The European Commission today (25 March) unveiled plans to improve organic food production and the labelling of organic products. But there are concerns that the proposal does not go far enough to boost a sector that has quadrupled in size in the past ten years.
"The future of the organic sector in the EU depends on the quality and integrity of the products sold under the European organic logo," said Dacian Cioloş, the European commissioner for agriculture. "The Commission is looking for more and better organic farming in the EU by consolidating consumer confidence in organic products and removing obstacles to the development of organic agriculture."
The proposal includes an action plan with goals such as better information for organic farmers on EU initiatives, strengthening links between EU research and organic farming, and encouraging the use of organic foods in schools.
Farmers and environmental campaigners expressed concern that the regulation does not go far enough. "The new rules must let production continue to develop, whilst supporting the growth of the organic market, using the right tools," said Pekka Pesonen, secretary-general of farmers' organisation Copa-Cogeca. "In particular, the rules must not discourage new farmers from converting into organic farming nor existing organic farmers to continue production".
"For example, in many regions, farms often convert into organic farming in a series of stages, for various reasons, like economic or structural reasons," he added. "Without the ability to adapt gradually to organic production, it will put the brakes on the development of the sector."
The legislation will need the approval of EU member states and the European Parliament. Martin Häusling, a German Green MEP, said that the integrity of organic labelling needs better protection than that outlined in the proposal.
"Organic agriculture is and should continue to be the flagship of best practice in farming," he said. "To guarantee this, consumers need to be confident that, when they buy an EU organic-labelled product, farmers have not used damaging pesticides and that the product is free from contamination. EU rules need to guarantee this, whilst not suffocating smaller, local producers who are the essence of the organic system.
"It is not fair that organic farmers who have been contaminated bear the costs of loss of earnings and also of repeated testing for pesticides in their products," he added. "So it is important that the provisions on pesticide contamination strike the right balance."
In 2012, the Commission conducted a consultation that included a series of hearings with experts on organic production. A public consultation on the subject carried out in 2013 saw a high level of consumer interest, with most of the 45,000 replies coming from consumers rather than producers.
Brown Mang
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