Europe Agri articles from July 2004

Europe Agri archives from July 2004

OBESITY: EU FUNDS INTEGRATED PROJECT TO TACKLE SCOURGE.
July 9, 2004... Back in December 2002, the Council of Ministers voiced "great concern about the serious health, social and economic impact of the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity in individuals, particularly children, and in the European...

GERMAN INJUNCTION AGAINST GE-MILK DESIGNATION.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... A German law court in Cologne handed down a ruling on June 23 prohibiting Greenpeace from referring to milk from the German group Muller Milch as "GE-milk". Greenpeace in Germany had launched a website called Mull Milch (milk fit for the bin)...

ORGANIC FARMING: RESTRICTED RANGE OF ORGANIC SEEDS A GROWING PROBLEM.(Conferences of Agricultural Industry)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... The conference warned that developing countries are facing difficulties exporting organic products to developed countries and further requirement to use organic seeds might make this more problematic. Some 300 people attended the conference in...

DUTCH AGRICULTURE MINISTER VISITS FRANCE AND SPAIN.(Meeting of Cornelis Pieter Veerman.)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Dutch Minister for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Cornelis Pieter Veerman, planned visits France and Spain from July 7, to meet his French counterpart Herve Gaymard in Paris and Elena Espinosa Mangana, Spanish Minister for Fisheries,...

RESEARCH: CALL FOR PROPOSALS FOR COMPARATIVE TESTS AND TRIALS ON A RANGE OF PLANTS.
July 9, 2004... Specifically, the aim of the Commission project is to carry out a high-quality EU scientific and technical evaluation of seed and propagation material in order to harmonise the technical methods of certification or examination of seed and...

RESEARCH: FIRST EUROPEAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE ON TRANSMISSIBLE ANIMAL DISEASES.(Med-Vet-Net institute)
July 9, 2004... Consisting of 16 institutions, half of which are veterinary and half public health institutions from ten countries (1), Med-Vet-Net aims to integrate European veterinary, medical and food sciences research on the prevention and control of...

EU/UN: INTERNATIONAL PLANT GENE TREATY ENTERS INTO FORCE.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Plant genes are an important resource for current and future farmers. Modern farming methods often focus on a limited set of plant varieties. This shrinking biodiversity means there are fewer possibilities for plant breeders to develop new...

SCIENTISTS CLAIM IRELAND CAN SUPPORT HIGH NITRATE LEVELS.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... The Irish environment can support a nitrate level well above the EU maximum legal limit, Irish Government scientists said in a report released on June 29. Ireland has a strong case that it can support grassland farming using up to 250 kg of...

UK FLOATS PLAN TO TACKLE WATER POLLUTION FROM FARMING.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Fertilisers and pesticides are a major problem for British water quality, the UK Government said on June 17 when it launched proposals to tackle agricultural water pollution. Taxes on nutrient or fertiliser surpluses are just some of the...

CAP: COMMISSION ALLOWS NATIONAL DIRECT AID PAYMENTS FOR EIGHT NEW MEMBER STATES.
July 9, 2004... Lithuania is allowed to use up to Euro 36.8 million from the temporary rural development fund to co-finance arable crops and flax grown for national aid. It can pay up to Euro 65.8 million for arable crops, Euro 14.7 million for bulls, Euro 5.6...

COMPASSION IN WORLD FARMING TAKES UK TO COURT OVER CHICKEN WELFARE.(animal welfare group )(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Animal welfare group Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) took the British Government to court on July 7 over claims by the Agriculture Ministry (DEFRA) that severely restricting farm animals' feed rations is acceptable in intensive farming...

GLOBAL WARMING COULD HALVE WORLD'S RICE OUTPUT.(Research)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Global warming could cut rice yields by as much as 50%, new research from the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) suggests. Scientists at Los Banos in the Philippines studied crop yields over 12 years and temperatures over 25 years....

FISHERIES: ILLEGAL FISHING STILL UNDERMINING CONSERVATION EFFORTS.(Reports of Fisheries)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Illegal fishing is growing and it is seriously undermining governments' efforts to manage fisheries sustainably, the United Nations' agricultural agency said in a study based on information from 82 of its member countries. The latest report...

EU ANTI-DUMPING PROBE INTO AMMONIUM NITRATE FERTILISER FROM RUSSIA/UKRAINE.
July 9, 2004... The European Commission has opened a review into its 2002 anti-dumping measures against imports of ammonium nitrate fertiliser from Russia and Ukraine. The review, demanded by the European Fertiliser Manufacturers Association (EFMA), was...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS IN SUMMER 2004.(Calendar)
July 9, 2004... JULY 7 - 8 Brussels, Belgium - COGECA Presidium 8 - 9 Brussels, Belgium - COPA Presidium 9 Umea, Sweden - Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe (CPMR) political bureau meeting 11-15 Copenhagen, Denmark -...

UK DUCK PROCESSOR GOES UNDER.(Securities of Poultry Industry)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... The UK's second largest duck producer and processor went into administration on June 21. Manor Farm Ducklings had a 24% share of the UK market and was one of Europe's largest producers of Peking duck. The company had sales of about Euro 25...

