Advisory Committee Fruit and Vegetables. 10 February Brussels

Transcription

1 Date of circulation: 19 February 2009 Advisory Committee Fruit and Vegetables 10 February 2009 Brussels 1. Opening remarks: a. Welcome by the chairwoman Mrs. Roncolini b. Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting c. Approval of the agenda and inclusion of new items such as illegal import of mushrooms and import requirements for import into Russia 2. Election of officials: a. Reminder of rules of functioning of the advisory Committee by Commission services of DG AGRI. Election terms are for two years and is coming to an end for Mrs Roncolini who chaired the committee for the last term. Candidate has to come from another sector. b. Based on candidate application made by Freshfel, OEITFL and COPA-COGECA and endorsed by DG AGRI, the meeting unanimously elected the following officials: Mr. Guiseppe Calcagni (Freshfel Europe/Frucom) is elected President of the Advisory Committee (first mandate) while Mrs. Roncolini (COPA COGECA) is elected for a first mandate as vice president and Mr. Diez del Rio (OEITFL) is elected for a second mandate as vice president. 3. Strategic Agenda 2009 of the Advisory Committee: a. Presentation by DG AGRI services of the state of play within the Commission and the operational adjustments of the work of the advisory Committee. The presentation (available on circa) covered several aspects including the working procedure for stakeholders' consultation and the revision of the expert groups. The Commission proposed as of 2009 to hold two meetings of experts for tomatoes and citrus, one for apples and pears and potatoes and also one for peaches and nectarines for 2009 (revision in 2010 if lack of interest or participation). b. Presentation by the chairman Guiseppe Calcagni of guiding principles for a successful functioning of the committee as well as selected topics to be considered as priorities of the sector and which for discussion at the Committee level in the coming meetings. i. Key principles for a good functioning of the committee (language regime, attendance of delegates and officials). It is also suggested that each meeting should dedicate half a day for an in-depth discussion on a selected relevant issue. The relevance of the existing expert group is highlighted and the need to maintain these groups in operation and possibly includes new groups of experts for new topics such as the implementation of the school fruit scheme.

2 ii. Topics list of priorities for the next meetings could include: fruit school scheme, consumption drivers, economic crisis, external trade, energy and climate change, new technologies. Other basic items to remain on the agenda should also include CMO implementation rules, the green paper on quality, transparency of the market c. From the debate, the following remarks were made: i. Delegates highlighted the benefit of addressing the matter of new technologies but consider the complexity of addressing the matter of GMO in particular regarding the image to consumers. Such a matter needs to be handled with care. ii. Delegates stressed the relevance of quality both external and intrinsic quality parameters which are of paramount importance to stimulate consumption to consumers. iii. External markets are important in particular the access to large market such as India and China. The delegates underline the need to act on these matters under a European umbrella. The relationship with third countries is important and need to be taken for transparency and understanding while strongly defending the right of the EU. iv. The European policy of communication in regard to matters relating to health should also be debated. 4. Forecast group and other principles of functioning of the advisory committee Following the presentation by the Commission services of the new structure/calendar of the advisory committee and expert product group, the President of the Advisory Committee presented on behalf of the sector the following unanimous views in this respect: (a) The working documents provided by DG AGRI s services on a semestrial basis are extremely useful for the members of the professional organizations. DG AGRI is asked to continue this work of tremendous importance for market transparency as trade mechanisms are dismantled. (b) While the members of the forecast groups should preferably be representatives of the professional organizations, the delivery of the forecast groups could be further enhanced by the participation of invited experts from Agricultural Economic Institute from the Member States who have a great expertise of the sector. (c) The forecast groups have a role to play in the frame of the market observatory. It offers a consultation platform for the sector with the EC where representatives of Third Countries may be invited to exchange views on bilateral trade and world market situation. In case of market turbulence, it could offer a bridge to alleviate the problem. (d) The markets are global. Figures, data s series must be collected regularly in case of EU should launch the trade defense measures.

