European Dairy Association is a convinced pro-Europe voice in Brussels and across the Union, which is the basis for success of the European lactosphère : a smooth functioning of the single market, an ambitious trade policy and a strengthened Common Agricultural Policy supporting the epochal transformations, the EDA says.

The unprovoked Russian war against Ukraine has a catastrophic impact on the

Ukrainian dairy sector throughout the dairy value chain. Within the European Union and in Ukraine, dairy is of crucial importance in its economic and social dimension.

European investments in the Ukrainian dairy sector underline confidence in Ukraine and in its dairy industry. With the implementation of the Autonomous Trade Measures (no tariffs, no quota), established by the European Union, Ukrainian dairy has become an integrated part of the EU dairy single market for authorised products and approved dairies.

With this objective, EDA and SMPU agree to work together to:

• support reciprocal free dairy trade and the protection of investments,
• support the advancing of the DCFTA (UKR-EU free trade agreement) and the accession negotiations via a cooperation within the SMPU EUIntegration Committee, build up and strengthen the UKR-EU dairy network for sharing best practices in improving productivity and quality at the production level, boosting demand and raising awareness at consumer level and for exchanging on the respective dairy-relevant legislative framework, retail and marketing standards at sectoral level in place,
• establish a “Ukrainian dairy needs” list in the context of the EU “Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment” within the Ukraine Facility Programme,
• initiate a UKR-EU dairy dialogue on ways how to integrate Ukrainian dairy and agriculture within the framework of the discussions on the frameworkof the integration of Ukraine in the future EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP27), and
• advocate for a long-term integration of Ukrainian dairy in the European Single Market via a joint road map.

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Giuseppe Ambrosi, the EDA president, opened the proceedings, noting, “We were and we are standing fully aligned behind the ambitions and the objectives of the EU’s Green Deal agenda. We did not see the EU Commission acting on the basis of some demands for the law making process: a science-based, impact assessed approach and a certain level of stakeholder involvement.” He noted that while the EU even publicised its launch of agricultural policies with a video of milk processing, the dairy industry has been asked to play less than an active part in the agenda, which “intends nothing less than to completely change the way we operate our businesses.”

He called on the assembled to “make dairy heard in the political space in Brussels from the very beginning of the next legislative term in July 2024. We simply cannot afford five more years in defence. When I say we, I mean the European lactosphére together with all those who want to reach the 2050 ambitions for our continent.”

As Jan Derck Van Karnebeek, CEO of FrieslandCampina said, “The way we do dairy in Europe, we can do it right, and we should fight and stand for it.” He further opined that the ways farmers operate is not always understood by politicians and government. “They need to be viable from the farmers’ perspective. Biodiversity and animal welfare are complex to navigate, but farmers have a vital role to play here. Sustainability is about doing the right thing by the planet, but it needs to be enabled by economics,” he added. At FrieslandCampina, “We reward for environmentalism and sustainable outputs are a structurally important part of the journey. I’m a bit of an optimist. Customers are awake to fact that the environmental impact has financial value, and I think that’s a good thing.”

He asked the assembled that they consider moving towards common measurements for the dairy supply chain in the areas of sustainability. “We should not be competing with each other on clever market claims. Rather, it should be on performance sustainability.”

Charles Brand, EVP for processing solutions and equipment at Tetra Pak, noted that dairy is a very big part of the company’s strategy, and it’s about enabling the transition to a more sustainable dairy industry. Tetra Pak is leading a global processing taskforce at the Global Dairy Platform. “It is important that legislators listen to our responsible voices, from producer to consumer safety,” he said, noting that recycling targets and packaging legislation is not uniform from country to country, and as a single market, the EU should have uniform laws. “it’s not acceptable for some parts of the market to have targets, while others do not. It is also important that legislators consider the entire supply chain.”

Thierry Clément, CEO of Lactalis Groupe, detailed what support for farming entails. “If we have a happier farmer with a good living, they can invest for a more normal life. We need to drive this by policy and by having the economy to support this, and to make sure we have contact with the dairy farmers, through the dairy chain and not through regulation.”

The issue of European herd size came up, and Peter Giørtz-Carlsen, the COO of Arla Foods, noted that, when the issue of nitrate emissions arose, often it immediately turns to the number of cows, and not to anything else that may impact these emissions. “Regenerative agricultural solutions should be explored in parallel,” he said.

