The Voice of the European Food and Drink Industry

CIAAannual report

2006

Photographs used with the permission of:Cargill, European Commission, European Snacks Association,FEVIA, Glanbia, Raisio Plc, Sudzücker AG

03

4 Role and mission

5 Message from the president & director general

6 Communication

8 The EU Food and Drink industry in figures

10 Competitiveness

12 International Trade

16 Agricultural Policy

18 Food Safety

24 European Technology Platform Food for Life

26 Consumer Information

28 Diet, nutrition & health

30 Environment

34 CIAA Members

36 CIAA Board of Directors

37 Committees & Expert Groups

38 Information & publications

39 CIAA Secretariat

Contents

CIAA is the voice of the European food and drink industry - the leading industrial sector and majorEU employer and exporter. CIAA’s role is to represent the food and drink industry’s interests, at thelevel of both European and international institutions. CIAA’s mission is to help pro-actively developan environment (enlarged EU and global markets) in which all European food and drink companies,whatever their size, can compete effectively for sustainable growth, meeting the needs of consumersand playing their part in delivering the targets set by the Lisbon Declaration of the European Council- that is, to become the most competitive economy in the world by 2010. CIAA thus contributes tothe development of a legislative and economic framework addressing issues of competitiveness,food quality and safety, consumer information and respect for the environment.

Membership of CIAA is made up of :■ 25 national federations, including 3 observers; ■ 32 EU sector associations;■ 22 major food and drink companies.

CIAA’s permanent secretariat, based in Brussels, maintains close contacts with European and inter-national institutions and has become a major partner in consultations on food-related developments. It co-ordinates the work of more than 700 experts, grouped in Committees andExpert Groups around the following three themes:

Through these Committees and Expert Groups, manufacturers from all EU countries provide broadand in-depth expertise. They contribute to establishing CIAA positions on key issues which, onceapproved, are communicated to European and international decision makers.

CIAA has become a trusted partner of European and international institutions as a result of itslongstanding work, in particular on horizontal food issues such as food quality and safety, nutritionand health, novel foods, labelling, the Common Agricultural Policy, international trade, sustainabledevelopment, respect for the environment and enlargement.

CIAA fulfills its role as a leader in the representation of EU food and drink manufacturers by :■ helping the food and drink industry to maintain consumer confidence;■ establishing close and fruitful cooperation between all links in the food chain;■ ensuring maximum coordination between the various sectoral and geographical

groups that make up the EU food and drink industry.

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Trade & Competitiveness Food & Consumer Policy Environment

Role & mission of CIAA

Message from the president & director general

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For CIAA, 2006 was in many respects shapedby successful efforts to raise the visibility andawareness of the competitiveness challengesand requirements of the EU food and drinkindustry.

This was the key strategic theme of manyhigh-level contacts throughout the year,including meetings with both the Austrian andFinnish EU Presidencies, Commission PresidentBarroso and Vice-President Verheugen,as well as the issue at the heart of our 2006Parliamentary Evening.

The 2006 CIAA Benchmarking Report concludedthat, in the long-term, growth opportunities willcome essentially from enhanced value-addedproducts and from increased shares of rapidlygrowing non-EU markets. Thus, higherresearch, innovation and technology diffusion,a more supportive regulatory environment,with less administrative burdens, trade policies

that facilitate growth in external markets, aswell as access to competitive agricultural rawmaterials, constitute the backbone of ourrequests to policy-makers in support of theindustry’s competitiveness.

We have made progress over the past year in some of these objectives through severaltargeted initiatives and actions :

■ A Stakeholders’ Strategic Research Agendawas finalised within the EuropeanTechnology Platform Food for Life and submitted to Commissioner Potocnik; ourpriority research areas were subsequentlywell covered by the first calls for proposalsunder the 7th Research FrameworkProgramme;

■ The “Better Regulation” strategy of theCommission, with its new emphasis onimpact assessments, has recognised manyof CIAA’s priorities. In the year ahead more

should be done to promote similar strategiesalso at national level,

■ The “new” Industrial Policy approach of theCommission explicitly acknowledged theneed for specific action to support the foodand drink sector.

CIAA continued to be a strong and committedcontributor to the European Platform for Actionon Diet, Physical Activity and Health. As part ofits commitments to the platform the Board ofCIAA adopted a voluntary recommendation onnutrition labelling, which was immediatelybacked by several of the biggest food anddrink companies in Europe. A key element ofthe scheme is the consistency of the nutritioninformation that will be provided to consumersacross Europe, on the basis of a commonframework that will enable them to easilyunderstand the nutritional content of food anddrink products.

Our biennial Congress provided the high pointof all communication activities last year.Run along the theme “Food for Life - MeetingConsumers’ Needs,” and attended by morethan 400 delegates, the Congress provedhugely successful and attracted very significantmedia interest, particularly around the keyissue of industry actions to contribute to thefight against diet-related diseases and promotehealthy lifestyles. Commissioner Kyprianoudelivered the Gala Dinner Address and publiclyrecognised the positive role played by CIAA asa catalyst for self-regulatory initiatives andconcrete actions in the context of the EUPlatform.

Internally, the Board and the ExecutiveCommittee of CIAA were renewed with theelections of October 2006. In addition, threeVice-Presidents were elected to strengthenhigh-level representation and continue toimprove the coordination and synergies withinour membership, with particular attentiondevoted to the specific needs of small andmedium-sized enterprises, smaller sectorsand member federations from new MemberStates of the EU. Membership of CIAA alsoexpanded to welcome the Turkish Food andDrink Federation with an observer status.

Great appreciation and acknowledgement ofinvaluable professional support should, asalways, be expressed to the whole team in theCIAA Secretariat.

Daniela IsraelachwiliDirector General

Jean MartinPresident

CommunicationCompetitiveness

Competitiveness and the challenges faced bythe European food and drink industry, especiallyin light of the revised Lisbon Strategy, werehigh on CIAA’s political agenda during thecourse of the year. In May, CIAA issued its firstever Benchmarking Report on Competitiveness.As one of the major pillars of the Europeaneconomy and as a sector largely composed ofSMEs, the report found that Europe’s food anddrink industry is, on a daily basis, faced withchallenges vis-à-vis its competitive position onboth European and international markets. In aseries of events and high-level meetings, CIAAused the publication of the report to highlightremedies and actions required to keep industrycompetitive, namely, more support for R&Dand innovation, improved Agricultural, Tradeand Competitiveness policies and the serioustackling of the Better Regulation issue.At CIAA’s annual European Parliament eveningin late November, CIAA President Jean Martincalled on policy makers to ensure that theEuropean regulatory framework be made moreconducive to improved competitiveness, vitalfor achieving the objectives of the LisbonAgenda. In October, competitiveness and the

Congress

Visibility and awareness of CIAA and its workprogramme increased substantially in thecourse of 2006, the highlight being CIAA’sOctober Congress. Run along the theme,“Food for Life - Meeting Consumers’ Needs,”and attended by more than 400 delegatesfrom Europe and beyond, the Congress proveda huge success. The biennial Congress wasCIAA’s biggest ever and attracted high-levelspeakers from industry, academia, theEuropean Commission and NGOs. Speaking atthe Congress Gala Dinner, DG SancoCommissioner Kyprianou acknowledged theprogressive work being undertaken byEurope’s food and drink industry and praisedCIAA’s positive contribution to the EuropeanPlatform for Action on Diet, Physical Activityand Health.

broader strategic issues facing the global foodand drink industry were high on the agenda ata CIAA-hosted global meeting of food anddrink associations. Held on the margins of theCIAA Congress, the meeting brought togetherrepresentatives of the food and drink industryfrom Europe, the United States, Australia,Thailand and others. Among those whoaddressed delegates were representatives ofthe European Commission and the Geneva-based International Trade Centre, each givingtheir own outlook on the current state of playon a range of different issues.

