Summary
The deferment of the implementation of EU’s new organic regulation offers a precedent for addressing the commercial losses ACP organic exporters face if there is no EU/UK organic equivalence agreement in place by 1st January 2021. The lapsing of EU/UK mutual recognition of organic certification on 3rd country products should be deferred until the end of the Covid-19 pandemic plus 9 months, given the travel restrictions and social distancing requirements which complicate the securing of UK or EU27 specific organic certification at the present time. This would avert needless commercial losses for ACP organic exporters and encourage the continued growth in ACP organic exports, which are wholly consistent with both EU and UK sustainability objectives.
On 4th September 2020, the European commission postponed ‘the entry into force of new organic legislation to 2022 – following a request from member states, MEPs and stakeholders’ (1). The new regulation is designed to ‘ensure fair competition for farmers whilst preventing fraud and maintaining consumer trust through’:
- simplifying product rules by ‘phasing out of a number of exceptions and opt outs’;
- strengthening control systems to ensure ‘robust checks along the entire supply chain’ and through ‘tighter precautionary measures’;
- extending the product coverage;
- simplifying certification for small farmers, via a new system of group certification;
- establishing a ‘more uniform approach to reducing the risk of accidental contamination from pesticides’;
- phasing out ‘exemptions for production in demarcated beds in greenhouses’;
- requiring third country producers ‘to comply with the same set of rules as those producing in the EU’ (2).
According to press reports ‘the postponement was originally requested … due to the complexity and importance of the secondary legislation under preparation.’ The consultations around this secondary legislation has been disrupted by the global Covid-19 pandemic (3). MEPs who initiated the request for a deferment took the view ‘ensuring an additional year for the enactment of the secondary legislation can make this already strong policy even stronger and further contribute to the common goal of sustainable food production’ (4).
The EC’s decision needs to be seen against the background of the rapid expansion of the organic sector which is underway and the desire of the EU to see 25% of agricultural land under organic production by 2030.
The EC is also looking to establish an action plan for organic farming in the course of 2021. This action plan for organic farming will be organized around three pillars:
- ‘stimulating demand for organic products while maintaining consumer trust’;
- ‘encouraging the increase of the organic farming area in the EU’; and,
- ‘enhancing the role of organic production in the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss, including in sustainable resource management’ (3).
Proposed actions will include:
- ‘regular consumer surveys to evaluate the recognisability of the EU organics logo’;
- ‘greater help for EU countries on how to combat fraud in organics and prevent the improper use of the organic logo’;
- ‘encourage use of organic food e.g. in schools through EU green public procurement’;
- ‘development of an electronic certification system for import’;
- ‘further cooperation with third countries to try to increase the opportunities for EU importers and exporters of organic food’ (2).
A consultation on the organics action plan is ongoing
Meanwhile UK organic farmers are concerned they will be left with ‘stockpiles of milk, vegetables and meat they can’t sell to the EU’ if there is a no-deal UK departure from the EU customs union and single market. ‘The UK exports around £225m of organic produce to the EU each year, including organic milk, beef, lamb, vegetables and cereals’ (5).
This situation has seen ‘30 organic trade bodies’ writing to ‘the UK’s negotiators urging them to strike a separate deal with Brussels to allow trade in organic goods to continue even if there is no agreement’ (5).
It has been highlighted how from 31st December 2020 UK organic labels will not be recognised in the EU or EU labels in the UK if no agreement is reached.
UK producers are pushing for an ‘equivalence agreement with the EU that would safeguard the organic labelling regime even in the event of a no deal’. Otherwise the requirement to have two separate organic certification labels will increase costs and complexity of organic certification.
The UK government, meanwhile, insists its intention is to secure ‘an organics equivalence agreement’, with the EU. UK officials claim the government is ‘supporting the UK organic control bodies with their applications for equivalence’, so as to ‘help minimise any potential disruption to trade’ (5).
| Comment and Analysis The absence of an organic equivalence agreement between the EU and UK not only impacts on EU/UK mutual trade in organic products but will also impact on a range of ACP organic exports to UK and EU27 markets. The ACP organic product exports impacted will depend on the country or registration of the organic certification agency and whether, after 1st January 2021 this corresponds with the customs territory of the market served. Currently organic certification issued by a recognised certification agency in any EU28 member state is valid for the whole customs territory of the EU28. However, once the transition period ends, and the UK is no longer de facto part of the EU customs union, then only organic certification issued by certification agencies registered in the UK will be valid on the UK market, while only organic certification issued by an accredited EU27 organic certification agency will be valid on the EU27 market. This means from 1st January 2021 ACP organic exporters serving the UK market will need organic certification issued by a UK agency and ACP organic exporters serving the EU market will need organic certification issued by an EU agency. However, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, with its travel restrictions and social distancing requirements complicates the process of securing new valid organic certification if the existing certification would no longer be valid. The EU’s decision to defer the implementation of its new organic regulation until 2022 in light of Covid-19 considerations, offers a useful precedent for addressing the organic certification challenges facing ACP organic exporters in the absence of a wider EU/UK organic equivalence agreement. The simple solution would be for both the EU and UK to continue to recognise the use by 3rd country producers of organic certification issued by either the UK or EU for the ‘duration of the Covid-19 pandemic plus nine months’. This would avoid the commercial losses which would otherwise arise for ACP exporters of organic products, as a result of these organic products being sold on the general market at much lower prices than those obtained for organic certified products. It remains to be seen whether on development grounds the EU and UK authorities are willing to take the practical administrative measures required to avert needless commercial damage to ACP organic product exporters (for details of the scale of ACP organic exports and the ACP countries which would be most severely affected see epamonitoring.net article, ‘Dominican Republic and Bananas Dominate ACP Organic Products Exports to the EU28’, 18 August 2020). |
Sources
(1) EUOBSERVER, ‘EU Commission to postpone new organic legislation’, 4th September 2020
https://euobserver.com/tickers/149338#:~:text=The%20European%20Commission%20proposed%20on,for%20farmers%20and%20prevent%20fraud
(2) EC, ‘New legislation from 2022’
https://ec.europa.eu/info/food-farming-fisheries/farming/organic-farming/future-organics_en
(3) thedairysite.com, ‘EU looks to boost organic farming sector as part of European Green Deal’, 12 September 2020
http://www.thedairysite.com/news/55847/eu-looks-to-boost-organic-farming-sector-as-part-of-european-green-deal/
(4) euractiv.com, ‘Organic regulation postponement, new F2F date confirmed, agritourism struggles’, May 14, 2020)
https://www.euractiv.com/section/agriculture-food/news/commission-urged-to-hold-off-new-rules-on-organic-products/
(5) iNews, ‘Organic exports to EU could be barred without trade agreement, trade bodies say’, 11 September 2020
https://www.fpcfreshtalkdaily.co.uk/single-post/2020/09/11/Organic-exports-to-EU-could-be-barred-without-trade-agreement-trade-bodies-say