Summary
The EC’s proposed forestry due diligence regulation seeks to ensure only commodities from land not subject to deforestation and produced in line with national legal frameworks are placed for sale on the EU market. This will involve the progressive establishment of full traceability of all of the affected commodities (beef, wood, palm oil, soya, coffee, and cocoa) placed for sale on the EU market. Obligations placed on businesses will vary based on country and region-specific assessments of the risk of deforestation or forest degradation. A process of benchmarking will be undertaken to establish these risk assessments (high, standard, and low risk). The EC favours a collaborative approach involving all concerned stakeholders in building Forestry Partnerships to promote the transition to active protection of global forestry resources. A €1 billion EC managed facility is to be established to support these Forestry Partnerships. The value of exports to the EU27 from the main ACP exporting countries potentially affected by the new due diligence requirements amounted to nearly €7 billion in 2020. In the ACP the most important affected sector is the cocoa sector, which accounts for 75% of the value of ACP exports of the affected commodities. Important questions arise related to the distribution of the costs of new traceability systems and mitigation measures along supply chains and whether forestry due diligence will be closely linked to decent living income objectives. Addressing living income issues, particularly in the cocoa sector, is seen as essential to ensuring active farmer ‘buy-in’ to the necessary farm level production process transition required to better protect global forestry resources. Read more “What Are the Implications of New EU Mandatory Forestry Due Diligence Requirements for ACP Agricultural Commodity Exporters?”
Category: EU trade policy
Decline in EU Poultry Meat Exports to South Africa Provides Space for Renewal of the Domestic Poultry Sector
Summary
EU poultry meat exports to South Africa continue to decline, but illegal and mis-reported imports from Brazil continue to put pressure on domestic producers. While progress is being made on the domestic dimension of the Poultry Sector Master Plan, serious challenges remain in curbing illegal import from Brazil. Given the curbing of imports from the EU is largely based on SPS measures taken in response to AI outbreaks in Europe, the South African poultry Association is urging the South African government not to lift AI based import restrictions until six months after the last reported AI outbreak in the EU. With EU governments declaring their countries free of AI, this could heighten EU-South Africa poultry sector trade tensions. The South Africa experience highlights: the importance of appropriate trade policy responses to AI outbreaks in major exporting countries; the need for joined-up action across all relevant government services; and the need for active stakeholder engagement in elaborating Poultry Sector Development Strategies. AI outbreaks and Covid-19 linked freight disruptions, could provide opportunities for the expansion of domestic poultry production across Africa, if appropriate comprehensive poultry sector development programme can be set in place Read more “Decline in EU Poultry Meat Exports to South Africa Provides Space for Renewal of the Domestic Poultry Sector”
Some Implications of the EU Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices for ACP Producers
Summary
The EU’s ‘Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices’ can only be welcomed. However, its limitations, in terms of delivering on objectives which ACP governments, producers and exporters share, need to be recognised. The focus on increased collaboration along the whole of the supply chain, means commitments entered into by EU companies will carry real implications for production practices adopted by ACP suppliers. These implications need to be recognised and addressed, in the context of the Codes commitment to ensuring the social and commercial sustainability of the required changes. In regard to each of the aspirational objectives identified, in operationalising the code of conduct there will be a need for meaningful dialogues with ACP stakeholders and governments, if the burden of necessary adjustments is not to be largely shifted on to the shoulders of ACP primary producers. This will require the identification of appropriate institutional frameworks for the conduct of these meaningful dialogues in each of the major areas of concern. Read more “Some Implications of the EU Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices for ACP Producers”
EC Proposal for Resolving Northern Ireland Protocol Issues Could Offer Model for Addressing ACP Triangular Supply Chain Concerns
Summary
The EC’s proposals to resolve the problem of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol try to accommodate the operational concerns of Northern Ireland business leaders. However, the proposals leave unresolved the fundamental political objections the UK government has advanced, on the basis of the objections of Ulster Unionists. While this reduces the prospect of an early EU/UK agreement on the basis of the EC proposals, the technical proposal advanced nevertheless could offer a model for addressing ACP triangular supply chain concerns. This would require an elaboration of the current principles and modalities underpinning the EC proposals, in order to address the specific realities faced along ACP triangular supply chains. This will require political lobbying by the concerns ACP governments and in-depth technical work by the concerns ACP exporters associations. Read more “EC Proposal for Resolving Northern Ireland Protocol Issues Could Offer Model for Addressing ACP Triangular Supply Chain Concerns”
EC’s “Fit for 55” Plan Roots in Earlier “Farm to Fork Strategy” Carries Implications for ACP-EU Agri-Food Sector Trade
Summary