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Diet & Health issues

Among the biggest issues that CIAA workedon in the course of 2006 were those revolvingaround the areas of diet, nutrition, physicalactivity and health. CIAA continued to workconstructively within the EU Platform forAction on Diet, Physical Activity and Healthand, in addition, also played an active andhighly visible role at many other events andfora. Participation at high level events such asthe Café Crossfire debate on obesity in June,at the First World Public Health Congress inBarcelona in September, and at the EuropeanCommission satellite forum on the fringes ofthe Istanbul WHO European MinisterialConference in November, were all key to raising the profile of CIAA and the work cur-rently being done. Coupled with the guardedwelcoming of the European Charter onCounteracting Obesity, the verified implemen-tation of many of CIAA’s commitments to theEU Platform, and active involvement in numerous events and conferences aimed atdebating Europe’s growing obesity problem,CIAA’s visibility and communicative performanceincreased substantially over the course of theyear and was widely reported in the press andmedia.

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The EU Food and Drink Industry in figures

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Turnover € 836 billion (+2.6% compared to 2004)Largest manufacturing sector in the EU (13.6%), ahead of the automobile and chemical industries

Value added as a share of GDP 1.8%

Employment 3.8 million people (-1.5% compared to 2004)Leading employer in the EU manufacturing industry (13%), ahead of the fabricatedmetal and machinery & equipment industries

282,600 1 companiesFragmented industry

R&D as a % of food and drink output 0.24% in 2004 2

Still insufficient R&D expenditure

Exports € 48 billion (+5.3% compared to 2004)

Imports € 43 billion (+5.5% compared to 2004)

Trade balance € 4.5 billion Net exporter of food and drink products

EU market share of global export market 20% (24% in 1997)Shrinking share of EU exports in global markets

(1) 2003 figure

(2) EU-15 figure

The data contained on these pages relates to figures for the EU-25, unless stated otherwise.

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EU food and drink products on world markets

The EU plays a key role in global trade of foodand drink products. It is the world’s largestexporter of foodstuffs and the number twoimporter.

The EU market share of the global export market in food and drink products has beenshrinking over the last ten years (from 24% to20%) to the benefit of exporters such Braziland China (the EU-15 market share decreasedfrom 24% in 1997 to 18% in 2004).

R&D and innovation

In 2004, EU-15 R&D intensity* was, on average, 0.24%. It is below the spending bythe food and drink industry of its main com-petitors: the United States (0.35%), Australia(0.40%) and Japan (1.21%).

Exports Share in(€ billion) world (%)

EU 47.2 20.4United States 25.8 10.5Brazil 16.3 6.6China 13.9 5.6Canada 12.5 5.0Australia 9.9 4.0Thailand 9.8 4.0Argentina 9.5 3.9New Zealand 7.9 3.2Malaysia 6.7 2.7

Top food exporters, 2005 Exporters’ market share of global exports in food and drink products, 1997-2005 (%)

Intra-EU trade is excludedfrom total world trade.

Source: Worldbank WITSdatabase

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41

15

5555

1997

■ EU ■ USA ■ Brazil ■ China ■ Canada ■ Australia ■ Others

2005

Source: OECD, STAN database and CIAA calculations

R&D intensity worldwide (%)

1996

1.4

1.2

1.0

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

019981997 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

■ Australia■ Canada■ Japan■ Norway■ USA■ EU

20

10

76

54

48

(*) R&D intensity: R&D expenditure in the food and drink industry as a percentage of industry output.

Competitivenessfull on 1 June. President Jean Martin formallypresented the CIAA Report to the upcomingPresident of the European CompetitivenessCouncil, Mr Mauri Pekkarinen, Finnish Ministerof Trade and Industry. The report analyses thecompetitiveness of the European food anddrink industry by comparing its performancewith that of its main competitors.Furthermore, the report lists a number of policy recommendations regarding four keyareas of concern : R&D spending and innova-tion incentives, access to competitive rawmaterials, trade enhancing measures and better regulation.

Since April, the CIAA Secretariat has intensi-fied contacts to promote the Benchmarkingreport within Commission services, in particu-lar DG Enterprise but also elsewhere, withcabinet members of the CommissionPresident and of Commissioners, as well aswith members of the European Parliament.The report has been largely distributed withinthe European Institutions. Around 30 officialsparticipated in a CIAA workshop that tookplace on 29 June to present and discuss thecontent of the report.

CIAA had the opportunity to address the keyconcerns and challenges for the food anddrink industry competitiveness withCommission President Barroso in October.Later, in November, Commission Vice-President Verheugen met with a CIAA delega-

tion to discuss in detail the food and drinkindustry needs and the support provided bythe new industrial policy for specific areas ofconcern. The Benchmarking Report helped toconsiderably increase the visibility of the foodand drink industry and has also openly empha-sised the competitiveness challenge linked tomany CIAA political objectives.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA will need to update its competitivenessanalysis in order to ensure that it has a clearview on the state of health of the food anddrink industry. Equally, this needs to be continuously monitored and updated in orderto evaluate the capacity of the food and drinkindustry to react to current and future chal-lenges with the aim of improving competitive-ness. However, CIAA’s objectives go beyondassessing the situation and emphasising theproblems specific to the sector. It must alsoupdate regularly its policy recommendations in order to contribute to sustainable improve-ment.

Pushing the Lisbon Agenda forward

>BACKGROUND

In March 2005, the European Council re-launched the Lisbon Strategy by concentratingpriorities on growth and employment.In response, Member States presented a seriesof national reform programmes in the autumn of the same year. In December 2006, theCommission published its 2006 AnnualProgress Report on Growth and Jobs titled “A year of delivery,” claiming that the re-launchedgrowth and jobs strategy was starting to bearfruit. The report also stressed that the currenteconomic upturn provides a unique window ofopportunity to quicken the pace of reform.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The intensified work by CIAA on the competi-tiveness of the food and drink industry led tothe release of the Highlights of the CIAABenchmarking Report on 10 March. CIAA’sfirst Benchmarking Report was published in

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Better regulation andimpact assessment

>BACKGROUND

In 2005, the Commission issued a majoraction plan on better regulation. Better regula-tion is one of the strategies implemented bythe Commission to support growth by makingthe regulatory environment more favourable tobusinesses. In November, the Commissionpresented in a wide-ranging strategic reviewof better regulation, the progress made sincethe launching of the strategy.The Communication also included a set ofnew proposed legislative modifications.Impact assessments have become key instru-ments in support of lawmakers’ decision-making process, with an in-depth analysis ofall legislative options available and possibleimpacts that may derive from them.

The Commission impact assessment guide-lines of 2005 have led to different implemen-tation by the Commission’s Directorates.Promotion of best practice at EU and nationallevel remains an important objective, asdemonstrated in March at the conference“Further development of impact assessment in the European Union,” organised by DGEnterprise in cooperation with the CommissionSecretariat General and a number of otherCommission services.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA’s up-dated 2006 priorities for better regulation identified a number of items of legislation that should be revised andimproved in order to enhance the competitive-ness of the EU food and drink industry. CIAApriorities served as a basis for discussionswith Commission services and for expressing

support for their actions in areas of interest tothe food and drink industry. Many of CIAA’spriorities were taken up in the 2006Commission Review and most of these legislative initiatives are still in process andwill yield initial results in the course of 2007.

In order to contribute most efficiently to thedemands of the Commission for impactassessment, a CIAA Better Regulation TaskForce has been set up, to analyse primarily,in a first phase, the questionnaires on therevision of the novel foods legislation and thefood improvement agents package. The groupis also looking for an effective mechanism fordata gathering among CIAA members.

>CHALLENGES

The better regulation strategy, as regards foodand drink related issues, is still in process andneeds constant support and action. It will beimportant that these efforts start leading to con-crete results. A full commitment from MemberStates to initiate similar strategies at nationallevel can only be beneficial. A review of the foodand drink industry requirements will remainnecessary in assessing progress and in identifying other regulations that need to berevised, abolished or introduced in order to con-tribute to the creation of a regulatory frameworkwhich is clear, effective, avoids unnecessarycomplications and establishes administrativeprocedures that are more rapid and less costly.

