Europe Agri articles from March 2003

Europe Agri archives from March 2003

REGIONAL COOKING: SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT LAUNCHES SCHOOL FOR REGIONAL COOKING.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2003... The course lasts 10 weeks and is followed by a work placement of between three months and a year in restaurants selected by Slow Food. Students learn about Italy's different regional cuisines, its gastronomic traditions, its cultural...

ORGANIC FOOD: NEW ASSOCIATION FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH INTO QUALITY.(International Research Association for Organic Food Quality and Health)
March 14, 2003... Four European research institutes have joined forces to set up a new scientific association to encourage and co-ordinate research into organic food and health and to disseminate the results. The International Research Association for Organic...

FOOD LAW: COMMISSION BACKS COUNCIL COMMON POSITION ON INGREDIENTS.
March 14, 2003... The Commission amended on December 4, 2002 its original proposal of September 6, 2001 in the light of amendments adopted in first reading by the European Parliament on June 11, 2002 (see Europe Agri 127). All these amendments are kept on in the...

RESEARCH: SCIENTISTS DISCOVER GENE THAT REGULATES MILK YIELD.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2003... This is not the first time that a quantified association has been made between a single gene and cow milk production. However as Johanna Vilkki of MTT Agrifood Research points out, 'Developing associated markers for genes that affect milk...

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT REACHES VERDICT ON BIOFUELS DIRECTIVE.
March 14, 2003... The European Parliament adopted in its plenary session in Strasbourg its second-reading Recommendation on the Biofuels Directive drawn up by Spanish conservative MEP Maria del Pilar Ayuso Gonzalez. Parliament has thus given its approval to the...

FISHERIES: MEPS CALL FOR EURO 150 MILLION COMPENSATION FOR COD CRISIS VICTIMS.(members of the European Parliament)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2003... The European Parliament called on March 12 for an aid package of Euro 150 million to help the EU's fishing communities cope with the cod crisis. At their plenary session in Strasbourg, MEPs backed a report urging a compensation package for...

WINE: AUSTRALIAN EXPORTS TO EU SET TO SOAR.
March 14, 2003... The concept of exporting wine to Europe is like the proverbial selling of coals to Newcastle. But the rise and rise of Australian wines suggests that this is a particularly serious challenge to one of Europe's proudest traditions. Australian...

FAO/CGIAR: INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS GROUP TO THE RESCUE OF WORLD CROP DIVERSITY.(Global Conservation Trust)
March 14, 2003... Crop diversity collections, housed in some 1,470 gene banks, hold millions of plant samples that are the underpinning of a stable and sustainable food supply. These samples are the result of some 10,000 years of planting, ploughing, and...

COFFEE: BRAZILIAN BACKING FOR ICO PROMOTION PROGRAMMES.(International Coffee Organization)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2003... International Coffee Organisation Executive Director Nestor Osorio received strong backing for the ICO's programmes seeking to improve quality, promote consumption and diversification in the troubled world coffee industry during an official...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS IN SPRING 2003.(Calendar)
March 14, 2003... MARCH 17-18 Brussels, Belgium - Farm and Fisheries Council March 31 to April 4, London: * Climate Change - Science, Impacts and Responses is the title of a conference being staged at Imperial College London. Proceedings will be split...

NEW PUBLICATION.(Book Review)
March 14, 2003... *World agriculture: towards 2015/2030, co-published by the FAO and Earthscan Publications Ltd London. The world's population will be better fed by 2030, but hundreds of millions of people in developing countries will remain chronically...

FOOD SAFETY: EP COMMITTEE VOTES THROUGH AUTHORITY'S BUDGET.
March 28, 2003... The rapporteur for the Committee on Budgets, Goran Farm (PES, Sweden), had asked the Environment Committee to choose between two options: either release all the remaining administrative funds or keep them all in reserve. On March 25, the Chair...

NOVEL FOODS: ECJ OPINION ON GMOS.
March 28, 2003... Foods which are produced from genetically-modified organisms but no longer contain them may, under Regulation 258/97/EC on novel foods and novel food ingredients, be placed on the EU market under a "simplified procedure" without prior...

PROTECTED DESCRIPTIONS: COMMISSION REGISTERS FOUR NEW FOOD PRODUCT NAMES.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission has added four more newly-registered names of farm produce and food products to the list of protected geographical indications (PGI), protected designations of origin (PDO) and guaranteed traditional specialities (GTS)....

NITRATES: DANES CAN USE NATIONAL CONTROLS.
March 28, 2003... Commission Decision overruled. This is the first time that the Court has been asked to rule in a case by a Member State arguing that the Commission's refusal to allow it to maintain national instead of Community measures, was wrong. A 1988...

