15 Dec

Agriculture ministers adopted council conclusions on the contingency plan for food supply and food security. The conclusions acknowledged the overall resilience of the EU food supply chain, identified existing shortcomings, and put forward actions to improve preparedness at EU level.

The legislative proposal on reducing the risk of deforestation and forest degradation were broadly welcomed by the ministers, who highlighted the importance of deforestation-free supply chains.

Tackling unfair trading practices in the food supply chain was considered as a key initiative to increase market transparency and strengthen the position of primary producers and farmers in the supply chain.

As regards the ongoing critical situation in the pig meat sector, the vast majority of Member States – including Hungary –urged the Commission again to propose exceptional market measures to handle the situation. The Commission still did not consider the call necessary.

As regards the submission of the CAP strategic plans, Zsolt Feldman, State Secretary for Agriculture and Rural Development, emphasized that the secondary legislation cannot go beyond the basic acts and only legally binding requirements can be demanded from Member States. Mr Feldman highlighted that the timely adoption and entry into force of the related secondary legislations are essential for the submission of the national plans by 1st January 2022.

Hungary presented the joint declaration, which was signed on the occasion of the five-year anniversary of the BIOEAST Initiative.