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On 15 September 2006, the Alliance for a Competitive European Industry, of which CIAA is a mem-ber, hosted a Workshop “The New European Industrial Policy : From Commitments to Results” inBrussels. The half-day event set out the state of play on key issues, and the Alliance presented abrochure to European Commission Vice-President and Industry/Enterprise CommissionerVerheugen. The brochure containing illustrative case studies on concrete issues facing Europeanindustry today.

The Alliance for a Competitive European Industry is composed of 11 major European industry sectorassociations and BUSINESSEUROPE (formerly UNICE). The industry sectors concerned representthe interests at EU level of some 6,000 large companies and 1.7 million SMEs. The aim of theAlliance is to promote the competitiveness of industry, contribute to the implementation of theLisbon Agenda and to express the opinion of the business community on certain regulatory projects.

International Trade

Multilateral trade deal

>BACKGROUND

Following discussions and conditional offersmade at the World Trade Organization (WTO)Hong Kong Ministerial Conference inDecember 2005, negotiators seemed to havea good basis to advance the WTO’s DohaDevelopment Agenda (DDA). However, theintense negotiation process did not allow forthe bridging of major differences. In March,the six key negotiating parties agreed to draftmodalities by April, but it required furtherpolitical impetus at the G8 Summit in St. Petersburg to deliver draft referencepapers by the end of July. Despite seriousefforts by WTO Director General Lamy, nego-tiators of key countries were unable to findconsensus and the DDA moved into a periodof reflection until after the US mid-term elections in November. Technical discussionsresumed at the end of 2006.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA representatives continued to promoteEuropean food and drink industry interests in meetings with high-level officials ofDirectorates for Trade, Agriculture andEnterprise and also with their respectiveCommissioners. At the end of March, a CIAAdelegation also met with key WTO negotiatorsand agricultural experts from the EU, US,Brazil, India and ACP countries in Geneva.In these contacts, CIAA stressed the industrycommitment for reaching a balanced agricultureagreement. The objectives of the food and

drink industry were also further promoted incontacts with Members of the EuropeanParliament. CIAA provided technical input tothe work carried out by Commission serviceson market access and tariff simplification to ensure that the situation of processed products was adequately addressed.CIAA continued to express support for a successful conclusion of the DDA and thisremains a priority in CIAA’s trade policy.

>CHALLENGES

There is probably only a short window ofopportunity in the first few months of 2007 toconclude this round and to avoid putting it onhold for several years. Political leaders haverepeatedly signalled their commitment tomoving negotiations forward. Negotiators now have to make concrete commitmentsand concessions will be required by all sides.

For the food and drink industry, it is essentialto ensure an overall balance and coherencewithin the three pillars of the agricultureagreement : export competition, market accessand domestic support. The agreed end-datefor export refunds needs to be reciprocated byother parties on equivalent commitments oncredits, food aid and state trading enterprisesand their phasing out needs to follow internalreform steps and market access commit-ments.

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Global Europe - comprehensive newgeneration bilateraltrade initiatives

>BACKGROUND

Although the EU’s primary external focusremains the multilateral WTO DDA, in 2006the Commission stepped up its effort on bilat-eral initiatives and released at the beginningof October a strategic communication on exter-nal competitiveness entitled “Global Europe,competing in the world.” The aim of this newinitiative is to define global challenges and todraft a modern trade policy by effectively linking the EU internal Lisbon Growth and JobsAgenda with an external trade dimension.The EU’s position in the context of the globalisedeconomy should improve through a new generation of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs),which focus more on economic gains and realmarket access opportunities.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Since the publication of the “Global Europe”Communication in October, CIAA reviewed thepriorities of the food and drink industry and,in a position paper, welcomed the initiative.CIAA takes the view that negotiations onBilateral Trade Agreements (BTAs) must notundermine the ambition of the multilateralDDA, which remains a priority, but that theseBTAs can be complementary. The “GlobalEurope” initiative resumes the process of bilateral negotiations which the EU had put onhold for several years, whereas other trade

partners developed their own preferential traderelations. CIAA objectives take into account the main problem areas faced by EU exportersand focus on key target countries, which aremainly neighbouring countries and emergingeconomies. These food and drink industry priorities were presented to Commissioners,Commission officials, national experts andMEPs.

>CHALLENGES

The proposed “new generation” FTAs will haveto look beyond neighbourhood and developmentmotivations and focus rather on economic criteria such as greater market access andimproved business opportunities.

As the new FTAs are expected to becomprehensive and ambitious, CIAA needs tomake sure that EU food and drink industrysectors clearly express their needs and concerns in order to be taken into account witheach individual trading partner. Negotiationswill have to strike a balance between offensiveand defensive industry interests, between sectors looking for more competitive rawmaterial sources and improved export opportunities, and those which fear highercompetition on the EU market.

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International Trade

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Trade with Russia

>BACKGROUND

Trade with Russia has increased considerablyover the last few years. However, in 2006problems persisted in EU trade relationsbetween these trading partners and difficul-ties in certifying EU companies exporting toRussia have not been eliminated. Other regu-latory issues concerning products of animalorigin, alcoholic beverages and mineralwaters, for example, continue to create uncer-tainty, increasing costs and hampering trade.In addition, problems arose prior to the acces-sion of Romania and Bulgaria to the EU on 1 January 2007 because of suspected non-compliance with Russian standards.Due to the principle of free movement ofgoods between EU Member States, Russiathreatened to block all EU exports of productsconcerned. Intense discussions took place atthe end of the year between Russian authoritiesand the Commission’s services of DG Trade,DG Sanco and DG External Relations.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Because of its problematic record, trade withRussia is subject to regular monitoring. CIAAmembers expressed early concern about thepotential threat to exports and encouraged CIAA to maintain a link and information exchangebetween Commission services, national federations and operators. CIAA urged theCommissioners responsible and their services

to find a rapid solution to the imminent threatof a total export ban. The Commission succeeded in convincing their Russian counter-parts to lift the announced export ban on ani-mal products from EU Member States,however, the Polish case would be dealt withand resolved separately.

>CHALLENGES

In 2006, Russia was the second largest destination for Community exports of food anddrink industry products. This represented anexport value of nearly €4 billion and the upwardtrend remains. Russia is an important market,particularly for Eastern and Central Europeancountries. Russia is close to becoming a WTOmember and compliance with the Sanitary andPhyto-Sanitary (SPS) agreement should tosome extent remove existing problems. In themeantime, in the absence of a bilateral agree-ment, SPS issues fall within the competenceof Member States and national priorities canprevail over a common approach to a negotiated solution.

Exporting under competitive conditions

>BACKGROUND

The ambition of the new EU trade policy to besupportive of industry competitiveness effortsraises the question of how to ensure that legislation and procedures do not unnecessarilyhamper efforts to reach out on world markets.

Food and drink exports are subject to numerousconstraints. Many of these are administrativeprocedures which are related to the payment ofexport refunds and to the control of their appro-priate use. These export refunds will be subjectto an agreement on their phasing out in thecontext of the WTO, but in the meantime theycontinue to be paid as an instrument to com-pensate for higher EU agricultural prices.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

At technical level, CIAA has continued its support for a change in the requirements ofproviding documented proof of arrival in thecountry of destination. The existing procedureaims to prevent trade diversion and fraud withproducts having received export refunds.However, CIAA has argued that major costrelief for exporters could be reached throughgreater flexibility for the types of documentsproving export and by taking into account therisk of fraud according to different cases.DG Enterprise has introduced exemptions forcertain types of exporters and exports in itslegislation. DG Agriculture is still consideringamending the relevant legislation, and the texthas been included in the CAP simplificationaction plan. At a more political level, CIAA hasstrongly re-emphasised the need not to makeany unilateral commitment on the phasing outof export refunds or on refund budgets.

>CHALLENGES

Increasing the food and drink industry per-

International Trade

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formance in non-EU markets will contribute toenhanced growth opportunities. Addressinginternal factors impeding this is a keyrequirement in developing a comprehensiveexport strategy.

