Moving on in the European Union
Image: Suzanne Christiansen
Going to the European Dairy Association meeting in Brussels last week was kind of like having dinner with an ex for British attendees (I was one of three people coming from the UK, and I think one of them just happens to be British but lives in Brussels anyway). The European Union has dealt with Brexit and moved on, bought a house and they’re planning on getting another member or two to add to their growing family.
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.
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