New commissioner nominees outline reforms
Irish environment minister Phil Hogan has been nominated as the new agriculture commissioner for the European Union (EU) with responsibility for ensuring a smooth production of food ingredients across Europe. Assuming he is confirmed by the European Parliament, he should start his new job on 1 November. Meanwhile, Vytenis Andriukaitis of Lithuania will become the EU’s new health and food safety commissioner responsible for EU food safety issues and legislation.
One novel aspect of the new team under the incoming president of the Commission Jean-Claude Juncker is that there will be six influential vice presidents (who are also commissioners) charged with coordinating the work of commissioners in broad policy areas. For the food sector, the key vice president would be Estonia’s Andrus Ansip who has a brief to promote cross-border intra-EU trade within Europe’s single market.
Another Juncker initiative was his clarifying policy priorities in personal notes to the nominees. Writing to Andriukaitis, Juncker said that his mission should be to modernise and simplify existing EU health legislation. Juncker stressed that he should always support EU countries dealing with food safety crises, a recurring problem in the EU in recent years.
Writing to Hogan, he tasked him with immediately reviewing EU subsidy systems – asking him to assess the “potential for further simplification in… direct payments” as well as EU food quality policies. Juncker stressed that Hogan should look for ways to simplify EU subsidy assistance and quota policies.
In confirmation hearings staged by the European Parliament, Andriukaitis said a scheduled 2015 review of the current EU procedures used to assess health claims associated with food products should ensure that decisions made on health claims are consistent. And Hogan has promised a review of ‘unfair practices’ by supermarkets, which can force down prices paid to fresh food suppliers because producers are still in fear of supermarkets.
