A consultation on how to make the EU agri-food industry “greener, more digital, and resilient” is now underway, the European Commission has announced.
The commission said yesterday (Monday, July 24) that the consultation follows on from the publication of an analysis of existing EU policies supporting the agri-food sector to move in a “greener” direction with greater use of digital technology.
Along with that analysis, the commission announced the consultation, inviting interested parties to propose actions to accelerate what it called the “twin transition” of the sector.
The consultation is open to stakeholders throughout the whole industrial value chain, as well public authorities, social partners, research organisations, and others.
The consultation will remain open until September 19.
The commission is also planning to organise workshops to discuss and collect views on how to make the agri-food “industrial ecosystem” more competitive, with a view to creating a “transition pathway” for the agri-food sector by the end of 2023.
This process is part of a wider commission effort to develop “transition pathways” across different industries, in line with its May 2021 Industrial Strategy Update.
The agri-food system is one of 14 industrial ‘ecosystems’ covered by the Industrial Strategy Update.
The term ‘ecosystem’, in the context of the agri-food sector, is used by the commission to refer not only to all operators in the food supply chain, but also inputs and services providers; the research community; public authorities; and the “socio-cultural and institutional component of food systems”.
The Industrial Strategy Update was accompanied by the commission’s first Annual Single Market Report, which offered an analysis of the challenges faced by different industries and serves as a starting point for preparation for these transition pathways.
The questions raised in the new consultation cover sustainable competitiveness, as well as aspects of regulation, innovation, investment, infrastructure, and other areas.
The commission said that, through collaborative efforts, the aim is to co-create with all stakeholders of the agri-food industry, “concrete actions that need to be taken to ensure resilience and achieve the green and digital transition”.