All posts tagged: Food Security

Phil Hogan emerges as front-runner in EU race for world’s biggest food agency – POLITICO

Phil Hogan emerges as front-runner in EU race for world’s biggest food agency – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Hogan, Planas and Martina did not respond to requests for comment. The danger of dithering The EU’s agriculture ministers tried to settle which of the three should represent the bloc, but couldn’t agree. For six months, Cyprus, which has chaired the meetings, pressed them to coalesce around one name, but Cypriot Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou told POLITICO that no decision had been made on how to move it forward. The choice will now be made by EU leaders, possibly folded into a broader deal over other top international posts. That pushes any decision to a European Council summit, with the FAO race playing only a small part in the late-night horse-trading. The risk is that the deadlock holds and the EU enters the 2027 vote divided. “The most important thing is to pick one from these candidates,” Polish Agriculture Minister Stefan Krajewski told POLITICO. “Because otherwise, we may lose, and a candidate from outside the EU could win.” Three African contenders are already in the field, including Morocco’s Ismahane Elouafi, the FAO’s former chief scientist, …

Seng Choon egg farm to move after land-use changes announced for Lim Chu Kang; four other farms affected

Seng Choon egg farm to move after land-use changes announced for Lim Chu Kang; four other farms affected

Published by Sam Flores

Bollywood Farms is operating on a site that was originally awarded through a public tender for a 20-year lease that expired in 2021. Following the lease expiry and at Bollywood Farms’ request, the government granted it short-term tenancy extensions on a “goodwill basis to facilitate its transition”. The first extension granted was from Apr 15, 2021, to Dec 31, 2023, and a second extension granted was from Jan 1, 2024, to Dec 31, 2026.  “Such requests for extension are considered carefully on a case-by-case basis, taking into account factors such as land use plans, operational considerations, and the lessee’s transition plans. In this case, the extensions granted were intended to facilitate the farm’s transition,” said SFA. “Bollywood Farm has since requested … a further tenancy extension and we are considering the request carefully.” Affected farms may continue to remain onsite until their tenures expire, after which the land will be returned to the government for consolidation. There will be no early termination of leases, said the authorities. Farms that wish to continue operations can participate …

10 EU countries want open season on fish-eating bird – POLITICO

10 EU countries want open season on fish-eating bird – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The demand comes in a joint letter to Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall and Fisheries Commissioner Costas Kadis, seen exclusively by POLITICO. Sixteen agriculture and environment ministers from Estonia, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Croatia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Romania want the cormorant added to the list of huntable species under the EU’s flagship nature law, the 1979 Birds Directive. They are also pressing Brussels to set coordinated population targets across the bloc and to make it easier to shoot the bird outside hunting season. Estonian Agriculture Minister Hendrik Johannes Terras, who helped coordinate the letter, argued that the EU should be as willing to control cormorants as it is to control other predators. The bloc has loosened protections on wolves in recent years, and several countries cull invasive mink and raccoon dogs to protect ground-nesting birds. “If we are prepared to limit the number of smaller predators to protect bird species, then why shouldn’t we reduce predation pressure to protect fish?” he told POLITICO. “Nature should be viewed as a whole.” In the May …

EU looks to cow manure to keep food prices down

EU looks to cow manure to keep food prices down

Published by Sam Flores

Brussels’ answer to a looming fertilizer crisis is to make more use of cow dung. Grocery price spikes are on the horizon amid the unending war in Iran and the rising cost of fertilizer. Yet the European Commission’s plan to shore up Europe’s supply, due out Tuesday, centers around a long-term regulatory push to recycle more manure and farm waste into fertilizer.  It’s not the quick fix some were hoping for. Farmers “expected bold action,” said MEP Veronika Vrecionová, who helms the European Parliament’s agriculture committee. “Roadmaps don’t pay the bills. Farmers need action, not intentions.” Farm lobbies are pushing the same line. “European farmers cannot wait for another long-term roadmap while production costs continue to rise and European fertilizer capacity keeps disappearing,” said José María Castilla of ASAJA, Spain’s largest farmers’ organization. “The current crisis is not only about prices, it is about strategic autonomy, food security and the survival of European agriculture.” Europe makes most of its own fertilizer from imported gas. When the Strait of Hormuz closed at the end of February, gas prices …

