Europe's Agri-Food Businesses Call for EU Policy Shift Towards Innovation

A large coalition representing Europe's agricultural and food business sectors is calling for better and smarter policy‐making that fosters innovation and creates jobs, ensuring that the EU agri‐food chain becomes more productive and resource‐efficient. The group of 11 EU‐level associations presented a joint statement, "Vision for unlocking the potential of agriculture and food industries in the EU" during the meeting of EU Ministers for Agriculture in Athens on 6 May 2014.

The coalition includes suppliers of machinery, seed, fertilizers, crop protection, animal health, feed and biotechnology‐based products, EU farmers and the European food and drink sector. The ‘Joint Vision', underlines the importance of providing a secure and safe supply of food not only for EU citizens, but also beyond Europe's borders, and to do so in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner. The group is united in its call for a more streamlined EU policy agenda that places the promotion of innovation at its very core in order to sustain a safe, high‐quality and affordable food production and consequent choice for consumers.

For more, read the Joint Vision available at http://www.euroseeds.org/news-room/news-archive/2014/esa_14.0566. The full press release can be read at http://www.euroseeds.org/news-room/news-archive.