Karnebeek agreed, noting there are government measures underway to reduce livestock numbers in the Netherlands, where FrieslandCampina is headquartered. “This may remove the availability of three million litres of milk, but what contingency measures are in place?” he asked. The question also becomes of mitigating the environmental impacts of the cows, and using best practice to ensure that the maximum amount of milk is produced with the smallest carbon footprint. “Output decreases should be the contingency plans,” after all the other measures have been taken, he stated.

Carbon credits

Carbon credits were a topic of discussion. Karnebeek did warn about the impact of carbon credit trading outside of the dairy supply chain: “The market mechanisms that have made carbon credits tradeable outside the dairy supply chain, this is a real risk and should be taken into account when dealing with them. Carbon sequestered by farmers could be bought by an oil company as part of its green agenda, and this is not a good idea.” The IDF’s president, Piercristiano Brazzale, weighed in, agreeing the credits should remain inside the sector and not go outside.

The sector, he reminded the audience, has to cover the increased population by 2050, and while the US and Pakistan may be able to cover some of the estimated 33 million tonnes shortfall for global dairy by that year, the EU will also have to cover some of this gap.

When looking at Ukraine, Arsen Didur, executive director of the Dairy Union of Ukraine, praised Lactalis for its continued dairy production inside the country. Clement thanked him and noted, “It is incredible what they are doing in Ukraine. When this is over, we agree we will invest, and we have a willingness to rebuild for the future – it’s an incredible country. They are true dairy heroes and it is a positive signal in the EU for enlargement report. Our best to you and your people.”

The MEP view

In the afternoon, it was the European MEPs’ turn to discuss the sector. Paolo de Castro, an MEP from Italy, pointed out that the new CAP didn’t seem to be thinking of the farmers when it was developed. “We all know that ecological transition is absolutely necessary, but we have the feeling it wasn’t built with the farmers and the agricultural sector, but against them. They keep pointing the finger at agriculture, and there is a lack of balance that we have never seen before between the different European commissioners.”

De Castro did come with some good news, on the finalisation of the new EU regulations on GIs. “GIs are one of the successes in EU history and they are a €90 billion asset that has been working very well. This will help it grow even further, and get stronger,” he noted.

He also observed that the GIs should “help us to get our food sector even closer to public opinion. We don’t have the same public opinion support that we used to have for decades. Previously, whoever attacked farmers in French, the French president would defend them, and this is no longer the case. There is also not one day that goes by without Italian commenting that farmers mistreat their animals. We need to re-establish the link between the public and the producer. If we don’t it only impacts our industry negatively.”

As Alexander Anton, secretary general for EDA, observed, “The cow is more than just a national treasure, it is our industry. Dairy GIs account for 10 per cent of the total issued, and they are ambassadors for European agriculture.”

Speaking of science

The final session was devoted to the science, discussing “Dairy Sustainability at Work.” The moderator, Sanne Dekker of FrieslandCampina, stated, “Climate change is already happening, and even our cows notice. Who is to blame for this? All of us, but polarisation and fighting about it doesn’t help. It is important to share our learnings, so we are working together on sustainability.”

Dr Wilhelm Windisch, of Technical University of Munich, reminded all, “Ruminant livestock is the key to sustainable agriculture. We are approaching the planetary boundary of the agricultural area. We cannot increase the size, as it is limited. It will be more limited in the future with climate change, as it takes away land.” We also have to stop competing with livestock on feeding, he noted. Another issue is the way livestock turns non-arable grasslands into food. For example, one-third of the wheat harvested is turned into bread, while the other two-thirds of the wheat is not edible by humans. The other way is to feed it to livestock, which then produces manure for fertiliser and enriching the soils. He called for 100 per cent use of biomass material, via both making of food products such as bread, and the rest being used to feed livestock.

He exploded the myth of cows being climate killers with methane. “In Germany, there are fewer ruminating livestock than in pre-industrial times. There is less of emission of methane from livestock production than in pre-industrial times. The carbon dioxide equivalents massively overrate the climate impact of European ruminants. It is a very strong greenhouse gas, but it quickly degrades. Methane remains constant, whereas the carbon dioxide emissions from fossil sources accumulates. Methane has a very quick half-life of only 12 years. This is not accounted for in the GMP 100 calculations. If we shot all the ruminants in Austria and Germany, we would have a reduction of less than one per cent. It’s nothing.”