Poland to challenge EU-Mercosur deal at top court — but don’t expect fireworks

Poland to challenge EU-Mercosur deal at top court — but don’t expect fireworks

Published by Sam Flores

Poland announced Friday it will file a legal challenge against the EU-Mercosur trade deal at the EU’s top court, in a largely symbolic gesture.  The reversal comes just weeks before the May 26 deadline for annulment actions under EU law, and barely a month after Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the government had no such plans. The move follows weeks of domestic pressure. The Polish parliament passed a resolution in mid-March urging the government to act, and President Karol Nawrocki, aligned with the opposition, sent Tusk a letter in early April demanding he file immediately. His spokesperson wasted no time claiming credit on X. It also follows an earlier — more effective — move from the European Parliament to refer the deal to the Court of Justice. Backed by MEPs in January, the case could delay the ratification of the full agreement for up to two years. In a bid to reap the deal’s benefit sooner, the European Commission will start applying its trade provisions from May 1.  Poland’s parallel filing adds political noise, not …

Don’t count on Starmer’s EU reset to bring down food prices – POLITICO

Don’t count on Starmer’s EU reset to bring down food prices – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

By pursuing an agreement, the government appears ready to adopt “unnecessarily stringent” EU SPS controls on imports from non-EU countries, said Jenney. This risks triggering “thousands of additional and unnecessary border delays, considerably more inspections, more paperwork and port congestion — every added layer acting as a compounding financial penalty on trade,” he warned.  Analysis conducted by the Fresh Produce Consortium — seen by POLITICO — suggests that a number of staples from the weekly shop could be negatively impacted as border checks for non-EU produce are ramped up — from Moroccan cucumbers and Indian mangoes to South African citrus fruits and U.S. sweet potatoes. This is expected to add a cost of around £400 million to the supply chain, the consortium estimates.  U.K. Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds leaves No. 10 Downing Street after a Cabinet meeting on March 24, 2026. | Leon Neal/Getty Images Beyond imports, firms have warned that the SPS deal risks imposing costly burdens on domestic growers, who are forced to impose EU standards even if they have no plan to …

Integrating consumer perspectives into organic farming

Integrating consumer perspectives into organic farming

Published by skeptic

Mariano Votta and Bianca Ferraiolo of Cittadinanzattiva – Active Citizenship Network explore how an EU workshop in Rome explores how consumer insights can shape the future of organic farming. On 29 and 30 April, Cittadinanzattiva – Active Citizenship Network (ACN) will host in Rome, Italy, an EU workshop titled “Responding to consumers’ needs in organic farming: a qualitative assessment“. Policy context and targets Organised within the framework of the Organic Farming Innovations Network Europe (OH-FINE) project, the event will bring together consortium members, independent experts, representatives of national civil and consumer associations from several European countries, as well as leaders of the EU umbrella consumer association European Consumer Union (ECU), to discuss the practical integration of end-user needs into the organic supply chain. The European Union’s Green Deal and “Farm to Fork” strategy have set an ambitious target: 25% of EU agricultural land under organic farming by 2030. To reach this, the current growth rate must double. However, the transition is not merely a technical hurdle for farmers; it is a social and economic evolution …

Experts call for new legislation as food insecurity rises in the UK

Experts call for new legislation as food insecurity rises in the UK

Published by skeptic

The Food Foundation has published new data which shows that food insecurity has increased in the UK since 2022. Food insecurity levels have remained stubbornly high throughout, though they had been slowly decreasing. New data gathered in January, however, shows that food insecurity rates are creeping up once again. With fears growing about what a drawn-out war in Iran could mean for food prices, driven by rising oil prices and limited fertiliser supply, it is more important than ever that the government take action to ensure food security in the UK. Anna Taylor, Executive Director of The Food Foundation, explained: “From energy markets in the Middle East to global fertiliser and shipping routes, our food supply is now tightly bound to geopolitical events we cannot control. “The cost-of-living crisis has already exposed how fragile this system is. Families felt it at the checkout, farmers felt it on their balance sheets, and food banks felt it in record demand.” What factors are causing food insecurity in the UK? Healthier foods remain inaccessible for poorer households Previous …

Spanish agriculture minister enters race to lead UN food agency – POLITICO

Spanish agriculture minister enters race to lead UN food agency – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Spain on Monday put forward Agriculture Minister Luis Planas as a candidate for the top job at the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced the decision during his doorstep at the Foreign Council Affairs in Brussels. “It is a Spanish candidacy, but one that has a European vocation and also reflects Spain’s belief in multilateralism and the United Nations, at a time when food security is absolutely fundamental,” Albares said. Source link