DAIRY PRODUCTS: TERM "YOGHURT" NOT COVERED BY ANY COMMUNITY LEGISLATION.
March 28, 2003... In its response, the European Commission explains that neither the European Union Court of Justice nor the Commission have provided a definition of the name "yoghurt". It points out that in the Smanor ruling of 1991 on names for the sale of...

RESEARCH: COMMISSION AIMS TO STOP THE BRAIN DRAIN.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... In order to achieve the objective of raising the EU's investment in research to 3% of gross domestic product (GDP), as decided at the Barcelona 2002 summit, the EU will need 500,000 extra researchers. This is the conclusion reached by the...

BIOTECHNOLOGY: EUROPEANS STILL WARY OF FRANKENSTEIN FOOD.
March 28, 2003... While most Europeans are in favour of medical applications of biotechnology, they are still sceptical about agricultural and food-related biotechnology. This is the main lesson to be drawn from the findings of the latest Eurobarometer survey,...

FOOD SAFETY: STEERING COMMITTEE ADOPTS NEW BSE TESTS AND GMO HANDBOOK.
March 28, 2003... The Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) has adopted 15 Opinions and reports, covering a broad range of multidisciplinary areas such as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs), genetically-modified (GM) plants and the harmonisation of...

BIOTECHNOLOGY: COMMISSION CALLS FOR TENDERS FOR EU RULES EFFICIENCY REPORT.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission has published a call for tenders for the completion of a report on improving the efficiency of biotechnology legislation. In 2003, the Commission will submit a report to the European Parliament and the Council on the...

ENVIRONMENT: ECOLOGISTS AGAINST WEAKENING EUROPEAN ECO-LABEL SCHEME.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The three organisations are particularly concerned that some Member States, such as France, are supporting industry demands to accept ecologically harmful substances such as PVC in the Eco-label for furniture which they argue on the grounds of...

PACKAGING: COMMISSION BACKS COUNCIL ON PLAN.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission is delighted with the common position the Council of Ministers has adopted on the draft packaging and packaging waste Directive. It is particularly pleased that Ministers have gone along with its idea that the proposal...

GMO LABELLING: COUNCIL RUBBER-STAMPS REGULATIONS.
March 28, 2003... The EU Council of Agriculture Ministers formally adopted on March 17 its common positions on two Regulations, one on the traceability and labelling of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) and the traceability of food or feed produced from GMOs...

FOOD SAFETY: STEERING COMMITTEE ADOPTS NEW BSE TESTS AND GMO HANDBOOK.(Scientific Steering Committee, European Union)
March 28, 2003... The Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) has adopted 15 Opinions and reports, covering a broad range of multidisciplinary areas such as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs), genetically-modified (GM) plants and the harmonisation of...

PESTICIDE RESIDUE: HARMONISATION OF RESIDUE LEVELS.
March 28, 2003... Today's piecemeal legislation. Existing legislation on pesticide residues in food and feed include provisions setting maximum limits and establishing sampling, monitoring and reporting procedures. Residues in food for infants are covered by...

ENVIRONMENT: COMMISSION BANS PARATHION-METHYL INSECTICIDE.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission announced on March 10 that it has decided to ban the insecticide parathion-methyl (1) after analyses and risk assessments carried out on the product failed to show that it was safe for non-targeted insects, birds and...

FARM COUNCIL: MINISTERS GET DOWN TO DETAILS OF CAP REFORM PLAN.
March 28, 2003... CAP reform: mid-term review. After a discussion of five of the European Commission's specific mid-term review proposals, some broad tendencies began to emerge from the Council: Starting with the dairy sector, a majority was opposed to...

OLIVE OIL: INDEPENDENT STUDY URGES REFORM.
March 28, 2003... A group of independent experts has released a study for the European Commission which supports a raft of reforms in the olive oil industry. The study, published on March 19, "Evaluation of the impact of the main market-organisation measures in...

CAP REFORM: COMMISSION STUDIES SAYS FARM INCOME WOULD RISE.
March 28, 2003... Effects of CAP reform. The two studies look at the whole range of agricultural sectors, including dairy, which is an improvement on previous models. They seek to compare the effects of current agricultural policy, based on the Agenda 2000...

DAIRY: COUNCIL RESISTS ITALIAN PRESSURE TO WAIVE FINES FOR QUOTA OVER-RUNS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The Italian government first raised its request in front of Finance Ministers at the EcoFin Council on March 19, after the European Commission called it state aid. At the Council, Italy told Ministers that it would block an agreement on a...