Another myth is that too many ruminants ruin the environment. “The biomass will degrade whether you use it or not,” he stated. “The only thing is if we don’t use it, it will be a missed chance to produce food. If vegan, you need double the amount of area to feed a person. NGOs forget the evidence of the non-edible biomass.” Proper circularity of the food system is the key to feeding everyone, he stated. “Our challenge is to optimise feed value, efficiency and all the livestock management.”

The post Up for the challenge appeared first on Dairy Industries International.

Giuseppe Ambrosi, EDA president, opened the proceedings, noting, “We were and we are standing fully aligned behind the ambitions and the objectives of the EU’s Green Deal agenda. We did not see the EU Commission acting on the basis of some demands for the law making process: a science-based, impact assessed approach and a certain level of stakeholder involvement.” He noted that while the EU even publicised its launch of agricultural policies with a video of milk processing, the dairy industry has been asked to play less than an active part in the agenda, which “intends nothing less than to completely change the way we operate our businesses.”

He called on the assembled to “make dairy heard in the political space in Brussels from the very beginning of the next legislative term in July 2024. We simply cannot afford five more years in defence. When I say we, I mean the European lactosphére together with all those who want to reach the 2050 ambitions for our continent.”

As Jan Derck Van Karnebeek, CEO of FrieslandCampina noted, “The way we do dairy in Europe, we can do it right, and we should fight and stand for it.” He further opined that the ways farmers operate is not always understood by politicians and government. “They need to be viable from the farmers’ perspective. Biodiversity and animal welfare are complex to navigate, but farmers have a vital role to play here. Sustainability is about doing the right thing by the planet, but it needs to be enabled by economics,” he added. At FrieslandCampina, “We reward for environmentalism and sustainable outputs are a structurally important part of the journey. I’m a bit of an optimist. Customers are awake to fact that the environmental impact has financial value, and I think that’s a good thing.”

The full story is available in the December issue of Dairy Industries International. Also, keep an eye out for exciting Dairy Industries Expo news, coming very soon!

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine

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The EU was for the tenth year in a row the biggest exporter in agri-food products, dairy remains one of the flagship sectors when it comes to economic performance. EU dairy contributed €17 billion to the EU’s positive trade surplus.

The consensus during the trade day was then marked by a positive attitude towards international trade and the need to keep trade barriers to a minimum. Good trade arrangements in combination with the guaranteed high quality of EU dairy products and global demographic developments will ensure a bright future for our EU dairy sector.

The notion of sustainability has entered and taken root in the international trading realm: it is there to stay. The upcoming challenge will be the support of EU milk production, since we see that more sustainable production comes at a price, be it a financial cost or reduced productivity. There is a need to convince trading partners that sustainable production is in the global interest. There seems to be a risk that commitments by third countries within the sustainability chapters may be traded off against EU market access concession, the EDA says.

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Participants will listen to Alexander Anton, secretary general of the European Dairy Association, along with Mark Casey of Fonterra and Janusz Wojciechowski, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture, detail topics such as whether sustainability is an opportunity or threat to the dairy sector, and the directions of change in the dairy sector. The two-event promises to be full of discussions and insight. For more information visit https://www.2023.forum-mleczarskie.org.

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The cadence of New Zealand official delegations travelling to Brussels is reaching a peak in May and June 2022. A clear sign for both, is the phasing out of travel restrictions and the perceived decisive momentum in the trade negotiations.

In summer 2020, the EU Commission had tabled a first dairy market access offer and made an ‘amended’ offer in summer 2021, where some of the EDA’s key asks were at least taken into consideration.

The EU dairy sector invests heavily in its green transformation to fulfil Green Deal commitments, but faces unprecedented challenges at farming and processing level: studies show that the Green Deal policy on its own will increase the cost of milk production in the EU by more than 30% by 2030, and hence risks to undermine the international competitivity of European dairy.

In today’s geopolitical environment, the EU Commission seems ready to give in to major New Zealand requests for dairy market access to the union, especially on high added value products.

The French EU Presidency, which had a very reluctant approach to these trade negotiations, is coming to an end on 30 June, and hence the main New Zealand delegation visit to Europe seems to be scheduled for July 2022, EDA adds.

We have flagged up our serious concerns with political decision makers, stressing the fact that opening up our EU internal market for third country’s dairy now is simply irresponsible, the association notes.

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There was a sentence from Michael Scannell, the deputy director-general of DG Agri, about keeping an eye on the UK as it possibly starts imposing its own further controls on imports during the summer. Otherwise, they didn’t mention the UK. Not much to be said about the ex, really. Bigger fish to fry. The unstable, bellicose neighbour for one, and tending to the unexpected guests.