This is the first in a series of articles which look at the implications of the EU’s new climate change focussed policy documents for ACP-EU agri-food sector trade relations. This article reviews the EU’s basic Farm to Fork strategy, which was first tabled in May 2020, and its implications for ACP-EU agri-food sector relations. A companion article will review the EU’s July 2021 Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices, with both of these articles needing to be read in association with the recent epamonitoring.net article on Afruibana’s appeal to banana buyers in Europe to take on board the dramatic freight and input cost increases, so that all stakeholders in the supply chain carry a fair share of the burden of promoting the necessary ecological and energy transition which the climate crisis demands. Read more “EC’s “Fit for 55” Plan Roots in Earlier “Farm to Fork Strategy” Carries Implications for ACP-EU Agri-Food Sector Trade”
Growth Continues in EU27 Imports in Organic Products Where ACP Producers Have an Export Interest
Summary
ACP organic exporters have sustained strong growth in volumes to the EU market in 2020 despite a slight reduction in overall EU organic imports. In some organic product areas (rice and sugar) opportunities appear to exist which ACP producers have yet to exploit. Given the growing EU policy focus on the environmental sustainability of patterns of agri-food imports to the EU, exploring expansion into organic production in these areas could prove worthwhile. However, three headwinds are faced in continuing the expansion of ACP organic exports to the EU: the scheduled reforms to the EU’s organic product regime; the new trade administration complications for ACP organic exports to the UK, resulting from the UK’s departure from EU electronic systems for the management of imports of organic products; and the likely divergence of EU and UK organic certification requirements. Close attention will need to be paid to this issue by ACP organic exporters if existing growth in the volume of ACP organic exports to the Europe are to be sustained. Read more “Growth Continues in EU27 Imports in Organic Products Where ACP Producers Have an Export Interest”
Wider Trade Dimensions of EU Due Diligence Regulations: Where Does the Interest of the ACP Lie?
Summary
President Macron is throwing his weight behind efforts to establish regulatory ‘mirror clauses’ in EU trade agreements to combat ‘environmental and social dumping’. However, despite strong European Parliament support, there is no consensus among EU member states governments on the scope and practicality of such a ‘mirror clause’ approach. ACP exporters and governments need to define where their interests lie within these EU regulatory discussions, so as to be able to protect and promote ACP producer interests within these policy debates. Read more “Wider Trade Dimensions of EU Due Diligence Regulations: Where Does the Interest of the ACP Lie?”
Circumvention of the LID Highlights the Need for an Ambitious and Effective EU Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence Regulation
Summary
The EC’s much heralded human rights and environmental due diligence regulation looks set to be limited to establishing a common minimum standard, which businesses will be required to adhere to, with an enabling environment being created aimed at incentivising companies to address the negative impacts of their activities. In the face of corporate lobbying Tony’s Chocolonely has broken ranks demanding the EC establish an ambitious minimum standard. This would appear essential, given current corporate efforts to side-step the overall cocoa procurement cost implications of the Living Income Differential initiative, by reducing other components of cocoa bean payments made in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire. A clear Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific (OACP) States and African Union position in support of an ambitious and rigorously enforced corporate minimum standard for living wage, human rights and environmental protection commitments would appear to be required. Read more “Circumvention of the LID Highlights the Need for an Ambitious and Effective EU Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence Regulation”
EU Poultry Meat Exports to Sub-Saharan African Markets Surge at Beginning of 2021 Suggesting Trade Diversion is Underway
Summary
Trade diversion to ACP poultry markets, as a result of Brexit related disruptions to the EU/UK poultry trade appears to be underway. This situation of trade diversion is likely to get worse before it gets better, given full UK border controls on imports from the EU are only scheduled to be introduced in 2022. For those ACP countries seeking to develop their domestic poultry production on national food security grounds, this gives added importance to poultry sector trade policy. Here lessons can be drawn from South Africa’s current poultry sector trade policy review, which seeks to draw inspiration from EU policy practice in the poultry sector as opposed to EU policy prescriptions. EU trade protections in the poultry sector serves not only to protect the domestic EU market, but also support EU poultry meat exports. These low-priced EU exports of poultry parts are in turn serving to undermine efforts aimed at developing both domestic African poultry production (in response to heightened food security concerns) and intra-African trade in poultry meat. Read more “EU Poultry Meat Exports to Sub-Saharan African Markets Surge at Beginning of 2021 Suggesting Trade Diversion is Underway”
How Will EU Sustainability and Livelihood Due Diligence Regulations Interface with Private Sector Sustainability Initiatives?
Summary
In response to growing consumer pressure and pending regulatory initiatives, FMCG companies are updating their policies and seeking out innovative solutions to enhance the effectiveness of efforts to halt deforestation, promote sustainable farming practices, enhance livelihoods opportunities, and improve working conditions. This is an ambitious agenda which will need to get to grips with the twin questions related to: who bears the costs of the required innovations and how will this affect the distribution of revenues to different actors in the supply chain. To date the necessary search for technical solutions has seen these core questions set to one side. However, as mandatory ‘due diligence’ requirements come ever closer, it is increasingly important that these twin questions are systematically addressed. Read more “How Will EU Sustainability and Livelihood Due Diligence Regulations Interface with Private Sector Sustainability Initiatives?”