Welcome to the 2^nd edition of the CIAA Newsletter in 2009!

As we approach mid-year and the incoming Swedish Presidency, CIAA is focusing on many important dossiers ranging from input into the work of the High Level Group on the Competitiveness of the EU Agri-Food industry, developments within the framework of the Food Information Package and the recent launch of the Food Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) Round Table, to name but a few.

Regarding the High Level Group (HLG) on the Competitiveness of the EU Agri-Food Industry, CIAA warmly welcomes the news that the accompanying draft Roadmap, complete with actions and timelines, to accomplish the set of 30 agreed HLG Recommendations, is scheduled for adoption by the Group on 6 July.  EU food and drink manufacturers have strongly supported the idea from the outset of an action plan aligned with the HLG Recommendations and believes that the timely adoption of this document is imperative if all stakeholders are to now proceed to the challenging phase of implementing these actions. 

Our recent launch of the European Food Chain Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) Round Table earlier last month was a great success.  Leading representatives from the European food chain together with the European Commission have joined hands to work to improve the environmental sustainability of the food chain in Europe. 

The CIAA is one of the leading stakeholders participating in the Round Table and is strongly committed to work together with all participants in this ambitious initiative to establish scientifically reliable, uniform assessment methodologies for measuring environmental sustainability, to define the best possible means of communicating this information to consumers and to ensure continuous environmental improvement along the food chain. 

The recent bilateral agreement reached between the EU and US on the beef hormone dispute is worth a special mention.  Following a decade of US government imposed retaliatory measures on EU food products and recent plans to introduce a rotating list of products subject to retaliation, the economic impact on EU food producers looked set to get even worse.  Given the size and importance of the US market for EU food and drink exports (valued at over €10 billion to per annum), CIAA and its members appreciate the efforts of the European Commission and EU decision-makers to find a workable solution for our sector.

Lastly, we have seen some encouraging developments in the context of the Food Information to Consumers proposal.  Industry welcomes the EFSA Opinion of 16 March 2009 on the ‘Review of labelling reference intake values’ as it endorses the science underpinning the EU food and drink industry’s voluntary labelling scheme, Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs), most notably with regard to the 2000kcal energy intake and values for total sugars (90g) and fat (70g). 

Before concluding, let me take this opportunity to extend my thanks to outgoing MEPs from the European Parliament and in particular to those who have been active on numerous issues impacting on the food and drink industry over the past 5 years. For the incoming and returning MEPs who have been elected in the European elections last weekend, let me extend my congratulations to you all on behalf of the CIAA and add that we very much look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead on many important dossiers for our sector.

Finally, I would like to wish you all a very enjoyable and relaxing summer break!

Bonne lecture!

Mella Frewen
Director General