Customs

>BACKGROUND

The existing Customs Code is out of date andhas hence been identified as an area forrecasting and modernisation. This processshould enable the streamlining and the simplification of customs procedures, therebyfacilitating trade whilst ensuring more effectivecustoms controls, and adapting the rulestowards common standards for IT systems. TheCommission proposal, adopted in November2005, is now under co-decision procedure.

Together with this process, further to theapproval of the Council Regulation onincreased security measures at the EU’s external borders, the Commission and theCustoms Code Committee worked on the draftimplementation Regulation which was finallyadopted in October.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

At a high-level conference organised by BUSINESSEUROPE in July, CIAA welcomedinitiatives aimed at radically simplifying andmodernising customs legislation. Current procedures make export business expensive

and the opening up of markets difficult. In thecontext of the “Security Amendments,” CIAArequested the Commission and the MemberStates to strike a balance between securityand freedom of trade. In particular, CIAAregretted the lack of benefits for the authorisedeconomic operators. Intensive lobbying actionsof the business community enabled theacceptance of some improvements to the proposal, notably a delay in the implementationof the main security measures.

Moreover, for CIAA, the modernisation of thecustoms code is the right opportunity toimprove economic customs regimes, such asthe Inward Processing Regime, so that opera-tors can benefit from faster, more uniform andstraightforward procedures.

>CHALLENGES

During the co-decision procedure on the modernised customs code and the up-cominglong debate on the implementation rules, CIAAwill stress its primary expectations regardingcustoms matters. Trade facilitation and securitymeasures must be developed in a coherentand mutually supportive way. This processmust also contribute to the creation of a genuine single market for customs in the EU.The modernisation of the customs legislationis linked with the creation of an electronicpaperless environment. CIAA fully supports the Commission’s initiatives to encourageMember States to implement e-customs.

Preferential rules of origin

>BACKGROUND

In March 2005, the Commission presented acommunication proposing a new approach todetermining rules of origin in preferentialagreements with non-EU countries. Thereform of rules of origin is aimed at definingfair, uniform, flexible and development-friendlytrade rules. The Directorate General in chargeof Customs considered that a totally new sys-tem based on a value-added criterion wouldbe a better solution than a simple revision ofthe current model. The reform also includes two modified procedures based on increasedresponsibility of operators and improved cooperation between customs authorities.Specific studies and a general impact assess-ment have been carried out to provide guidanceto Commission services. Divergent opinionsbetween the Directorates General involved will have to be overcome before legislativeproposals can be released.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA stressed that changing rules of originalong the lines proposed by the Commissionwould have an important impact on the wayoperators manage imports and exports. In aletter sent to Commissioner Kovacs, CIAAemphasised that the proposed reform wouldbring no gains for operators in terms of

simplification and neither in terms of supportfor development.

CIAA members consider that the new valueadded method would add further complexitiesand administrative burdens and would increasethe potential for fraud. Moreover, the newprocedures would also lead to additional com-mercial and legal risks for operators. Onesingle criterion for all products, includingfood and drink, is inappropriate and insufficient.

Throughout 2006, CIAA raised awareness ofindustry concerns in contacts with differentCommission Directorates General and with theEuropean Parliament, highlighting that theproposed method should not apply as such tothe food and drink sector.

>CHALLENGES

The economic repercussions of this new concept, were it to be adopted, continue topreoccupy many sectors of the food and drinkindustry. CIAA’s objective is to make sure thatthe food and drink industry benefits fromtreatment compatible with the realities of itscommercial operations.Beyond a first implementation in the frame-work of General System of Preference (GSP)and the Economic Partnership Agreements(EPA), the Commission’s intention is to extendthe new approach to all existing and futurepreferential arrangements.

AgriculturalPolicy

Common AgriculturalPolicy

>BACKGROUND

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) simplifi-cation, which fits in the wider concept of thebetter regulation strategy, has become a highpriority within the Commission services.DG Agriculture has initiated a number of concreteactions, such as the “cleaning up” and simpli-fication of legislation, the creation of a singleCommon Market Organisation (CMO) and thesimplification of state aid rules. Followingdebates with stakeholders, in October DG Agriculture came up with a detailed 20-pointaction plan for regulatory simplification.A proposal for a single CMO replacing the 21 different sectoral texts was submitted inDecember.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA very much welcomed the Commission’sobjective of regulatory simplification becausethe food and drink industry is subjected to anumber of administrative procedures derivedfrom the agricultural policy. CIAA has thereforeidentified specific regulations where a revisionof existing rules would lead to clear and truebenefits for operators. These expectations ofthe food and drink industry were promoted, inparticular during the conference entitled “A simple CAP for Europe, a challenge for all,”organised by DG Agriculture in October.Several of the regulatory changes that werestrongly supported by CIAA over several

months were already included in the draftaction plan issued by DG Agriculture inOctober. Some further industry requests forsimplification and improvement of regulatoryprovisions were submitted as formal CIAA proposals by the end of 2006.

As for the single CMO initiative, CIAA hasexpressed scepticism on a positive impact thiskind of simplification may have on operators,because it would not substantially modify the amount of procedures operators have to comply with.

>CHALLENGES

In the years to come, CAP will undergo impor-tant changes according to the following threesteps : in 2007, efforts will focus on technicalsimplification of the existing legislation andthe concrete legislative texts on the singleCMO will come under scrutiny; in 2008, the“Health Check” will provide adjustments to theCAP in view of continuing its modernisationprocess; in 2008/2009 the general review ofthe EU budget will include a reflection paperon the CAP beyond 2013.

CAP simplification has the potential to providereal improvements for operators. CIAA is committed to re-emphasise the need forfurther change, notably on the regulation settingthe scheme for the promotion of agriculturalproducts. Several changes to the CAPinstruments, such as the ending of set-aside,the increased compulsory modulation, theremoval of several exceptions to the principle

16

of full decoupling or the extension of simplifiedpayment schemes will be on the table of theup-coming CAP reviews. Given that industryneeds a competitive, market-oriented andsustainable system of agriculture, CIAA willelaborate its expectations regarding the futureof the CAP during the first months of 2007.

Quality of agriculturalproduction

>BACKGROUND

Quality is a very broad concept and has different meanings throughout the food chain.Considering the constant increase of QualityAssurance and Certification Schemes (QAS),the European Parliament has requested theCommission to analyse the opportunity toimplement a Community legal framework forthe protection of such schemes.DG Agriculture commissioned the JointResearch Center (JRC) to carry out a pilot studyon QAS. Some work had already been under-taken which provided a study of food supplychain dynamics and quality certification in dif-ferent Member States and assessed differentapproaches regarding an EU framework forquality schemes.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In May, CIAA took an active part in the hearingon food quality organised by the Commissionwith the aim of completing the findingspreviously obtained. From a general point ofview, CIAA recalled the vital importance of

separating the concept of regulatory (notablyfood safety) from that of quality requirements.Indeed, regulatory requirements are based onstrict community or national requirements,while food quality is the responsibility of theprivate sector and is judged by the market.The industry stressed during this process thatthere should be no additional legislation onrequirements beyond legal. This approach wasshared by other stakeholders (traders, farmers).CIAA put forward some proposals, driven bythe industry and in collaboration with otherstakeholders of the food chain, aimed at pro-viding improvements, notably transparency,within the context of QAS.

>CHALLENGES

During forthcoming discussions about acommunity approach to quality assurance andduring a conference organised by the GermanPresidency in February 2007, CIAA willendeavour to remind those concerned thatultimately it is up to consumers to judge thequality of a product.

