Agrifood Brief: Warning – Will kill weeds and coalitions

After EU member states failed to reach a majority for or against the re-authorisation of the controversial weedkiller glyphosate, the Commission is now planning to unilaterally authorise it for 10 years. And while there’s still debate over environmental and health impacts, the herbicide has certainly proven itself a toxic topic for yet another German government.

In the Commission’s appeal committee on Thursday (16 November), EU member states’ representatives re-voted on the EU executive’s proposal to allow glyphosate on the European market beyond the expiry of the current authorisation in December.

Just as in the first round of voting in October, there was neither a so-called qualified majority in favour of re-authorisation nor against it, leaving the final decision up to the Commission –  which immediately declared its intention to proceed with the approval.

“The Commission – based on comprehensive safety assessments carried out by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), together with EU Member States – will now proceed with the renewal of the approval of glyphosate for a period of 10 years,” the EU executive said in a statement.

Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the EU. While the two EU authorities EFSA and ECHA did not find any “critical” concerns about the authorisation of the active ingredient in their reports, critics warn of risks to nature and health, and point to data gaps in EFSA’s assessment.

The passionate division between defenders and opponents of glyphosate also runs right through the German government: Even though Green agriculture minister Cem Özdemir sharply criticised the re-approval, his ministry was forced to abstain on the vote due to the opposition of his liberal coalition partner, the FDP.

In a statement, Özdemir admitted that he would have liked to vote “no,” and called the Commission’s decision to go ahead with the re-approval “eye-rubbing”.

On the opposing side, FDP MP Carina Konrad welcomed the Commission’s push and told Euractiv that glyphosate is important as “part of the building blocks of sustainable agriculture”, as long as “there is no better alternative on the market”.

It is not the first time that glyphosate has harmful side effects for a German coalition.

Back in 2017, conservative then-agriculture minister Christian Schmidt committed a major affront against his coalition partners at the time, the Social Democrats (SPD), when he voted for the re-approval of glyphosate despite the SPD being against it.

This was a blatant breach of the government’s rules of procedure, which state that Berlin will abstain on EU decisions in case of disagreement in the coalition.

While it did not come that far this time round, and Özdemir played by the rules, the coalition’s failure to find an agreement comes at a cost.

First, it is only the latest in a series of issues on the EU level on which Germany is paralysed by internal discord (think, for instance, of new genomic techniques) – not a good look for the bloc’s most populous member state.

And secondly, the extension of the authorisation also raises questions about the legal situation within Germany.

In the coalition agreement, the coalition parties had agreed to take glyphosate “off the market” from the end of 2023. However, the legal scope for a national ban is very limited as long as the active ingredient is authorised at the EU level.

According to Özdemir, the ministry will now examine what options remain at the national level – but even if he finds a way, managing to ’round-up’ the dispersed voices within the coalition will not be an easy task.

By Julia Dahm

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News of the week

A SURprise in store? All eyes are on the European Parliament next week as it gears up for a definitive plenary vote on the EU’s plan to slash the use and risk of pesticides in half by 2030 – but tensions are high in the run-up to crunch time. 

Lawmakers from the Parliament’s environment and agriculture committees – who share competence on some areas of the file – are clashing over the inclusion of amendments, with AGRI pushing to table theirs directly at plenary. In the event that the committee responsible “fails to respect” the exclusive competence of the associated committee, that associated committee may table amendments directly in plenary. 

Meanwhile, the groups are also getting in on the amendment action, with Renew, EPP and Socialists all busy adding their flavours to the proposal – with one source saying that the Spanish Presidency is also playing a key role behind the scenes pushing the Parliament’s proposal towards the Council’s via Spanish MEP Clara Aguilera. 

The key amendments to watch are: the timeline of the proposal (2030 or 2035); the use of pesticides in sensitive areas; and the length permitted for derogations (which may change from 60 days to 120 days). 

There’s also a risk that there are too many amendments – meaning there’s a slim chance that the proposal could be sent back to the committee stage for a reshape. According to the Parliament’s agriculture press officer, the threshold for this is 50 amendments – but the number has already surpassed 200, with space for more as the deadline for split amendments is Monday.  While the source thought the move unlikely, they warned it is “possible”. 

Meanwhile, on the Council side, the Spanish Presidency put a new proposal on the table at a working group meeting at the end of last week in hopes of finding some common ground.

The draft text, seen by Euractiv, weakens the proposed limitation on the use of pesticides in sensitive areas, and also proposes to scrap a reference to national targets following calls from some member states earlier this month. 

But the attempt was unsuccessful, according to sources inside the closed meeting, who told Euractiv that the new text “did not bring member states closer together”. The Spanish Presidency has previously said it hopes to negotiate a general approach in December, and told Euractiv it would continue work on the file for the moment. 

New food chief on the cards? The European Commission’s secretary-general is currently modelling options for potential changes to college makeup for the next mandate, according to sources, who added that they would be “surprised” if agriculture was not considered as part of this remodelling.

