Europe Agri articles from March 2005

Europe Agri archives from March 2005

FARM COUNCIL: FOOD SAFETY CONCERNS DOMINATE AGENDA.
March 10, 2005... Food traceability. Food traceability requirements were also discussed, with the German delegation requesting more stringent rules on labelling - a call which has been reinforced by the recent health scare over the discovery of...

FLAVOURINGS COME UNDER EFSA'S MICROSCOPE.(European Food Safety Authority)(Brief Article)
March 10, 2005... Food additive pentane-2,4-dione is not the flavour of the month. It was one of a long list of 51 flavouring substances that have recently come under the European Food Safety Authority's scrutiny and that has been rejected on safety grounds....

FOOD ADDITIVES: EU URGES CODEX COMMITTEE TO WRAP UP WORK ON REVISED GENERAL STANDARD.(Brief Article)
March 10, 2005... At the last session of the CCFAC, it was agreed that the United States would prepare a revised GSFA containing all proposed, draft and adopted food additive provisions. The EU believes that work should focus on how to improve existing...

EU FARMING LOBBY BACKS REQUESTS FOR CRISIS DISTILLATION FOR WINE.(Brief Article)
March 10, 2005... The EU farming lobby groups COPA and COGECA have added their voices to several member states' requests for crisis wine distillation schemes to be opened to take the pressure off the market. European wine producers are facing a difficult...

ANIMAL & HUMAN HEALTH: AVIAN INFLUENZA RISK STILL VERY REAL.
March 10, 2005... FAO/WHO conference. Animal and human health experts attending the Vietnam meeting were generally agreed that one year after the bird flu crisis, progress has been made in the early detection of and rapid response to the disease. There are...

NEW PUBLICATION.(Greenpeace Foundation Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 10, 2005... "No market for GM labelled food in Europe" Greenpeace has just published a report demonstrating that the vast majority of top selling retailers and food & drink producers in Europe reject products or ingredients which have to be labelled as...

EBRD IN EQUITY INVESTMENT TO BOOST POLISH BOTTLE AND JAR TOP MAKER.(European Bank for Reconstruction and Development)(Przedsiebiorstwo Produkcyjno-Handlowe DGS Sp. z o.o.)(Brief Article)
March 10, 2005... A consortium of investors including the London-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Polish Enterprise Fund V and Dutch fund managers AlpInvest has acquired 80% of Polands Przedsiebiorstwo Produkcyjno-Handlowe DGS...

NESTLE CONSOLIDATES LEADING POSITION IN BOTTLED WATER MARKET.(Nestle Waters)
March 10, 2005... oNestle Waters is consolidating its worldwide leadership and accelerating the development of the Nestle brandso, the mineral water unit of the multinational food group Nestle said on March 8 when presenting its results for 2004 and outlook for...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR 2005.(Calendar)
March 10, 2005... March 14 Brussels, Belgium - Farm and Fisheries Council 14 to 18 Moscow, Russia - "Biotechnology: state of the art and prospects of development". This 3rd international congress is intended to present participants with a view of...

LOBBY ASKS MEPS FOR MEASURES TO REINFORCE FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SECTOR.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... The fruit and vegetable market must be reinforced and supply must be concentrated within producer organisations, members of the Freshfel fruit and vegetable lobby told a number of members of the European Parliament during a meeting on March 22....

FISCHER BOEL PRESENTED WITH PETITION BY WILD BIRDS LOBBY.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... Farm Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel was presented with a petition on March 15 calling for further EU agriculture reforms towards a more environmentally-friendly policy. The petition, put together by conservation group Birdlife International,...

ECONOMY: FARM LOBBIES CALL FOR REVITALISATION OF LISBON PROCESS.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... "It is of crucial importance that agriculture becomes fully integrated in the Lisbon Strategy", EU farmers' lobby groups COPA and COGECA said on March 22. The lobby expressed its support for the revitalisation of the EU's Lisbon Strategy in a...

FISHERIES: EU BY-CATCHES IN AFRICAN WATERS "A SERIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL THREAT", SAY SCIENTISTS.
March 24, 2005... Heavy by-catches at heart of the problem. The EU has 22 bilateral fisheries agreements currently in force, primarily with countries in Africa. Almost euro 200 million of EU money goes into the bilateral pacts every year, whereby EU fleets...

CAIRNS GROUP TO MEET TO GIVE "IMPETUS" TO GLOBAL AGRICULTURAL REFORM.
March 24, 2005... Ministers from the Cairns Group of agricultural-exporting countries will meet in Cartagena, Colombia, from March 30 to April 1 to discuss agricultural market access and trade reform, the fair trade group announced on March 21. It says the...

EBRD ANNOUNCES SUPPORT FOR GEORGIAN WINE INDUSTRY.(European Bank for Reconstruction and Development)(Georgian Wines and Spirits Ltd. receives loan)(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... The London-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has announced that it is lending $7.3 million for seven years to Georgian Wines and Spirits Ltd, a leading wine producer in Georgia and a subsidiary of Pernod Ricard...

HEINEKEN TO CONSOLIDATE BRANDS IN EUROPE.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... Dutch brewer Heineken announced on March 23 that it will review its beer brand portfolio in Europe and withdraw several labels from the EU market. The group, which currently has over 80 beer brands across its European territories, says the move...

POLISH AGRI-BUSINESS ROLIMPEX REPORTS NET PROFITS OF EURO 6.2 MILLION.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... Polish agricultural products maker Rolimpex increased its consolidated net profit to euro 6.2 million for 2004 from euro 4.9 million for 2003, the company announced on March 23. The company, which is owned by Dutch-based animal feed producer...

BELGIAN BREWING GIANT LAUNCHES BRAZILIAN BEER FOR WORLD MARKET.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... Belgian brewing giant InBev launched its Brazilian beer brand Brahma for the global market on March 22. The 117-year old beer, which until now was only available on the Brazilian market, was launched in 15 countries, including France, the UK...

ITALIAN WINE EXPORTS TO USA UP 2.3% COMPARED TO 2003.(Brief Article)
March 24, 2005... Exports of Italian wine to the United States in the fourth quarter of 2004 rose 2.3% year-on-year in terms of quantity and 12.6% in terms of value, according to data released on March 23 by the Italian Wine & Food Institute. Italy ranked first...

CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR 2005.(Calendar)
March 24, 2005... April 6-7 Milan, Italy - "Advances in stem cell research": The conference is organised by the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) Integrated Project EuroStemCell (European consortium for stem cell research). It will bring together scientists,...