Biofuels and supply ofagricultural raw materials

>BACKGROUND

In the context of a fundamental review ofEuropean energy policy, in December 2005the Commission presented a biomass actionplan aimed at promoting renewable energysources. The strategy on biofuels, part of thisaction plan, was also submitted in February

17

2006. The proposed EU Biofuels Strategy is based on seven policy axes to promote the production and the use of biofuels in transport. This strategy should help in meetingthe target, set in 2003, of reaching 5.75%market share for biofuels by 2010 in the overall EU transport fuel supply.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA formulated a food and drink industryposition on the development of biofuels.Avoiding distortion and disruption in the agricultural raw materials’ markets is essential for the food and drink industry.Monitoring the impact of the biofuels strategyon markets and the availability of basic productsfor food production was therefore part of theformulated recommendations. CIAA used theconsultation launched by the DirectorateGeneral for Energy and Transport later in theyear to stress the current imbalance withinthe biofuels market. Biodiesel and bioethanolrepresent around 80% and 20% of the EUbiofuels production respectively. 80% of biodiesel production is made with rapeseed

oil. In the framework of the review of the biofuels policy, CIAA called on the Commissionto tackle these imbalances and promote thediversification of feedstock used for biofuels’production and the development of second-generation biofuels.

>CHALLENGES

The publication of the report on the BiofuelsDirective in early 2007 is the beginning of aseries of reports and legislative reviews thathave been announced. Concerns on securingenergy supplies, on reducing fossil fueldependence, on cutting green house gasemissions are likely to push EU leaders intostepping up both objectives and instrumentsin order to reach the declared goals. It will beessential in this debate to stress that food andnon-food sectors will be competing for thesame raw materials. Fair and undistortedmarket conditions will be needed, to avoid anegative impact in food production, whichremains a strategic activity in the EU.

Food Safety

18

EUROPEAN FOOD SAFETY AUTHORITYSince 2002, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has provided independent scientificadvice on all matters linked to food and feed safety. In an EFSA evaluation survey, CIAA was invitedto submit comments evaluating EFSA’s performance, and the results of this survey were published in 2006.

The survey found that in the short period of its existence, EFSA had built up a reputation of inde-pendence and credibility; however, in order to maintain this reputation, the hiring of more scien-tific staff, and the ensured participation of the required number of internationally recognised scientists on panels, was essential. CIAA noted that increased and stable financial resourceswere also needed and expressed concern with regard to any budget cut, and argued that itremained unclear whether or not the introduction of fees for scientific evaluations would over-come this.

CIAA is also an active member of the EFSA Stakeholder Consultative Platform. In October 2006,EFSA re-elected Chair and Vice-Chairs of this Platform. John Wood, CIAA’s representative, was re-elected Vice-Chair for a further three-year period.

The core members of the Food SafetyPlatform are the representativeEuropean sector organisations of theseven main partners in the food chain.

■ Farmers/Cooperatives: COPA COGECA■ Agri-food Trade: CELCAA■ Feed Producers: FEFAC■ Food Producers: CIAA■ Retail/Wholesale/Import/Export:

EuroCommerce■ Food Service: EMRA■ Consumers: BEUC

The Food Safety Platform met threetimes during 2006 to discuss variousissues of common interest, namely thefunctioning of the EU Rapid Alert Systemfor Food and Feed and EFSA relationswith stakeholders, in addition to morespecific issues such as contaminantsand Plant-Made Pharmaceuticals(PMPs). To this end, the platform hasfrequently welcomed speakers from theEuropean Commission and EFSA.

FOOD SAFETY PLATFORM

Food Hygiene

>BACKGROUND

The EU’s legislative “Hygiene Package,” adoptedby the European Parliament and Council inApril 2004, aims to combine and harmonisecomplex hygiene requirements which had previously been dispersed across seventeenDirectives. The legislation entered into forceon 1 January 2006. To facilitate the applicationof the revised rules, implementing measures andtransitional arrangements were adopted, whichentered into force on the same day.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The main objective of the re-launched HygieneGroup is to ensure that the hygiene regime is infact workable and, to this end, CIAA circulatedan in-depth questionnaire in November seekingmembership feedback on the enforcement ofthe package by competent authorities.

>CHALLENGES

While more streamlined than previous hygienerequirements, the package remains none-theless complex. CIAA therefore welcomes the decision by the Commission to launch astakeholder consultation in January 2007 onexperiences gained to date from the imple-mentation of the hygiene Regulations and onthe difficulties which have arisen, with a viewto drafting a report and, if appropriate,legislative proposals.

Food Ingredients

>BACKGROUND

The European framework legislation on additivesand flavourings is currently being thoroughlyrevised. Within this context, the Commissionhas developed a package of four proposals :

■ a Regulation on food additives, amendingand replacing the Additives FrameworkDirective 89/107/EEC;

■ a new Regulation on food enzymes, settinggeneral requirements and establishing acommunity list of food enzymes;

■ a Regulation on flavourings and food ingredients with flavouring properties, bringingcertain food ingredients with flavouring properties under the scope of the Regulationand replacing the Flavourings FrameworkDirective 88/388/EEC;

■ a new Regulation centralising the authorisationprocedures for additives, enzymes andflavourings.

This package of proposals was adopted by theCommission in July, and then sent to theEuropean Parliament and Council in accor-dance with the co-decision procedure.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA submitted comments on the draftCommission proposals in 2005, and waspleased to see that most of these commentswere taken up in the final Commission proposals adopted in July. 19

Food Safety

20

Over the second half of 2006, CIAA consultedits membership extensively to assemble thefood and drink industry’s views on the finalCommission proposals submitted to theEuropean Parliament and the Council. CIAA’sdetailed comments on the final Commissionproposals should be finalised in early 2007.

>CHALLENGES

Package of proposalsDuring the upcoming co-decision procedure inthe European Parliament and Council, CIAA willprovide comments on the Commission proposalsto express the view of food and drink manu-facturers, in their capacity as major users offood additives, enzymes and flavourings in theprocessing of their products. This will includestrong support for the Commission proposal tointroduce comitology as the common authori-sation procedure for Food Additives, FoodEnzymes and Food Flavourings.

Food categorisation systemCIAA will continue its involvement in therecently created Commission Working Groupto address the transfer of the existing additivesauthorisations (currently in the specific additives Directives) into the new annex of theproposal for a Regulation on food additives.CIAA and its members will contribute technicalinput to the task of defining the appropriatefood categories in which to allocate the existing additives’ authorisations.

IntakesCIAA will also be actively involved in the workof the new Commission Ad Hoc WorkingGroup on Intake Assessment, in collaborationwith Member States and other sectors in thefood chain.

REACH

On 13 December, the European Parliament

adopted its second reading of REACH,

widely endorsing a compromise package

agreed by the three institutions. This

compromise does not amend the

provisions agreed in the Council first

reading Common Position regarding the

exclusion of food and feed covered by

Regulation 178/2002/EC (General Food

Law) from the scope of the main chapters

in REACH (provisions in Article 2 excluding

food and feed from the scope of titles II, IV, V,

VI and VII). Food and drink manufacturers

will still be affected by REACH as down-

stream users of products covered by this

Regulation, such as packaging materials

or cleaning products. It is the responsibili-

ty of the manufacturers of these products

to register them under Reach, but food

and drink companies have to ensure that

the use for a food and drink industry appli-

cation is also notified by the producer.

Food Safety

21

Food Contact Materials

>BACKGROUND

In 2006 the Commission worked on severalproposals in the area of food contact materials,amongst which:

■ a 4th amendment to the Plastics Directive(2002/72/EC). CIAA’s main concern for foodand drink producers is, to be entitled toinformation from packaging producersregarding the qualitative composition of thepackaging and substances that may migrateinto foods.

■ a draft Regulation relating to restrictionsapplying to closures, addressing the legalsituation for PVC gaskets in lids intended forfood contact applications, and the restrictionsapplicable to the use of phthalates for foodcontact applications. The measures applyingto PVC gaskets in lids were transferred intothe 4th amendment to the Plastics Directiveend of 2006.

■ a draft Regulation on active and intelligentpackaging, i.e. materials and articles whichare intended to extend the shelf-life, tomaintain, improve, or monitor the conditionof packaged food.