The news comes on the back of calls from agrifood stakeholders for the creation of an Executive Vice-President of Food – an idea that is backed by industry players and civil society alike. 

What to expect from the AGRIFISH. EU agriculture ministers will meet in Brussels on Monday (20 November). Key meeting points include; fishing opportunities in the Atlantic and the North Sea for 2024; the approval of conclusions on a long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas; and an update on the state of play of ongoing work on the proposal on new genomic techniques. 

There will also be discussions on the EU forest strategy for 2030 and the role of farmers in the sustainability of rural areas, while the French are pushing for a derogation on the GAEC 8 environmental measure in the CAP for 2024 (see our ‘CAP corner’ section below for more details). 

Council adopts position on digital labelling in the fertilisers sector. The Council today adopted its position on the proposed regulation on digital labelling of EU fertilising products. This proposal aims to improve the readability of labels, leading to a more efficient use of fertilising products, and to simplify the labelling obligations for suppliers while reducing costs for the industry. This provides the Council presidency with a mandate for negotiations with the European Parliament, which will start as soon as the Parliament adopts its position.

Fishy business. The EU’s seven-year, billion-euro investment in fish farming has failed to deliver “tangible results” in the aquaculture sector, according to the European Court of Auditors (ECA). Aquaculture, also known as fish farming, occurs in marine or inland waters and in land-based facilities equipped with water circulation systems. 

CAP corner

The agricultural reserve, a drop in an ocean? Agri MEPs across the political spectrum complained about the size of the Common Agricultural Policy’s agricultural reserve in a meeting on Thursday. In place since 2013, this tool accounts for €450 million and it is meant to support farmers in exceptional times. Renew MEP Martin Hlaváček warned the potential of subsidies and crisis tools “is decreasing in relative terms”, noting there is a “reasonable prospect that we will [face] higher risks and higher needs for mitigation“.

Meanwhile, centre-right MEP Herbert Dorfmann raised concerns about the distribution criteria. “[The agricultural reserve] is not a war chest for the Commission to make its citizens happy back at home because of an upcoming election, and that is what has happened recently,” he said. 

In response, DG AGRI’s Wolfgang Burtscher said the Commission will soon present a “climate risk assessment report” to address the consequences of floods and droughts and their impact on food security and farmers’ wellbeing. 

Environmental exemptions. In other CAP-related news, the French delegation – backed by Bulgarian, Croatian, Cyprus, Estonian, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Portuguese, Slovak and Slovenian delegations – will put forward another request in next week’s meeting of EU agriculture ministers for an exemption on CAP environmental measures which requires farmers to devote a proportion of their arable land to nonproductive areas and features. 

This is not the first time that ministers have sought a derogation on this into 2024. The European Commission has previously granted this request in light of food security concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but has been reluctant to extend the derogation into 2024 – especially considering it does not yet have a clear idea about the impact of previous derogations on food security. 

Agrifood news from the CAPitals

GERMANY

New strategy to boost organic farming share. With a new “Organic Strategy 2030” tabled on Thursday, German agriculture minister Cem Özdemir wants to work towards the goal of having 30% of arable land farmed organically by 2030. The strategy lists 30 measures to boost organic food, including support for farmers but also steps to encourage more organic consumption in communal catering and educate consumers. “We have a common goal, now we have a roadmap to make the goal a reality,” Özdemir said. German organics association BÖLW welcomed the strategy, but added the government must now put more resources towards boosting organic food.

FRANCE

Camembert box producers fear impact of packaging waste rules. The revision of the EU’s directive on packaging and packaging waste could lead to a ban on wooden Camembert boxes and thus threaten a flagship French food product, according to producers of this specific type of box. EURACTIV France has more.

SPAIN

Sánchez makes promises on agriculture during his investiture vote. The socialist leader said a “substantial part” of EU funds would be used to “modernise” the sector and boost “ecological and regenerative agriculture”. Following this year’s series of heatwaves and price increases, Sánchez promised measures to combat drought and an extension of the VAT reduction on basic foodstuffs. He also pledged to put forward a law on “family farming” and a food strategy “that promotes rural employment and improves dietary patterns”. 

LUXEMBOURG

New minister makes Brussels debut. After Luxembourg’s new government took office on Friday morning, the country’s new agriculture minister, Martine Hansen, is expected to make her debut at the meeting of agriculture minister in Brussels on Monday. The conservative politician succeeds Social Democrat Claude Haagen and will be one of the few female agriculture ministers in the EU.

AUSTRIA

Austria’s food supply secure, finds report. Food supply in Austria with a complete range of products is currently secured, according to the latest issue of the country’s food security report tabled by agriculture minister Norbert Totschnig on Friday. At the same time, food inflation in the country also eased. However, Totschnig warned against becoming complacent. “Recent natural disasters, pandemics and wars have shown us just how vulnerable global food supply chains are,” he said in a statement.

[Edited by Nathalie Weatherald]

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