Members of the European Parliament have voted in favour of a report drafted by the French Green MEP, José Bové, on ‘A better functioning of the food supply chain in Europe.’
The report suggests ways to tackle the abuse of dominant positions, unfair commercial and contractual practices and late payments and is aimed at improving the position of producers in the food market.
It includes specific calls to introduce a common code of commercial good practice which would apply throughout the EU. And it encourages the establishment of national ombudsmen and other arbitration mechanisms aimed at guaranteeing compliance with contractual agreements.
It also suggests that the Commission examines experiences with a view to the establishment of an EU-wide food retail ombudsman.
MEPs now want the Commission to uncover unfair practices in relation to listing fees and other market entry fees and to propose uniform rules for their use, specifically taking action against excessive fees demanded by distributors.
They want EU competition law firmly applied in areas such as late payments, alterations to contract terms, forced discounts, resale at loss, excessively high volume requirements an unjustified listing fees - and to make adequate legislative proposals to cover these areas if necessary.
They have also called for a list of abusive market practices to be drawn up by the Commission. Breaking the rules might result in companies being ‘named and shamed’ and penalised.
MEPs also recognised the need for a stable, secure and profitable production sector as a decisive factor in the food chain. The report goes on to urge the Commission to maintain the high level forum on the food distribution chain as a permanent feature, as it has proved a significant body for identifying problems, making recommendations and adopting strategies with a view to remedying the current situation of imbalance.
The UK farming unions will be working closely with the high level forum to bring forward the recommendations of the group and the recommendations as laid out in this report. The Commission is due to release a whole package of legislative proposals for the agro-food sector by the end of the year.
Get more food chain news from the NFU here. For more from our Brussels office, click here.
No comments have been made.