■ a draft Regulation on recycled plastic materials and articles intended to come intocontact with foodstuffs. This proposal aims toharmonise existing national legislation regard-ing the use of recycled plastic materials in foodcontact applications, and to establish commonrules across the EU to ensure their safety.

■ a draft Regulation establishing good manu-facturing practices for food contact materials.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Joint industry groups with the supply chain:CIAA is currently involved in several “jointindustry groups” with the packaging supplychain, including groups dealing with: metal clo-sures, packaging inks, coatings as well as expo-sure and transfer of compositional informationin the plastics supply chain. Highlights on theachievements of some of these groups include:

PlasticsAs regards the provisions on the declaration of compliance for plastic packaging, CIAA iscooperating with packaging producers todevelop a procedure which ensures that foodoperators are entitled to sufficient informationabout the qualitative composition of the packaging.

ClosuresCIAA and the Light Metal PackagingManufacturers Association (SEFEL) havebeen working together in the “Metal VacuumClosures Industry Group” (MVC-IG) since2003, in order to address different issuesregarding closures technology, while developingand implementing new technologies forplasticisers in metal caps.

Packaging inksA “Packaging Inks Joint Industry Task Force”was created in early 2006 under the initiative

of CIAA and comprising representatives fromprinting ink manufacturers, packaging manu-facturers and food and drink industry. Its aimis to become a reference group, providing asource of expertise along the supply chain forgaining knowledge, assessing and controllingthe risks of contamination of the food contactsurface from the use of packaging inks.

>CHALLENGES

PlasticsCIAA will continue its dialogue with theplastics industry to agree on best practice toensure that food operators are informed aboutthe qualitative composition and migrationbehaviour of packaging material.

Recycled contentCIAA welcomes and supports this new proposal,harmonising and setting common rules at EUlevel. CIAA is looking forward to the finalisationand adoption of this text, to which it willcontribute comments.

Packaging inksThe “Packaging Inks Joint Industry Task Force”work programme, launched in 2006, is on trackto deliver the first results in data collection andassessment of substances in 2007. CIAA willcontinue its active involvement in the task force,to ensure the development of a framework for the assessment and control of the risk of contamination from packaging inks.

Food Safety

22

Commission proposalsCIAA will continue to follow the Commissionproposals under development and the work of the Commission working group on FoodContact Materials, in order to guarantee thatthe food and drink industry’s views are takeninto consideration.

Acrylamide

>BACKGROUND

Early in 2002, the Swedish National FoodAuthority and the University of Stockholm jointlyannounced that they had found significant levelsof acrylamide in starch-based foods that hadformed as a result of heating at high tempera-tures. According to international risk assess-ments (IARC 1994), acrylamide is a “probablehuman carcinogen” (class 2A). The Swedishfindings were rapidly confirmed by several othergovernments and subsequently, all available dataon acrylamide was reviewed at internationallevel by the World Health Organization (WHO),the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) ofthe United Nations, the European Commission’sScientific Committee on Food (SCF), and finally,in February 2005 by the FAO/WHO JointCommittee on Food Additives (JECFA). The for-mation of acrylamide under the prescribed con-ditions and in the presence of asparagine is aglobal food industry issue and cannot be con-sidered a new issue, but one which was firstidentified in food in early 2000.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Under the auspices of the EuropeanCommission, but driven by CIAA, a scientificworkshop on acrylamide and other processcontaminants was held in March 2006. Theworkshop sought to share scientific findings,communicated and discussed further mitigationstrategies with regulators, scientists andindustry both from Europe and further afield.The workshop proceedings will be publishedin a special issue of the scientific journal FoodAdditives and Contaminants. The results ofthis scientific workshop were incorporated intothe 9th revision of the CIAA Toolbox publishedin September and focus on tools to try to miti-gate acrylamide.

Meanwhile, pamphlets targeting SMEs weredeveloped in close cooperation with nationalgovernments, and were presented at aCommission meeting of governmental expertsand other stakeholders in November.

Pamphlets for the following sectors have beendeveloped:

NOVEL FOODSIn February, an online consultation on therevision of the Novel Food Regulation258/97/EC was launched by theCommission. The objective of the consulta-tion was to gather input from the general public, stakeholders and Member States inorder to carry out an impact assessmentfor a future legislative proposal aimed atrevising the current Regulation.

In its contribution CIAA focused on :

■ The overall financial burden of a minimum two to three year delay in thereturn on R&D investment;

■ Costs and time lost to provide informationwhich may not be relevant for the safetyassessment, due to the absence of aprocedure for iterative discussion with theapplicants during the safety assessmentsteps;

■ Lack of predictability in procedures,disrupting the marketing campaign andlaunch of products.

1 3-MCPD, a chemical process contaminant, can occur at lowlevels in certain foods as a result of processing.

■ Bread■ Biscuits■ French fries ■ Cereal products

CIAA has also contributed to the developmentof Codex acrylamide and 3 MCPD guidelines.1

>CHALLENGES

■ Assist national governments in traininginspectors to investigate acrylamide mitigationin the food industry and advise on the properuse of the pamphlets, if so requested.

■ The European Commission will shortly publishacrylamide-monitoring procedures for MemberStates. CIAA should closely follow the resultsand encourage CIAA members to further con-tinue efforts to mitigate acrylamide.

■ CIAA intends to extend the scope of the acrylamide technical Expert Group to otherprocess contaminants and to actively contribute to data collection.

Food Safety

23

GMOs

>BACKGROUND

Regulations 1829/2003/EC and1830/2003/EC on Genetically ModifiedOrganisms (GMOs) entered into force on19 April 2004. This legislation defines rulesfor the placing on the market and the labellingof GMOs; it also sets rules for any GMO contamination of conventional foods and inaddition, defines GMO traceability rules. CIAAcontributed to these reports and highlightedproblems in the application of Regulation1829/2003, in particular, the labelling of GMOproducts for which testing cannot be applieddue to the absence of GMO-derived protein orDNA or the non-availability of reference mate-rial. Reports on the implementation of theseRegulations were published in 2006. One sec-tion in particular deals with the adventitiouscontamination of food and feed with non-authorised GMO events, such as LL rice 601or BT 10 maize, of which the LL Rice 601issue in particular had an impact on ourindustry.

Subsequently, the Commission publishedemergency measures to prevent such contaminated products from entering theEuropean market. The enforcement of theseemergency measures proved to be difficult,which led to difficult outcomes for traders,industry and retailers.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In 2006, CIAA updated its GMO guidelines formembers, which will be re-published soon.

In November 2006, the Commission publishedrevised emergency measures on LL rice 601contamination, now including the official sampling and testing methods, thereby preventing further damage to industry.

CIAA very much welcomed the fact that at thesixth session of the ad hoc Codex Task Forceon Food Derived from Modern Biotechnology(27 November - 2 December) the EU supported the US proposal to consider “FoodSafety Assessment on Low Level Presence ofRecombinant-DNA Plant Material in FoodResulting from Asynchronous Authorisation”at the Codex Task Force.

>CHALLENGES

According to Article 48 of Regulation1829/2003, the implementation report couldbe accompanied, where appropriate, by anysuitable review proposal by the Commission.Such a proposal has not yet been presented.In the light of findings within the implementa-tion report of contamination with non-autho-rised GMOs and in order to prevent excessivedamage to the food and drink industry, such aproposal should be considered.

CIAA will become more involved in CodexAlimentarius work to properly address theissue, since this is obviously a global issue.

CIAA INCIDENTMANAGEMENT SYSTEMIn summer 2006, the CIAA Board approvedthe establishment of a CIAA IncidentManagement System in order to assist thefood and drink industry to take promptaction in response to emerging/potentialfood safety incidents. The system comprisesa permanent Incident Management Group(IMG) to coordinate the identification ofemerging incidents, in addition to IncidentTeams, each formed in response to a spe-cific incident and dedicated to its manage-ment on a day-to-day basis. The efficiencyof the system was subsequently provedfollowing the discovery of the unauthorisedGM LL rice 601 in August 2006 (see above).

