IFOAM EU: Organic regulation review – risk of a bad deal

Yesterday’s meeting of the Council of Agriculture Ministers did not change the opinion of the organic sector on the current draft text for a new organic regulation. As no new content has been presented, IFOAM EU and others still question the real added value and the technical soundness of the proposal.

"After five years of negotiating, organic operators and EU citizens deserve a regulation that is readable, consistent and easy to implement on the ground. Postponing the discussion on controversial topics might be a way to reach a political agreement – but at what cost", ask representatives of IFOAM EU Group, EOCC and FTAO (see here) 

Better improve the current legislation

Many of the items presented as improvements to the existing legislation – including group certification, protein feed, compliance in import and others – could be easily applied to the current legislation through implementing regulations. There are new meetings and discussions with a new proposal paper of Malta planed on June 21 and 28 as well as a final trilogue at the end of the month.

"If, by the end of June, the text is not substantially improved and doesn’t provide the expected added value, the Organic Movement, Organic Certifiers and the Fair Trade Movement ask the Member States, the European Parliament and the European Commission to work on developing the current legislation", explains a IFOAM EU statement. "The current legislation can be made fit to support the development of the organic sector and help organic operators in their hard work in delivering high quality food and public benefits for society. IFOAM EU, EOCC and FTAO remain constructive and will send suggestions on how to improve the legislation, to ensure it creates the right conditions for the development of organic farming across the EU, in line with its principles."

To get an impression how long the review of the organic regulation is already discussed you can view a video of a discussion of important EU representatives at the 10th IFOAM Organic Congress last year in the Netherlands.