Dairy as a whole in the EU is not a top area of concern, with better prices covering the increased inputs and its carbon reduction policies underway, Scannell noted. “We would like to ensure food security and a resilient agriculture sector in every member state. And, if everyone stays calm, cool and collected, we can get through this current crisis. Dairy remains a vibrant, important and very successful food sector in agriculture.”

So, a bit of positive news in the middle of what is already turning out to be quite a terrible year for this continent that we all live on (and very close to). As more than one speaker noted, climate change has not taken a break, and the loss of Ukraine (and Russia’s isolation) as a global breadbasket is going to show up in fertiliser and input costs and a multitude of other ways. The country goes from being a large provider of food to needed large amounts of humanitarian aid and this will have far-reaching effects for years, from places ranging from Africa to the Middle East, and everyone in between.

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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All who work on the current CAP proposal know that it has been an intense and constructive journey of three and a half years which has led to a comprehensive and future proof outcome.

The EDA, representing the European dairy processing industry, believes it has been attentive to every single step of this process and has consistently been a reliable partner during substantial discussions about the current state of play of the CAP and its way forward.

During the last months the EDA has been vocal, calling for an overarching deal and its comments have been taken into consideration in the overall process. 

Now, the EDA says it is looking forward to working together with all EU institutions and stakeholders towards the smooth implementation of the new CAP.

Among the three Regulations composing the CAP, the Common Markets Organization Regulation (CMO) is a key component of the agricultural sector and of great importance for dairy. The EDA says it believes its implementation is essential for the competitiveness of the European dairy sector across the Union.

The EDA stated: “We are convinced that the deal reached on the CMO Regulation last June 2021 forms a reliable basis for the future of our sector.

“In a time when sustainability is in the center of the discussions on the policymaking process, the new CAP creates the needed momentum and shows flexibility by delivering a policy model capable of mobilising synergies to integrate the European agricultural sector fully into the European Green Deal ambitions.

“The new CAP is set up to be a resilient and transforming policy in the European Union and will lead by example at global level.

“The renewed CAP regulatory framework develops further its market management tools which have proven their efficiency in the past.”

The EDA also states that new CAP national strategic plans and its eco-schemes will be instrumental when it comes to improved delivery on environmental, climate and animal welfare objectives.

The European lactosphère is fully committed to the European Green Deal objectives. The EDA states that as the Farm to Fork Strategy rightly points out, we will have to strengthen the resilience of our dairy supply chain. A chain that, across the three pillars of sustainability, successfully delivers excellent dairy quality for regional, European, and international markets in a competitive and market-oriented environment.

The European dairy sector will further strengthen its global leadership towards more sustainable agri-food practices.

The new CAP, with its innovative approach, gives the stability needed for our sector with its long-term investments, concludes the EDA.

The post EDA comments on new Common Agricultural Policy appeared first on Dairy Industries International.

Still, it was good to view the scene in Brussels and see the various European players on stage, as it were. One of the participants, Roel Jongeneel of the Department of Social Sciences at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, provided a bit of perspective when taking a look at how agriculture was faring in the larger, global sense.

As a whole, he said, the UK is green and sustainability is in reasonable shape, but when you take a look at environmental emissions, there are problems with fertiliser use and other issues caused by agricultural land use. “The UK is representative of the EU, so we have some serious environmental issues to look at,” he noted.

So, this is true. We are still part of the EU, even if it is just geographically. As we are all discovering, the problems facing agriculture are similar, no matter where in Europe one lies and what one’s status is. Geography triumphs over all.

A further discussion at the meeting was about how policies and politics can change in a fairly short amount of time. For example, the issue of climate change wasn’t being discussed seriously a year ago despite climate activists, due to politics in various countries. It was more of a fight about whether it was real, but this has gone – events such as tornados and flooding in areas never seen before have flagged up the need for action.

However, the dairy industry has been addressing the green requirements for several years now, according to Lukáš Višek, from the cabinet of the EUY’s first executive vice president Frans Timmermans, who noted, “It was clear the issue of climate change is not something that may go away or can be wished away, or dealt with in five years’ time. The EU was the first continent and economy to put down a plan to make this happen. We want to work with partners who also have a plan. We are trying to accelerate the process in the EU because the action is extremely urgent and affects all sectors, including agriculture.”