INTERNATIONALSTANDARDS CODEX ALIMENTARIUSIn June 2005, CIAA re-launched itsInternational Standards Expert Group,tasked with actively participating in thedevelopment of international regulations.CIAA submitted a number of positions toCodex Alimentarius throughout the courseof 2006 on, for example, the “DraftDiscussion Paper on Acrylamide” in May,the “Code of Practice for the Processingand Handling of Quick Frozen Foods” inNovember, and the “Proposed DraftDefinition of Advertising in Relation toNutrition and Health Claims” in December.

ETP Food for Life

24

>BACKGROUND

As defined in EURAB 04.010-final (January2004), a European Technology Platform (ETP)is “a major mission-oriented initiative aimed atstrengthening Europe’s capacity to organiseand deliver innovation - strengthening theEurope-wide innovation process. It will bringtogether relevant stakeholders to identify theinnovation challenge, develop the necessaryresearch programme and implement theresults.”

The food and drink industry responded to thischallenge and an ETP Food for Life VisionDocument was published in July 2005.Chaired by Professor Peter van Bladeren ofNestlé, the industry-led ETP Board overseesthe work of the platform including all Expert

Working Groups (WGs) and their specifictasks. These WGs are composed of academicsand representatives of industry and majorstakeholders of the food chain, such as consumers, farmers and retailers and theyplay a pivotal role in pinpointing and identifyingthe major innovation challenges that lie aheadfor Europe’s food and drink industry.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The WGs developed a draft StakeholderStrategic Research Agenda (SSRA) that identified seven trans-disciplinary challengesdeemed necessary to stimulate and underpininnovation in the short, medium and long-term. These include:

■ Ensuring that the healthy choice is the easychoice for consumers;

■ Delivering a healthy diet;

■ Developing value-added food products withsuperior quality, convenience, availability andaffordability;

■ Assuring safe foods that consumers can trust;

■ Achieving sustainable food production;

■ Food Chain Management

■ Communication, Training and TechnologyTransfer.

The SSRA was the subject of an ExpertConsultation on 2 February 2006 in Brussels.In order to ensure that the final StrategicResearch Agenda (SRA) will reflect the needsand opportunities of the whole of Europe,national, regional and web consultations were

Food Safety

Sustainable Food Production

Food Quality &Manufacturing

Food &Health

Food &Consumer

Communication,Training &

Technology Transfer

Food Chain Management

Schematic presentation of the research areas requiredto reach the vision of the ETP Food for Life

organised during the period March-December.Furthermore, as a direct result of the consul-tation process, a network of almost 20National Food Platforms has been successfullyestablished. ETP Food for Life supports thisnetwork of National Food Platforms as a useful tool in communicating and addressingthe needs and opportunities of the platformacross Europe.

Moreover, the SSRA was submitted to theEuropean Commission in March 2006 to contribute to the definition of the requirementsand priorities for the European Commission’s7th Framework Programme (FP7).The Commission carefully considered the document, the result being that ETP Food forLife SSRA based topics are well representedin the FP7 first calls for proposals which werepublished in December. Finally, CIAA success-fully applied for EU financial support along thelines of the specific support action of FP6, andthis has helped quite substantially with thesmooth running of the platform.

The ETP Food for Life SSRA will be:

■ Revised in February 2007 taking intoaccount the broad consultation input, and afinal Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) willbe drafted and agreed by the ETP Boardbefore being published in March/April 2007;

■ Translated into easy-to-read “layman versions” suitable for the various stakeholdersectors, and will be disseminated and publi-cised to ensure agreement and commitment.

>CHALLENGES

A crucial next step in enforcing the SRA willbe the delivery of an Implementation Plan (IP).The IP will need to prioritise research, trainingand communication activities, which areessential for enhanced innovation in the short-to-medium term, together with IP manage-ment and funding strategies. The IP will bedeveloped and tailored to the needs of (larger)food companies and high-tech SMEs on theone hand, and medium and low-tech SMEs onthe other.

25

ETP VISIONThe vision of the ETP on Food for Life isthat an effective integration of strategically-focused, transnational, concerted researchin the nutritional, food and consumer sciences and food chain management willdeliver innovative, novel and improvedfood products for, and to, national, regionaland global markets in line with consumerneeds and expectations. These products,together with recommended changes indietary regimes and lifestyles, will have apositive impact on public health and over-all quality of life (‘adding life to years’).Such targeted activities will support a suc-cessful and competitive pan-Europeanfood and drink industry having global busi-ness leadership securely based on eco-nomic growth, technology transfer, sus-tainable food production, and consumerconfidence.

CIAA’s ETP website

can be found on

http://etp.ciaa.eu

26

Consumer information and labelling, more

specifically nutrition labelling is also one of the

areas for action in the framework of the EU

Platform for Action on Diet, Physical Activity

and Health, where stakeholders commit

themselves to specific actions.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA’s Recommendation for a Voluntary

Nutrition Labelling Scheme, adopted by the

Board at the end of June 2006 and

announced on 4 July at the Platform meeting,

was a concrete follow-up action of the CIAA

Nutrition Labelling

>BACKGROUND

DG Sanco is expected to present a proposalfor legislation to revise existing nutritionlabelling rules (Directive 90/496/EEC) by theend of 2007. Nutrition labelling was oneimportant chapter within a broad public consultation on a DG Sanco ConsultativeDocument entitled “Labelling: Competitiveness,Consumer Information and Better Regulationin the EU” that took place in 2006. Amongstothers, the Commission sought views on:mandatory versus voluntary nutrition information, the placement of nutrition information, origin labelling, health warningstatements on alcoholic beverages, GMOlabelling and more general issues.

commitment made at the platform towardsthe end of 2005 in relation to consumer information and labelling.

The CIAA recommendation, which includesfront-of-pack and back-of-pack nutritionlabelling, is based on a uniform list of nutrients, nutrition information per serving andthe introduction of Guideline Daily Amounts(GDAs). A key element of the system is theconsistency of the nutrition information thatwill be provided to consumers across Europe,on the basis of a common framework that will enable them to easily understand the

REVIEW OF LABELLING LEGISLATION>BACKGROUND

In February 2006 the Dutch Ministry for Health, Welfare and Sport and the UK Food StandardsAgency organised a conference aimed at providing a platform for discussion about food labellingissues important to Member States and stakeholders, including the European Commission. It focused on the future of food labelling and the role of the label itself. At the event, DG Sanco officials presented the Consultative Document on “Labelling :Competitiveness, Consumer Information and Better Regulation in the EU,” addressing questionson the future of labelling, which was later sent out for consultation in March with a deadline forcomments by mid-June. CIAA’s objective in relation to the review of EU labelling rules is to ensure that the Commissionproposal contains the essentials for better regulation and simplification. These include:■ Impact assessment;■ Clarity;■ Legislation should be achievable and enforceable;■ Legislation must keep a science-based approach;■ Procedures should be clear, predictable, including precise and appropriate timetables;■ Lead-in times should, where possible, be sufficient to minimise implementation costs.

ConsumerInformation

nutritional content of food and drink products.

The Nutrition Labelling Scheme recommendedby CIAA is a voluntary system that food anddrink companies in the EU can work towardsimplementing on product labels over time,according to what is relevant and feasible forindividual operators. The scheme can beimplemented progressively and it provides theflexibility to achieve common EU-wide adapta-tions within product categories, taking intoaccount sector specificities. Implementation ofthe scheme will be monitored.

In July 2006, just two weeks after theannouncement of CIAA’s Nutrition LabellingScheme as a recommendation to members,Coca-Cola, Danone, Kellogg’s, Kraft Foods,Nestlé, PepsiCo and Unilever announced theywould begin implementing its recommenda-tions immediately.

CIAA is in the process of finalising the develop-ment of a set of tools designed to help opera-tors implement the CIAA recommendation.A series of instruments are being developedaround three building blocks: information,skills and communication.

CIAA is also developing the tools to monitorthe implementation of the scheme acrossEurope.

