This summer time marked the beginning of a brand new political period within the EU, with the European elections in June and the reappointment of Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Fee in July. Along with exploring among the new Fee’s coverage ambitions impacting the sector this text additionally evaluates their realism by contemplating the outcomes of the earlier Fee cycle and the brand new political panorama in Brussels following the EU elections’ outcome. Right here’s every part the trade ought to count on on the Fee’s shift of their coverage ambitions.
The Fee’s Political Tips: a shift in deal with sustainability
On 18 July, von der Leyen was re-elected President of the European Fee. In her inaugural handle to the European Parliament, she outlined her plans for the subsequent 5 years – as acknowledged within the Fee’s Political Tips 2024-2029 – together with her reworked proposals on sustainability. In contrast to the earlier cycle, von der Leyen’s sustainability narrative centered on selling enterprise and competitors.
As an illustration, von der Leyen has dedicated to introducing the Clear Industrial Plan within the first 100 days of the Fee’s mandate as a part of the EU’s efforts to decarbonise and industrialise its economic system concurrently. Based on von der Leyen, the Fee’s full focus shall be on supporting and creating the best situations for corporations to succeed in their sustainability targets, set out within the earlier coverage cycle. By means of funding, in uncooked supplies, and guaranteeing entry to low-cost, sustainable, and safe power provides, the Fee hopes these measures will help companies to attain the sustainability targets it beforehand set out. This may work alongside von der Leyen’s proposed Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act to additional help industries and companies sustainably transition in direction of a extra environmentally clear format.
These insurance policies will play a serious function for sports activities and diet companies as they attempt to incorporate earlier sustainability insurance policies, reviews, and rules into their enterprise framework. The above insurance policies intend to make inexperienced power and uncooked supplies for merchandise cheaper, extra accessible and produced within the EU, thereby serving to corporations carry down their carbon footprint with low elevated prices, alongside selling inner EU markets and boosting the competitiveness of the EU’s complete meals worth chain and SMEs within the sector.
How will the brand new European Parliament influence von Der Leyen’s plans?
Whereas the brand new Fee has introduced bold plans for enterprise and aggressive coverage, the query stays how this shall be formed when it’s lastly carried out. It’s value noting that the earlier Fee’s mandate both delayed or failed to totally implement targets set in key coverage initiatives affecting the meals trade, such because the Farm to Fork Technique, together with the Sustainable Meals Techniques Framework, which appears to have been put indefinitely on maintain.
Arguably, the earlier Fee’s failure to carry the European Parliament on board with its coverage ambitions – discovering as soon as the coverage had been printed, many conflicts within the Parliament to compromise and resolve points – is a trigger for these ambitions failing. As an illustration, the tried introduction of obligatory front-of-pack diet labelling (FOPNL) and nutrient profiles – one other two measures from the Farm to Fork Technique impacting the sports activities and energetic diet trade – had been postponed resulting from cultural variations throughout the EU 27 member states on what constitutes a nutritious diet.
On this context, our expectations from the Political Tips 2024-2029 supporting EU meals provide chains and growing low-cost, accessible, and sustainable power ought to be toned down if we take into account the previous Fee actions together with the current parliamentary election outcomes.
The European Parliament elections in June noticed the moderate-right because the clear winner, whereas the left and Greens misplaced floor to the pro-nationalist proper teams. With an total extra Eurosceptic and populist Parliament, meals and sustainability harmonisation will probably be inhibited or curtailed over the subsequent 5 years by this political shift. Regardless of its bold plans, ultimately, the Fee might need to introduce extra diluted proposals to make sure consensus and appease the rising nationwide populism. This may invariably make it tougher and extra expensive to attain the sustainability goals beforehand set out and will hinder the ambition to enhance and promote EU meals provide chains.
Trying forward, November and December shall be essential for companies and trade stakeholders, because the European Fee’s Work Programme is about to be launched throughout this era. This publication will present essential insights into the Fee’s legislative agenda, providing detailed steerage on upcoming insurance policies that may influence the sports activities diet trade together with insurance policies on meals, sustainability, competitiveness, and agriculture.
In any case, now’s one of the best time for sports activities and energetic diet companies to construct relationships with the decision-makers who took workplace and ensure they’ve a say on coverage and regulatory initiatives affecting them.
In September, along side members, ESSNA will launch an outreach programme, outlining the priorities for the sports activities and energetic diet trade for the EU’s time period 2024 – 2029. Sports activities meals corporations excited by discovering out extra and shaping the way forward for the sector can get in contact with ESSNA at vasb@rffan.pbz
