During the Plenary session in Strasbourg today, MEPs decided to support Emma Wiesner’s (Renew, SE) report on the EU protein plan building on the existing strengths of EU agriculture while avoiding falling into simplistic oppositions. Copa and Cogeca support the proposals pushed forward in this report and call on the Commission to take them on board.
While stressing the need to decrease the EU’s dependency on imports of plant-proteins from a very limited number of countries, the European Parliament recognised that this transition cannot be instantaneous and should be based on an open autonomy rather than a strict independence. A realistic vision shared by Copa and Cogeca.
Simplistic oppositions between crops/livestock and food/energy were clearly the pitfalls of this debate. Copa and Cogeca were pleased to see that MEPs did not let themselves be framed by these sterile polarisations. Emma Wiesner’s report proposes to increase the EU protein production building on all agricultural sectors and their specific strengths, focusing on increasing synergies and circularity.
The report rightly stresses how the production of bioenergy is a factor contributing not only to sustainability and EU energy independence, but also allowing to increase the EU protein production by providing the necessary financial incentive to produce protein-rich crops. Similarly, the text underlines the circularity that exists between livestock and crops production, insisting on the need to further develop those synergies. They also underlined that increasing the production of protein-rich plants, and in particular pulses, will only be possible if farmers are guaranteed long-term perspectives, which necessitates close links with processors and retailers. Meanwhile for the first time, MEPs expressed serious doubts for solutions looking to exclude livestock such as lab-grown food, underlining the ethical, social, environmental, and economic challenges it might represent.
MEPs also made clear legislative demands such as a revision of the feed additives Regulation, the authorisation for the use of New Breeding Techniques, the necessary legislative adaptations to optimise the use of RENURE/digestates and the need to invest in research for plant protein crops.
Copa and Cogeca fully support the Parliament’s proposals and hope that the Commission will take them into account in its 2024 protein strategy that should be a real game-changing strategy for the EU rather than an additional report without concrete policy perspectives.
Fonte: Copa Cogeca