EXPORT REFUNDS: COURT OF AUDITORS CRITICISES PREFINANCING SYSTEMS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... Last year, 11% of export refunds paid were prefinanced, worth some Euro 600 million. But the Court says that the system is "problematic", and very difficult to audit reliably across all the Member States, because of different auditing practices...

ANIMAL HEALTH: DUTCH POULTRY RESTRICTIONS LIFTED.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... Meeting on March 26, the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCFCAH) has voted in favour of a European Commission proposal to lift more of the restrictions placed on Dutch poultry after avian influenza was detected in...

AGRICULTURE: MEPS SAY CAP REFORM MUST PROVIDE RANGE OF BENEFITS.
March 28, 2003... Funding multifunctionality. All parties agreed that it was vital to work towards a multifunctional role for agriculture i.e. one which maintained diversity in the countryside by encouraging and rewarding activities other than food...

FISHERIES: PARLIAMENT WANTS COMMISSION TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR TUNA-TRACKING.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Parliament (EP) has adopted a draft resolution on a Council regulation (COM(2001) 406) to track and verify tuna catches, which is aimed at protecting the dolphins often caught alongside tuna by accident in industrial fishing...

EU/AFRICA: EURO 8.4 MILLION FOR RELIEF AID FLIGHTS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission announced on March 14 it had allocated Euro 8.4 million to fund the operations of an airborne mission by its humanitarian office, ECHO, in the Horn of Africa during 2003. The ECHO Flight service should offer a vital...

EU/WTO: COPA-COGECA SAY FREER TRADE DOES NOT HELP POOR FARMERS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European farming lobbies COPA-COGECA unveiled on March 14 a study which they say shows that freeing up agriculture and dismantling the EU's Common Agricultural Policy would have a minimal effect on farmers in poor countries. The President...

LIBERALISATION: GENEVA DEAL ON FARM TALKS UNLIKELY BY END-MARCH.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... EU Farm Commissioner Franz Fischler has admitted that World Trade Organisation members might not be able to reach agreement on the scope of talks on farm trade liberalisation by the end of March. Giving a press conference on the first day of...

EU/WTO: FISCHLER AND LAMY SAY HARBINSON PLAN STILL UNBALANCED.(European Union, World Trade Organization; tariff preferences, agricultural products)
March 28, 2003... The Commissioners said the second draft, released on March 18, was "largely identical" to the first draft tabled by Mr Harbinson in February. "Severe imbalances remain", they said. "We have tabled substantial and ambitious proposals on all...

SOYABEANS: COMMISSION PROBES US SUPPORT.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission has decided to launch an investigation into US support for soyabean farmers which could result in a dispute settlement panel in the World Trade Organisation. The decision follows a complaint from the European Oilseed...

DAIRY QUOTAS: MOSCOW CONSIDERS QUOTAS ON EU PRODUCTS.
March 28, 2003... Moscow is looking at imposing a limit on imports of dairy products from the EU, a European Commission spokesman has confirmed, after reports were published in the Russian press. According to the spokesman, the matter was mentioned briefly by...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS IN SPRING 2003.(Calendar)
March 28, 2003... APRIL 7-8 Luxembourg - Farm and Fisheries Council 8-11 Cologne, Germany - Anuga FoodTec International Trade Fair for Food Technology Anuga FoodTec is the platform for international dialogue between the food technology sector and...

FISH FARMING: COMMISSION APPROVES JOINT VENTURE BETWEEN DUPONT AND STATOIL.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The European Commission has given clearance for a joint venture between E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co of the US and Statoil ASA of Norway. The venture, approved on March 26 under simplified merger review procedure, will be active in the...

PLANT PROTECTION: BAYER SELLS INSECTICIDES BUSINESS TO BASF.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... German chemicals firms Bayer AG has completed the sale of selected insecticides and fungicides to BASF in a deal worth Euro 1.18 billion, the company announced on March 24. "With the completion of this transaction we have fulfilled the...

JC DECAUX SIGNS DEAL WITH MASTERFOODS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... French outdoor advertising company JC Decaux SA (F.JCD) said on March 24, it had signed a pan-European partnership with Masterfoods, a unit of Mars Inc. The four-year deal covers JC Decaux's outdoor advertising network in 16 European...

FOOD FROM BRITAIN COUNCIL APPOINTS THREE NEW MEMBERS.(Brief Article)
March 28, 2003... The UK's Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has announced the appointment of three new members for the Council of Food from Britain, the country's food promotion agency. The three new members, announced on March 25, are: *...