BRUSSELS - More land for organic farming, binding reduction targets for pesticide use, but also new genomic techniques and a fair income for farmers who produce food sustainably.
These are some of the elements of the position of the European Parliament on the strategy from the producer to the consumer, also known as "Farm to Fork".
The text was formally approved by the Joint Environment and Agriculture Parliamentary Committees with 94 votes in favor, 20 against and 10 abstentions.
The approved text tackles food issues at 360 degrees, as proposed by the European Commission with the presentation of the "Farm to Fork" Strategy in May 2020. MEPs open to the obligation of an EU front-pack nutrition label, which is battleground between Nutrinform and Nutriscore, but do not indicate models, calling on the Commission to build the label on the basis of scientific evidence.
Among the many other indications of the text there is also support for the extension of the indication of origin on the label and the invitation to EU member countries to cancel VAT for fruit and vegetables. According to MEPs, common and scientifically based indicators on animal welfare are needed to ensure greater harmonization in the EU, with limits on imports of animal products from countries not aligned with European standards. In the text there is also a request to modify the rules on public procurement to encourage sustainable food production and the consumption of traditional and typical foods with geographical indications.
