Welcome to this edition of CIAA’s e-newsletter. With 2008 well on its way, CIAA is already focusing on numerous dossiers that are of key importance to Europe’s food and drink industry, these include the EU White Paper on Nutrition, the Food Information Package, the Health Check of the CAP, as well as Nutrient Profiling.

Among the many issues that CIAA is currently dealing with, is the EU Bio-fuels Policy. CIAA strongly believes that it is important to ensure that food production remains the primary outlet for EU farming activity. We feel that the revised directive does not address core concerns about the potential impact the policy will have on the availability of raw materials for food and feed production. CIAA has carried out an impact assessment of the bio-fuel development on availability of key agricultural products that has not led to the same level of comfort as the DG Agriculture study. The likely scenarios on EU production of feedstock for food and non-food markets, and on the possibility of substituting a potential lack of EU second generation bio-fuels are a matter of public debate and may explain the increased focus on questions such as food security, social impact and sustainability in this context. In view of the discussions that continue at EU Council level and within the European Parliament, this will remain a key issue for CIAA and we will continue our proactive outreach to key EU officials and stakeholders.

Satisfying the ever-increasing demand for food and doing this in a sustainable manner is another key challenge for our industry. This is why this year’s CIAA Congress, which will be held in Autoworld Brussels from 27 – 28 November, is entitled ‘The Food & Drink Industry in the 21st century – Generating Growth, Serving Consumers and Respecting the Environment’. I am delighted to announce the launch of the 2008 CIAA Congress website, where you will find additional information and a preliminary programme. We are expecting around 500 delegates from industry, public institutions, consumer organisations, science and press, from Europe and beyond to attend this event. I encourage you to keep an eye on the congress website for additional updates.

In addition to the 2007 Data & Trends reports, CIAA has published the Memorandum to the Slovenian Presidency. During a recent visit with our Slovenian National Federation, we took the opportunity to highlight some of our key dossiers outlined in the Memorandum with Mr Istok Jarc, Minister of Agriculture, Food & Forestry.

Bonne lecture !
Mella Frewen
CIAA Director General