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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Milk and dairy products are among the EU’s top agricultural sectors and EDA has been following the negotiations closely, the association reports. As the voice of the European milk processing industry, EDA has been during the last years in close contact with all relevant stakeholders to ensure a good outcome on the dairy essential parts, especially in the Common Market Organization (CMO).

“The CMO is an essential part of the acquis Communautaire for the agri-food sector and of utmost importance for the dairy sector. Its implementation is key to the competitiveness of the dairy sector in the different regions of the EU. Our preliminary analysis shows that today’s deal takes into account the need for a market orientated CAP while giving dairy farmers and processors the needed support to adapt to the new challenges. This is a significant step forward and good news for the dairy industry,” says EDA secretary general Alexander Anton.

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“The strategy still raises too many questions in the European farming and agri-food community,” the statement says. “A year of intense debate has only increased the number of our concerns.

“We do not have a single doubt that the Farm to Fork strategy with its targets will have a considerable impact on the whole agricultural value chain, from farmers to our food systems and to consumers throughout the Union. But most probably not on the ones initially hoped for or expected.

“Let’s be perfectly clear, we are not opposed in essence to the approach proposed within the Farm to Fork strategy or the Green Deal. We are all conscious that our food system must integrate further measures to improve its sustainability as fast as possible while maintaining the highest quality standards and food affordability.

“Nevertheless, not only will this strategy have an impact on the environmental quality of our agriculture, but it will also impact on our production capacity, our competitiveness, our imports and ultimately on consumer prices. As it has been demonstrated over the past year, there are also considerable paradoxes in the composition of those generalised objectives, and by the time these are widely understood, it will be too late. We must not shy away from the debate on these paradoxes. We must collectively discuss them because, even if there appears to be a collective disregard at EU-level these days, the stakes are too high.

“A comprehensive impact assessment would have been the appropriate way to engage in a concrete discussion on the substance of the Farm to Fork strategy. Such a study was promised by vice president Frans Timmermans. However, although this was promised on many occasions in line with the principles of “good governance” of the Commission, we now know that such as assessment will not be carried out. In the face of the challenges posed to our food security, this neglect on the part of the Commission is both incomprehensible and unacceptable.

“Individual studies on the different objectives of the strategy are not sufficient. It is only by cumulating and cross-checking the different targets proposed in the strategy that one can realise the real challenges posed by the strategy. In the area of trade policy, the same Commission has had the courage to propose a comprehensive study of the complex cumulative impacts involved in the more than 60 trade agreements signed by the EU. So why shouldn’t this be possible for the Farm to Fork strategy? Why has the US government already conducted a study on our own flagship policy?

“We are asking for the application of three common sense principles: to have a policy based on concrete data and scientific evidence that is in line with the better regulation principles, not on ideology and political stances; to start talking about concrete tools and technologies capable of creating enthusiasm in our farming community for this political project and finally to have the same level of ambition in the EU internal market vis-à-vis those international trade partners that don’t share the same ambitions.”

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The current provisions ensure that the words “milk”, “cheese”, “yoghurt”, “butter” or “whey” are used exclusively for products that contain dairy milk. The companies state, “The additional restrictive measure in Amendment 171 is not only contrary to the evolution in consumer demand, as explained above, but is again in breach of the principle of proportionality. In reality, the use of such terms for the designation of non-dairy products actually supports consumers in making informed choices, while at the same time clearly indicating that the product does not contain any component of dairy origin.”

The firms called on the Parliament to reject the amendments related to meat and dairy. However, the European Dairy Association (EDA) points out, the protection of dairy terms (like yogurt, butter or milk) is based on the Codex Alimentarius and enshrined in the acquis communautaire for more than 30 years. Recently, its well-foundation and necessity for enhanced consumer protection has been underlined, and even strengthened, by the European Court of Justice in June 2017 (ECJ C422/16, ‘tofu-butter’).

“If I would be with Nestlé, a company that was claimed to be the number 1 in the Global Dairy Top 20 ranking by Rabobank last week, I would feel ashamed to see the Nestlé logo on such a letter,” said Alexander Anton, EDA secretary general. In a time where in other world regions, like in the US, the protection of dairy terms established by the European Union, on the basis of the Codex Alimentarius rules, start to become a model, also for other sectors (like meat), it is this letter, that is “disproportionate and out of step with the current climate,” he added.

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First, I know where the food is and where the restroom facilities are located. I may this year for the German shows, go to Lidl and Aldi and stock up on wursts and other delightful treats for the duration. Asda and Tesco also carry a decent supply of American goods and my relatives have assured me of a steady stream of US candy treats.

