NGOs seek full ban on neonics

Please note that the following is a press release from Pesticides Action Network Europe:

'The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published today [28 February] 3 reports on the new scientific findings on the toxicity of imidacloprid, thiamethoxam and clothianidin (neonicotinoids) to bees. The Authority highlights that most studies show that neonicotinoids have a negative impact on bees’ health, from damaging their orientation capacity to impairing their reproductive ability. On 24 March, the European Member States will have the possibility to vote for a ban on neonicotinoids; hopefully these reports will contribute to a total ban.

In the frame of the restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids in 2013, the European Commission committed to initiate a review of the ban within 2 years. The EFSA was given a mandate to collect all available scientific evidence on the toxicity of neonicotinoids on bees. The data were then analyzed by the Authority and today, it has published an opinion on imidacloprid, thiamethoxam and clothianidin.

The Authority concludes that the majority of the studies show a negative impact to honey bees, bumble bees or wild bees. Furthermore, the Authority points at the high level of contamination of the environment as the majority of the studies could not be included in the opinions as their controls were contaminated with neonics.

Based on a November 2016 report from the EFSA, the European Commission has made a proposal to Member States to ban neonicotinoids except for glasshouses. The report at the time indicated that, based on new industry data, there was no safe use of the 3 substances. The proposal was nevertheless not put to a vote in the Standing Committee on phytopharmaceuticals as several Member States asked to wait for the publication of today’s report.

Martin Dermine, PAN Europe’s pollinators expert said: "In 2013, there was enough evidence to totally ban neonicotinoids. In the meantime, an impressive amount of additional evidence has been piling up over the last years and the EFSA reports are a small glimpse of such evidence as the EFSA limited its study to bees and to the evidence available until June 2016. EU pollinators are facing a dramatic decline and neonics have now clearly been shown to be one of the major causes. Member States have no choice but to ban neonicotinoids".

As a member of the Save The Bees Coalition, PAN Europe will be advocating, together with nearly 100 NGOs across Europe, to finally obtain a full ban on neonicotinoids.'

I do not have any reaction from farm organisations at present.

Gove goes for low hanging fruit

The briefing surrounding today's consultation paper on domestic agricultural policy has made it clear that direct payments will be reduced to bigger farms to free up money for other purposes. The paper sets out various ways in which this might be done which then form the basis of consultation questions. At this stage I don't want to get bogged down in the detail, but instead consider the principle.

There is no doubt this will be politically popular. Why should wealthy individuals be subsidised to farm? My sense is that most of the public have rather a sentimental view of agriculture made up of small farms. Another issue here is the vegan campaign run on social media in January. I think this was rather effective and has rattled livestock farmers who often failed to respond very effectively. But that is another story.

I also think that one of the issues here is that tax breaks encourage individuals to buy farms and farmland for tax avoidance reasons. This is a complex subject, as one does not want a tax structure that inhibits succession.

What is interesting is that the issue of competitiveness has dropped off the agenda to some extent. It appears in a form in debates over poor productivity, but they are not a central focus in the way that public goods are. Competitiveness is mentioned nine times in the document, for example in relation to the opportunities offered by new technology, and productivity forty times.

Large scale grain farmers in Northern France and Northern Germany will continue to receive CAP subsidies, albeit somewhat reduced because of the loss of the UK contribution. To over simplify, the international grain market is driven by supply and demand considerations, but price is clearly a factor. The UK needs to be very careful not to use pesticides prohibited in the EU or they may find their exports of grain blocked.

I think there is a better clarity/hierarchy of objectives in the Government's thinking that one found in the CAP. I am not against caps on subsidies. But I do think we need to be aware of the consequences.

The future for food, farming and the environment

The Government consultation document is now available with replies required by May 8th. I have not had time to analyse it yet, but hope to do so before long: Consultation

This is clearly an important stage in the evolution of a domestic agricultural policy after Brexit, although I have some scepticism about how much government is influenced by the responses submitted.

Macron takes on the farmers

No one should underestimate President Macron's determination to modernise France, but farmers are one of the most difficult groups to deal with. They may be only three per cent of the population, but they have considerable public sympathy. British farmers have resorted to direct action from time to time, but if they blockaded roads as often as the French do, public opinion would soon turn against them.

I am no expert on France, but it does seem to me that food is absolutely integral to the national culture. Apart from perhaps Italy, there is no country where I can eat so well so consistently at reasonable prices.