3 (e) The Forecast groups should also investigate on the EU production costs and repartition of margins in the food chain. (f) The current 4 forecast groups (apples/pears, tomato, citrus fruits and stone fruits). Two meetings a year is an adequate timetable at the beginning and the end of the marketing period. (g) The language regime should be improved to allow polish interpretation for apples/pears and tomato. (h) Other expert group might need to be considered such a group of expert to follow the fruit school scheme Moreover, the President also addresses some additional remarks regarding the linguistic regime of the advisory committee. It is recommended that polish interpretation should be added by the European Commission to facilitate participation from this country. The language regime will be F-D-E-I-NL-ES-PL. If needed for budgetary reasons, the Dutch interpretation could be removed. 5. Marketing standards: This matter is discussed in particular in relation to a proposal on marketing standards for processed products (tomatoes). The Commission indicated that the matter will be further discussed at GREX level. Member States are urging for more time. The next expert GREX meeting is scheduled on the February. The Commission also referred to the marketing standard issue in the Green Paper which could be move into a White Paper by the end of spring with some policy orientation from the Commission services. 6. CMO reform: Commission services reported on the latest development of the implementation of the scmo F&V and in particular the interpretation which is required after the adoption of the implementing rules. So far Commission responded to the questions raised by Member States in the form of Frequently Asked Questions and Interpretative Notes. These responses are part of the continuing efforts by the Commission to provide clarification on the new set of scmo legislation. So far 110 questions were responded. They are classified in 8 groups (between brackets the reference to the Nr of the Interpretative Note available on the circa-site): Crisis management (8,15,31) Value of the marketing production (6,19,20,28) Producer Groups (9,17,25,33) Eligibility of certain actions (7,14,21,32) Environmental issues (10,16,23,35) Producers organization (2, 3, 27, 30) National financial assistance (24, 34 {under revision!) Transitional measures (1,18,26,29) Miscellaneous (4.5.10)

4 During the discussion on the CMO, some other aspects were discussed by the advisory group. The questions mainly related to practical questions at national level. Points discussed are as follows: Financial crises and impact on CMO budget: The Commission noted that 558 Million were contributed by the EU in 2005 for the Operational Funds. For 2009, the Commission is estimating a total Operational Funds EU contribution at the maximum of 800 million (after the meeting corrected estimate of the maximum is 765 million). The consequence on the EU budget of the financial crisis is currently being assessed by the Commission services. It is likely that the financial crisis would have as impact a lower investment by PO s in 2009 as compared to their intentions as foreseen in their original operational programs. A reduction of external trade is expected which might have an additional impact on prices and might result in temporary (and regional) stagnation of markets. The Commission is to conduct a survey to estimate the impact of the financial crisis on the scmo F&V budget. Experts indicated that the fruit and vegetables might be less affected than other industrial sectors, though concerns are raised by some about prices, in particular following the untimely dismantling of marketing standards. Some experts fear lower quality produce and larger volume could be placed on the market pushing prices further down within the sector without being necessarily reflected at consumer level. The sector also stressed the extension by retail chains of the payment terms. Such a situation might require the setting up of a credit insurance scheme for the sector. The variation of exchange rate is leading to further complexity. Other countries such as the USA have a different and more proactive credit insurance approach. This lets the EU sector more expose internationally. National Framework for environmental actions: The Commission services presented the state of play on National Frameworks for environmental actions. This is an essential part of the national strategy to be set up by Member States. In 2008, Commission sent a comfort letter to Member States which presented their programme except for Malta and Austria given their late submission. Some new MS did not present their programme as they were not obliged to (case of new MS). National Frameworks for environmental actions programmes, unlike the Rural Development Programmes, are not approved by the Commission. The Commission may require modifications within tree months if it finds that the proposal does not enable the attainment of the objectives set out in Article 174 of the Treaty and in the Sixth Community Environment Action Programme. The comfort letter is sent in order to indicate Member States that the Commission services have no further demands on the submitted Framework which however still remains subject to audits under the Clearance of Accounts procedure. National assistance: Greece is seeking further clarification on national assistance scheme. This is subject of a new modification of Regulation 1580/2007 and in particular art 93 and 94 which should clarify this point. Simplification of indicators: LEI Institute (The Netherlands) made a report on simplification of indicators upon request of The Netherlands.

