minister stated their views in a lengthy "tour de table" which showed that there is still a substantial North-South...

EU/WTO/US: FISCHLER CALLS ON AMERICA TO REFORM 'TRADE-DISTORTING' FARM POLICY.(European Union, World Trade organisation, United States)
February 27, 2004... Whilst in America, Mr Fischler met Deputy US Trade Representative Peter Allgeier and executive directors of the World Bank on February 19 before attending an official dinner at the US Government's annual Agricultural Outlook Forum which...

FAO: global traceability and eco-labels in store for fish.(United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Consumer concern over food safety and the environment pushed traceability and eco-labelling of fish and fish products onto the agenda of an United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation's fisheries meeting in Bremen, Germany, on February 16....

COMMODITIES: UNCTAD CALLS FOR MORE ACTION TO STEM TRADE LOSSES.(United Nations Conference on Trade and Development)
February 27, 2004... The report looks at Africa's weak trade performance and the downward spiral of poverty, and it discusses the factors underlying the continent's inability to diversify its export base. It attempts to clarify why African countries remain locked...

NEW PUBLICATION.(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)(Brief Article)
February 27, 2004... Getting to Grips with Globalisation: The OECD in a Changing World The Public Affairs and Communications Directorate of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has just released a booklet, entitled...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS IN WINTER/SPRING 2004.(Animal Industry)(Calendar)
February 27, 2004... FEBRUARY 2004 26 - 28 Bangkok, Thailand - Meeting of expert veterinarians hosted by the Thai Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives, and jointly organised by FAO and OIE, with support from WHO 29 - March 3 Atlanta, Georgia -...