The US’s IDFA has done more than one of these very informative seminars (last one we covered was in the May issue) and I plan to sit down with the Moo University zoom meeting I missed last week, while eating a hotdog and maybe some macaroni and cheese. And nobody will think twice about me eating while watching. See this link: dairy.unl.edu/i-29-moo-university/proceedings.

The European Dairy Association’s autumn meeting was to be held in Madrid. Olé! Manchego cheese and serrano ham to be bought and consumed on 20 November. Check eda.euromilk.org for further information.

Then, there is the issue of leaving the session for a comfort break. Normally, while you are sitting in a conference session, you can almost feel the eyes of the speaker following you while you try to nip out quietly, avoid crashing into the banners placed strategically to showcase the conference/seminar and to open the very squeaky door to the outside, where the hopeful tabletop exhibitors greet you as you try to go find that loo.

In the UK, the delayed PPMA Show 2020 is offering a Meeting Hub to connect those exhibitors with attendees virtually. from 7 September. The hub is free to use and provides a gateway to over 1,500 brands from over 300 PPMA Show 2020 exhibitors. It promises to be the largest single gathering of processing equipment, packaging machinery, robotics, and industrial vision companies throughout the UK, the organisers say. Visit www.ppma.co.uk for further information.

Last but not least, Arena’s Dairy Innovation Summit will be held 13-14 October. I believe that was going to be held in Denmark. Off I go to get the pickled herring and Danish blue cheese. See arena-international.com/dairy for more information.

Also, if there are any virtual (or real life) events I have missed, please feel free to email the details to suzanne@bellpublishing.com.

In order to keep up with industry events, don’t forget to take a look at our Supplier Profiles issue, out this week online and in print. In it, suppliers of ingredients and equipment to the dairy industry offer their latest innovations.

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch – Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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In today’s economic crisis context, the reboot of the European economy will underline that milk and dairy is essential as the economic backbone, especially of rural Europe. The 12,000 processing sites across the Union assure 300,000 jobs in Europe – essential for society.

The European Green Deal and the digital sustainable transformation are two other important and central issues on the agenda of the German presidency. The negotiations on the 2021-2027 financial framework, and the EU‘s trade policy (eg. finalisation of the Brexit negotiations) are also important items.

It will be of crucial importance that any EU policy is always conducted under the premise of the EU single market. This great achievement of the EU must be born in mind by EU policy makers in all areas, but also be reflected in domestic policies. As a big exporting country, Germany is dependent on a functioning single market, where there is no place for protectionist tendencies and gastro-nationalism. This is especially relevant when it comes to initiatives on mandatory origin labelling, which lead to a renationalisation of raw material flows and segregated markets and products. To address potential consumer interests, a voluntary and EU- harmonised approach is the right direction. The same goes for any mandatory front-of-pack simplified nutrition label. It is important that such claims are harmonised at EU level, but their application should always remain voluntary. This should be kept in mind in the framework of the upcoming discussions on the Farm -to-Fork Strategy on a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system.

A successful free trade agreement between the EU and the UK is another important aspect for Germany’s dairy association, MIV. A hard Brexit on 1 January 2021 must be avoided by all means. Zero duty-zero quota approach must be ensured to allow for the continuation of frictionless trade between the two trading blocks. Common standards and a level playing field are key to ensure fair competitive conditions for both sides. Border checks should be reduced to an absolute minimum to allow trade to continue smoothly.

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“The whey sector has changed profoundly over the past years and Bénédicte was for sure one of the drivers of this change. Bénédicte leaves a huge footprint behind her: the whole dairy industry association landscape mirrors today her attitude and performance. Not least the significant increase of the membership and the numerous projects carried over by the association reflect her élan and energy. Bénédicte has built up incredible credentials of trust with our members, within the team and in the Brussels agri-food scene. It is a real challenge to succeed her in the EWPA leadership role and to keep the strong momentum that Bénédicte created – and here the whole ‘euromilk’ (EDA & EWPA) team is fully committed,” summarised Anton.

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However, the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on international travel have forced the EDA to change the meeting from a physical gathering in Madrid to a video conference. The dairy sector will hence meet virtually and exchange with speakers and guests on Friday 20 November 2020, with the theme, “Milk and Dairy – today more essential than ever!”

For further information, visit: eda.euromilk.org or on Twitter @EDA_Dairy

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