I also happened to be up in the mountains the year before last when transhumance was taking place and this gave me some idea of how important farming is culturally in France. Britain is a much more urbanised nation in outlook.

Emmanuel Macron endured jeers and whistles on his first visit as president to France’s largest agricultural fair amid growing tension between his government and the country’s farmers, although earlier in the week 700 farmers have been invited to the Elysée Palace in a charm offensive. Mr Macron was confronted by hostile crowds on Saturday as he toured the showground in southern Paris, underlining the difficulties he faces in winning over France’s powerful agricultural lobby, which has been angered by EU trade talks and Chinese land purchases. Last year the acquisition of 900 hectares of farmland in Allier and 1,700 hectares in Indre by Chinese investors caused alarm.

In a tense exchange with a farmer over a weed-killer which the government has said it will ban, a visibly angry Mr Macron said he would find solutions for farmers who were unable to replace glyphosate, which is claimed to be carcinogenic. The Salon de l’Agriculture traditionally brings France’s political class into close, and often confrontational, contact with the country’s farmers. Last year, Mr Macron was hit by an egg when he visited as presidential candidate.

Macron wants farmers to move away from an over reliance on EU subsidies and to move towards less intensive production methods.

He has said that he will curb the forces of globalisation represented by Chinese land purchases. But he recognises that the EU will not have as much money for farm subsidies when Britain leaves, reducing net income by about eight per cent or some €15bn. (Sometimes I wonder if it might have been in the EU's interest to offer Dave Cameron a little more).

CAP is being eyed by Mr Macron as a French 'taboo' that needs to be revamped. 'We have come to this paradoxical situation in which the CAP has become a French taboo while our farmers continue to criticise the way it works', Mr Macron said in a speech at the Sorbonne last September.

Macron is prepared to pump in €5bn to help farmers to switch to environmentally friendly methods, find successors for their land and bring on a new generation of agricultural entrepreneurs. He wants 22 per cent of farmland to be managed organically by 2022, compared with 6.5 per cent today (ambitious in my view). He is also going to fund much needed early retirements. What he didn't seem to have much to say about were the efficient, competitive grain farmers in the Paris Basin.

As someone who has been wary of France and the French, my attitude is I admit paradoxical. I don't like their arrogance and elitism, but I would also admit their étatisme has brought some remarkable achievements. In a way I think they are most effective when they are assertive, which is why I like Macron and wish him well. But he has a tough task with the farmers.

This one slipped in underneath the radar

It is generally accepted that farmers are going to face a more competitive environment after Brexit. Support payments will be lower; there may be more competition from cheap imports; exports could be disrupted.

At the very least, farmers might expect a level playing field domestically. But that has not been the case for some time. Power has moved down the food chain to retailers. They are engaged in intense competition, not least against the interlopers Aldi and Lidl. The most important element in that competition is price. So they ask farmers to produce high quality goods at the lowest possible prices.

I have been told some stories of retailer sharp practice over the years by reliable individuals that give me cause for concern. I cannot repeat them because I do not have an evidence base. Evidence is difficult to obtain because producers fear retailer reprisals.

The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA), sometimes referred to as the 'supermarkets ombudsman', was designed to tackle these problems. With modest resources, some progress has been made. However, in an announcement slipped out this week when other agricultural and food stories were dominant, the Government has said that it will not extend the remit of the GCA.

It suits the government to have intense competition between supermarkets which keeps down food prices. But farmers are left as price takers.

The letter from the minister to the chair of the Defra committee can be found here: Adjudicator

Brexit and food

The House of Commons Defra Committee has issued a critical report on this topic: Brexit and food

It states, 'The Government has offered no clarity to the agricultural industry on its post-Brexit policy. The Government must offer this clarity and stability so that the industry has the confidence to invest and take advantage of the opportunities offered to the sector post-Brexit. We would like to see the Government offer policies that would stimulate home grown food production.'

'The UK has an international reputation for high animal welfare, environmental and food standards. These must not be sacrificed on the altar of cheap imports. Doing so could undermine the premium British brand and might affect our ability to negotiate trade deals with other countries. We will hold the Secretary of State to his assurances that there will be no compromise on animal welfare, environmental and food standards.'

'The Government must make it clear to industry how it intends to deal with potential regulatory divergence with the EU, and the mechanisms it will put in place to track divergence in the future.'

As a divided Government has difficulty in deciding what its policy should be on Brexit generally, I am doubtful that clarification will be forthcoming.