UFU watch: Brussels in brief

​Ursula Von der Leyen of the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP), has been elected for a second 5-year term as European Commission President. She secured the backing of 401 MEPs (comfortably more than the 361 needed) helped by votes from the Greens. During her 1-hour speech before the vote, Mrs Von der Leyen outlined her priorities and for agriculture and food:

- Building on the recommendations of the ongoing strategic dialogue, she will present a Vision for Agriculture and Food in the first 100 days “looking at to ensure the long-term competitiveness and sustainability of the farming sector within the boundaries of our planet”.

- She will continue work to improve the position of farmers in the supply chain and ensure that farmers have a fair income. Specific reference to below cost selling was included. Work is currently ongoing to revise the Unfair Trading Practices Directive, alongside a targeted amendment to the CMO legislation.

- Enabling farmers to work without excessive bureaucracy, support family farms, and reward farmers working with nature, preserving our biodiversity and natural ecosystems and helping decarbonise the EU economy on the way to net zero by 2050.

- A plan will be put forward to increase adaptation to climate change and to manage water resources.

- Commitment to cut 90% EU emissions by 2040.

Digital fertiliser labelling

The EU has adopted a regulation promoting the use of digital labels on EU fertilising products while keeping physical labels where they are necessary. The regulation, which updates the existing regulation about fertiliser labelling, aims to reduce the costs, bureaucracy, and environmental footprint for fertiliser producers. Digital labels will have a life-time of at least 10 years after a product is placed on the market. The regulation also ensures the availability of information by physical means to protect vulnerable consumers or people with limited digital competences. Digital labels will also be proposed for products sold in bulk, provided that the necessary information is also displayed in physical format in a visible place at the point of sale.

Cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) increase across Germany

The number of ASF cases in Germany has been increasing. To date in 2024, 5 cases have been found in kept pigs (both fattening), with 4 cases in Hesse (Southwest) and the other in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (Northeast). Over 200 cases have been reported in wild boar in 2024, mainly in two clusters in the Southwest and Northeast.

Further BTV-3 cases reported in the Netherlands and Germany

503 cases of BTV-3 have been detected in the Netherlands over the past weeks (139 clinically positive and 364 PCR positive). Over 200 cases have also been detected in Germany in July alone. Some cases have been detected in animals which have been vaccinated against BTV-3.