5 Compatibility and complementarities of scmo with rural development: Review of instruments to be used within National Strategy in regard of Rural Development Programmes. This matter is governed by Regulations (EC) 1234/2007, (EC) 1580/2007 (article 60), (EC) 1698/2005 and (EC) 1974/2006 (article 2). In principle, first pillar has priority on rural development programmes. However exceptions are possible. Depending of the region, budget might not be available for some measures (e. g. integrated production) under one scheme but might be available under the other. In any case, demarcation lines and administrative rules shall be established in order to ensure that a beneficiary may receive support for a given action only under one scheme. Structure: some smaller grower structure might not have access to resources available under rural development and therefore does not allow concentrating the offer among SME? CMO? This matter should be addressed to rural development experts and also be under the responsibility of the regions in the various MS. Harvest insurance and crisis management: The financing is available at 50% for OP while individual growers could have a support up to 65% under other policy line. MS could provide more support that CMO. Sector requested consistency. Some solution could come out of the heath check implementing rules. 7. Import of agaricus mushrooms in vinegar: the Commission reported on the alleged fraud in regard to imports of mushrooms in vinegar. EU producers alerted the Commission on possible fraud on import into Italy of mushrooms in vinegar. Imports increased sharply and are mainly coming from China. Based on this analysis, Italy would consume 35% of champignon classified under CN The suspected fraud consists of circumvention of the existing duties for agaricus mushrooms out of tariff quotas by adding vinegar to fall into another CN classification (tariffs concerned CN and CN ). The CN classifications represent mushroom categories namely mushroom in vinegar and other champignon categories preserved by heating. The alleged fraud is under investigation by OLAF. Separately, TAXUD will study the reclassification of CN code to avoid fraud. In order to deal with this matter, the Commission might consider reclassification of the mushroom in vinegar into new categories. The sector (OEITFL) recalls the measures taken by the Commission two years ago to fight another mushroom fraud case (non-agaricus mushrooms in brine), which caused considerable economic damage to many companies because the measure applied to a whole group of products and not only to the few that were concerned by the fraud. The processed vegetable industry therefore appeals to the Commission that industry should be consulted prior to any change to the CN codes, and asks for the proposed change to the CN codes that producers of mushrooms presented to the Fruit and Vegetable Management Committee to be made available via CIRCA. DG AGRI noted that the consultation process will be in the hands of DG TAXUD, the directorate general responsible for this consultation. The Commission will seek not to penalize honest traders by such a process. 8. Memorandum from Russia on pesticide residues: The sector is seeking from the Commission an update on the request of additional memorandum to be signed by the selected MS such as The

6 Netherlands and Italy. Through bilateral contacts and the signing of additional memoranda with MS, it is noted that it would weaken the EU coordination and also indirectly modified the EU memorandum. There is a deadline by Russia of 15 February to submit a list of exporters. The sector underlines the relevance of a unique scheme and the need to urgently address the discrepancies on MRL. The additional request would also imply regular report on MRL analysis by certified lab. It is pointed out that the strengthening of requirements is being tabled by Russia when no official report of trade surplus is being officially reported by Russia. The matter therefore has to be handled more politically at the European level as well. 9. European School fruit Scheme: Presentation by the Commission of the state of play of the regulation and the calendar of implementation. The Commission is planning to discuss the draft legal text with Member States at the Management Committee level next week in order to vote in March. MS will have to present national strategy by 31 May 2009 so that programme could be implemented by September The meeting was structured around initial remarks from the sector and expert presentations (all available on Circa). a. Initial remarks from the sector i. Necessity to coordinate action among Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Education ii. Variety: relevance of allowing a maximum of variety of produce to allow children to get used to different textures and taste. Commission sets a negative list of products not to be included such as added sugar and salt and artificial sweeteners in order to maintain the primary goal of the scheme which is to provide fresh fruit and vegetable to children. iii. NGO requested that products distributed to children should be subject to additional safety and quality controls, as much as possible local and seasonal products and avoid unnecessary plastic packaging. iv. Commission confirmed that the budget is based on 1 piece of fruit/veg per week during 30 weeks. The Commission implementation rules will provide flexibility for MS to establish their own programme allowing for a more concentrated distribution of fruit & vegetables to better influence the eating habits. The sector stressed that the delivery of only one piece of fruit per week is unlikely to change the eating habits of the youngest. v. Delegates welcome the benefit of using agriculture policy for agricultural actions with very positive health impacts vi. Open discussion on whether to specifically target less favoured regions and if the distribution of produce should be for free. vii. The meeting also discussed the compulsory monitoring requirements. The Commission clarified that no specific number of schools will have to be evaluated. Controls and evaluation need to be differentiated as being two different issues.