DUTCH DAIRY FIRM CAMPINA TAKES OVER GREEK PARTNER.(Mergers and Acquisitions of Campina.)(Quality Brands International)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Dutch dairy firm Campina took over Greek company Quality Brands International on July 5 in its first move into the Greek market. QBI will now trade under the name Campina Hellas and should have a turnover of some Euro 40 million a year, Campina...

SYNGENTA TO SHIFT BIOTECH RESEARCH FROM UK TO USA.(Location Change of Agricultural Chemicals Industry)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Biotech business Syngenta said it will stop researching genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) at its site in Great Britain and will shift activities to North Carolina in the United States. The Swiss firm said the move was motivated by the more...

FINNISH FISH EXPORTS DOWN ONE-THIRD IN 2003.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Finland's exports of fish and fish products fell by one-third to Euro 11.4 million in 2003, the Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute (RKTL) reported. Exports of Finnish fish products totalled only 7.5% of imports, which stood at Euro...

NESTLE SELLS TWO EU COCOA PLANTS.(European)(Acqisitions and mergers )(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... The world's biggest food and drinks group, Nestle, said on June 30 it was selling two European cocoa bean processing plants to the US commodities giant, Cargill. The purchase price has not been disclosed. The Swiss company said it was selling...

DANISH CROWN TO STOP NON-GM PORK PRODUCTION.(Genetically-Modified)(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... Danish meat producer Danish Crown will stop producing non-genetically-modified (GM) pork, it said on June 29. The company ended contracts with pig farmers in Denmark and the UK who feed their pigs with non-GM feed. Danish Crown said there was...

NEW BOARD FOR EUROPEAN TOBACCO ASSOCIATION.(European Smoking Tobacco Association (ESTA))(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... The European Smoking Tobacco Association (ESTA) has just elected its new Board and Management Committee for the next two years. The new President is the German Michael Kraushaar, CEO of Dutch Tobacco producer Koninklijke Theodurus Niemeyer bv,...

CONCERNS RAISED ABOUT JOINT VENTURE BETWEEN SONOCO AND AHLSTROM.(Brief Article)
July 9, 2004... An in-depth investigation into a planned venture between Sonoco Luxembourg S.a.r.l. and Ahlstrom Holding GmbH was launched by the European Commission under the EU Merger Regulation on July 5. The venture would combine the companies' European...

WINE: TERRE ET VIN DU MONDE HOSTILE TO GENETICALLY-MODIFIED PRODUCTS.(Brief Article)
July 23, 2004... Created in 2001, Terre et Vin du Monde recalls that the INAO (France's national institute for designations of origin) agreed in 2002 to ban the use of registered designations of origin but the ban has yet to receive the signature of the...

FOOD QUALITY: EURO 12 MILLION FOR ANIMAL GENE RESEARCH PROJECT.
July 23, 2004... At the moment, European husbandry leads the world in efficiency and animal welfare, but livestock everywhere are prone to disease. Traditional therapies, such as antibiotics and anti-worm treatments, are becoming less effective as pathogens...

NUTRITION CLAIMS: CODEX ALIMENTARIUS ADOPTS MORE THAN 20 FOOD STANDARDS.(Codex Alimentarius Commission)
July 23, 2004... Oranges and dairy products A new Codex standard for oranges lays down quality and other requirements for fresh oranges and is itself the fruit of the joint efforts of the Codex and of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. ...

GENETIC ENGINEERING: SCIENTISTS WARN ABOUT SHORTAGE OF INFORMATION ON HEALTH IMPLICATIONS.(Brief Article)
July 23, 2004... "Although very many have voiced their opinions both in the popular and scientific press, there is only very limited data published in peer-reviewed journals concerning the safety of GM-food, it would seem apparent that GM-food regulation is...

RESEARCH: EUREKA PROJECT ON ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY PACKAGING.(Brief Article)
July 23, 2004... Manufacturers expand and mould the polystyrene beads into a particular shape using a blowing agent, usually pentane. However, pentane is an inflammable, volatile organic compound (VOC) and close to half remains in the EPS after processing and...

BIRDLIFE LAUNCHES CYBERACTION FOR NATURE-FRIENDLY FARMING.(Brief Article)
July 23, 2004... Environmental group BirdLife International has launched an Internet campaign to bombard the new EU Agriculture Commissioner with digital postcards. The "cyberaction" urges the new Commissioner - to be appointed by September 2004 - to support...

EU/WTO: DOHA DRAFT "A STEP FORWARD", SAYS EU.
July 23, 2004... "The paper that the WTO produced on Friday is from our point of view a basis for further work", said a spokeswoman for European Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy. "We note that this text requires still a number of clarifications and a number of...

COMMISSION FIXES BANANA IMPORTS FOR ENLARGMENT.(Brief Article)
July 23, 2004... The new Member States can import up to 105,000 tonnes of bananas from July to October, the European Commission decided on July 8. The second block of import licences expires on October 7. In April, the EU increased its allowed banana imports...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS IN SUMMER 2004.(Calendar)
July 23, 2004... AUGUST 10 - 13 Trondheim, Norway - NOR-FISHING 2004. Tel: +47 73 568640, e-mail: mailbox@nor-fishing.no 22 - September 1 Ludwigshafen, Germany - European Summer Academy of Bioethics. http://www.ses-europe.org SEPTEMBER 5 -...