7 viii. Sector stressed the need to supply quality produce to secure that fruit provided to children are mature and tasty. The fruit and vegetable that are fresh and ready to eat (apples, pears, grapes, citrus easy peelers) should get preference to keep the scheme simple and provide as much as possible products that could be eaten without further manipulation (avoiding knifes to cut). This would also facilitate that children eat an additional snack outside the regular lunch. ix. The Commission underlines the opportunity created by the SFS to establish alternative supply chains for innovative products. With regards to suppliers, the Commission confirms that PO could be important SFS contributors by supplying local/seasonal products. x. The Commission confirms that the (national) Strategy will be published on the Commission website. This is a way to improve transparency and also exchange of best practice. xi. The Commission also clarified, that multi annual programmes are preferred but still the request for funding would have to be launched every year. xii. Regarding the time of delivery, the Commission clarified that it aims at securing that the distribution is not at the time of the meal and make sure that the fruit distribution come in addition of existing servings. If distributed during the meal, the school will have to demonstrate that the fruit is consumed in addition of existing servings. xiii. Regarding promotion, several programmes are available at EU level including rural development (article 68); CMO (PO) or the EU promotional programme. Commission will aim t having synergies of policies. Double funding will be avoided by due to the fact that no SFS funds are available for accompanying measures, while SFS funds only fruit purchase and distribution. Within promotional programmes, SFS linked projects could be prioritized. xiv. Redistribution of funds is possible for those funds which are not being claimed. This will take place once per year before the start of the actual SFS and will only comprise full national envelopes. If a MS which presented a national strategy is not using the full envelope available, the funds will be lost both for the SFS and other MS. The budget available for a MS can be allocated on one or more regional SFS. b. Presentation by R. Pedersen - Case study Denmark (PPP provided ): i. The presentation focuses on who is eligible for the programme of fruit distribution in Denmark and on the benefit of setting up control measures to secure that funds are used in line with the objective of the scheme. The control measures are also in place to secure that fruit and vegetables are indeed consumed and that adequate reporting of performance is undertaken and that the system is keep simple and the objective of the scheme is achieved. ii. Discussion: In regard to financing, it is clarified that in Denmark the programme was a two month free programme before launching a system on a subscription

8 basis. After introducing such a compulsory financing over 60% of the children remained in the scheme. c. Presentation of Mr. Moens - Case Study Belgium- Flanders i. 'Tutti Frutti'-programme. Projects need to be attractive for the target group, namely children based on a methodology to entice children to eat fruit and veg on a regular basis. Logistics is another key to success in order to ensure that the right products reach the school at the right time. The distribution in Belgium is a mix between national and local partners to diversify the offer of fruit (quality, variety, services...). The distribution is organized by national and local partners. Educative materials are also an important element of the success of the scheme (educational materials, posters, folders contest ) Schools are provided with materials and messages also via the website Programme should be all inclusive in term of partners and organization involved (education, agriculture, health) and inter-sectorial. In regard to financing, budget could come from public and private partners. In Belgium, the private sector contributes to the programme. Evaluation is also an essential part of the scheme implemented in Flanders. ii. Discussion: What are the implications of private financing in term of marketing feedback? In Belgium, fruit could bear a logo as displayed in shop. This partnership allows free distribution. In Belgium, it started with one fruit per week. Such a frequency was good as it also stimulated the parents to buy fruit for the children for the other days of the week. In Belgium, fruit is distributed as snack, not as part of the main meal. So to also involve the teacher in the activity. Which relationship could be made between a SFS and sustainable production and consumption? It would indeed be good to link the programme with other policy to make synergies. d. Presentation of Mr. Maloney - Case study Ireland: i. Accompanying measures should contribute to influence the consumption in a sustainable manner. The example of the Food Dudes in Ireland clearly demonstrates the benefit of accompanying measures when comparing the experimental school with the control school. Accompanying measures need to be effective. Food Dudes works on basis of awards and role models. Interactive website could also be important. Accompanying measures need to be rational and piloted. An expert panel should be considered at EU level. ii. Fruit and veg must be additional in the diet or a substitution to other snacks. The objective is indeed to replace unhealthy snack. The implementation of this approach will be left to MS. Vending machines could either be removed from schools (case of France) or obliged to only serve healthy food. iii. Commission confirms that there will be Commission accompanying measures on EU level. Consequently a webpage will be in operation before the end of the year as well as other networking activities (major conference) will be coordinated by the Commission.

9 e. Presentation of Mr. Teeman - Case study UK on evaluation : i. Evaluation was made at different moments (2004/2006/2008). Action leads to increase awareness, improved consumption and popularity of the programme with both children and teachers and move towards greater compliance with the objective of '5 a day'. The scheme develops a methodology how to evaluate free fruit and look at several aspects such as who to target with a free SFS, how SFS relates to other initiatives, importance of school servings but also role of family, quality of fruit... f. Conclusions: 1. Need to remain consistent with the objective 2. Need to supply quality products 3. Commission to prepare a document of what should be in the reporting and evaluation (guidelines) 4. Commission also plans to provide information on accompanying measures highlighting best practices. *****************