>CHALLENGES

The challenge is to substantially increase, inthe coming months, the uptake of the schemethroughout Europe.

The scheme will be adapted by product cate-gories as relevant and feasible for individualoperators through the relevant European Sectororganisations. CIAA members FEDIOL andUNESDA already delivered their input in 2006.

Nutrition and healthclaims

>BACKGROUND

The final and agreed text of the Nutrition andHealth Claims Regulation (EC/1924/2006) was finally published in the Official Journal on18 January 2007. The Regulation is still to beamended to introduce the new comitologyprocedure, established by Council Decision2006/512/EC of 17 July 2006.

Further steps are needed to implement thenew rules. EFSA’s priorities are to provideguidelines to assist food business operators insubmitting dossiers and to give scientificadvice on setting nutrient profiles (Article 4).Member States shall provide the Commissionwith lists of generic claims/health relation-ships as referred to in Article 13.1 by 31January 2008 and operators are to preparescientifically substantiated applications forauthorisation of specific claims.

To provide its contribution to the Communitylist of generic claims/health relationships,under Article 13, CIAA joined forces with boththe European Responsible Nutrition Alliance(ERNA) and the European Health ProductManufacturers (EHPM) on compiling a list of

27

health relationships based on and substantiatedby generally accepted scientific evidence.The Commission and Member States agreedthat claims/relationships included in this listshould be provided in a standard format con-taining the following information: food catego-ry/foodcomponent, health relationship, sug-gested conditions of use, nature of evidence,references and example of wording.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Following the presentation of the industry’swork at a Commission meeting with MemberStates on 10 July, most Member Statesagreed that the CIAA/ERNA/EHPM suggestedformat was suitable for submitting claims in astandard format. Currently, the three organisa-tions are in the process of finalising their lists.

>CHALLENGES

The challenge is to finalise the industry contri-bution ahead of the above-mentioned deadline.Concerning nutrient profiles, the challenge isto set profiles in such a way as to encourageinnovation and be flexible enough to ensurethat, within each product category, operatorshave an incentive to develop healthier options.

Addition of vitamins,minerals and other substances to foodstuffs

>BACKGROUND

The final text of the Addition of Vitamins andMinerals to Foodstuffs Legislation

(EC/1925/2006) was published in the OfficialJournal on 30 December. It entered into forceon 19 January 2007. The Regulation is still tobe amended to introduce the new comitologyprocedure established by Council Decision2006/512/EC of 17 July 2006.

The DG Sanco Discussion Paper on the settingof maximum and minimum amounts for vita-mins and minerals in foodstuffs, published inJune, invited responses from stakeholders onsix specific aspects of the methodology to beused for the setting of maximum levelsaccording to Article 6.1 of the Regulation.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

As far as CIAA is concerned, the most impor-tant condition for adding any vitamin or miner-al to a food is that it must be safe for the con-sumer. This principle forms the basis of theCommission’s proposal, and food safety mustbe the sole criterion applied when settingmaximum thresholds for the addition of vita-mins or minerals to foodstuffs.

>CHALLENGES

The next stage in the process is to make aproposal on the method to set the maximumlevels for vitamins and minerals, to whichCIAA will contribute.

Diet, nutrition & health

28

Among the issues raised in the Green Paper were :

■ Consumer information, advertising and marketing: are voluntary codes (self-regulation) adequate tools for limitingthe advertising and marketing of energy-dense and micronutrient-poor foods? Which measures should be considered ifself-regulation fails?

■ Consumer education; how can consumersbe best enabled to make informed choices?

■ A focus on children and young people : howcan the media, health services, civil societyand relevant sectors of industry supporthealth education efforts made by schools?

■ Food availability, physical activity and healtheducation at the work place.

Responses from interested parties to theissues raised in the Green Paper were to besubmitted by mid-March 2006.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In coordination with its members, CIAA examined in detail the Commission’s GreenPaper and in April sent its comments,reflecting the collective concerns of theEuropean food and drink industry. A reportsummarising the contributions was publishedon the Commission’s website in June.

>CHALLENGES

In light of the results of the consultationprocess, the Commission is reflecting upon themost appropriate follow-up, and is consideringmeasures that may need to be proposed, as

European CommissionGreen Paper “Promoting healthy dietsand physical activity”

>BACKGROUND

In December 2005, the Commission publisheda Green Paper entitled, “Promoting healthydiets and physical activity: towards a EuropeanStrategy for the prevention of overweight, obe-sity and chronic diseases.” The purpose ofthis Green Paper was to open up a broad-based consultation process by way of launch-ing in-depth discussions, involving the EUinstitutions, Member States and civil societyon the development of a Community Strategyon diet, physical activity and health.

well as instruments for their implementation.A White Paper/Action Plan on nutrition iswidely expected by Spring 2007.

The increasing prevalence of obesity is a chal-lenge not only for the food and drink industry,but also for society in general. It is a multifac-torial issue – one which CIAA members willcontinue to address – now and in the future,along with all other relevant stakeholders.

WHO EuropeanMinisterial Conferenceon CounteractingObesity

>BACKGROUND

On 16 November, Dr Marc Danzon, WorldHealth Organization (WHO) Regional Directorfor Europe, and Professor Recep Akdag,Turkish Minister for Health, signed a EuropeanCharter on Counteracting Obesity on behalf ofall of the Member States in the WHOEuropean Region. The signing took place atthe WHO European Ministerial Conference onCounteracting Obesity held in Istanbul, Turkey.

The European charter on CounteractingObesity has the ultimate goal of curbing theobesity epidemic and reversing the currenttrend in Europe. The Charter sets out theframework, linking the main actors, policytools and settings, needed to translate theadopted principles into effective action.In addition, the charter commits MemberStates to putting obesity high on their politicalagendas and in developing concrete partner-ships with relevant stakeholders.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The importance of the involvement and roleplayed by the private sector including industryand the need to have a coordinated approachwhen addressing the complex issue of obesity,are among those issues mentioned in theEuropean Charter.

At a satellite event forum on the fringes of theWHO summit organised by the EuropeanCommission, and specifically aimed at focusingon public-private partnerships, CIAA stressedits commitment to continue working withWHO, the European Commission, publicauthorities and relevant stakeholders in thepromotion of healthy lifestyles and in finding‘win-win’ solutions in the fight against obesity.One of the consensual key messages put forward at the forum was that through voluntary cooperation and partnership, fasterresults could be achieved.

>CHALLENGES

Translating the framework provided by thecharter into concrete action will be the nextstep. The WHO “Action Plan for Europe,” dueby Spring 2007, will set out how the chartershould be set in motion. A draft of this actionplan is currently under consultation byMember States. Several Member States havehighlighted that any action plan and the seriesof recommendations contained therein, be onlyimplemented according to national contextand circumstances. For example, certaincountries are currently facing malnutrition andother health problems.

Continuing industry efforts to strengthen self-regulatory mechanisms, promoting ‘win-win’public-private partnerships when dealing withsolutions to the complex issue of obesity, pro-moting healthier lifestyles, ensuring effectiveimplementation and monitoring compliance ofthe International Chamber of CommerceFramework for responsible food and beveragecommunication by national self-regulatoryorganisations across the EU, are among theimportant challenges that lie ahead for CIAAmembers.

European Platform forAction on Diet, PhysicalActivity and Health

>BACKGROUND

In March 2005, the European Commissionlaunched the European Platform for Action onDiet, Physical Activity and Health, the overallaim being to improve public health nutrition,promote healthy lifestyles and fight theincreasing public health threat posed byobesity across Europe.

The platform provides a forum for all interestedactors at European level where concrete dis-cussion occurs along the lines of specificplans in the pursuit of healthier nutrition andgreater physical activity to fight against obesity.

The fields of action identified in the platform are:

■ Consumer education, including labelling;■ Education;■ Physical activity promotion;

29

■ Marketing and advertising;■ Composition of foods, availability of healthy

food options, portion sizes.

In light of the aims of the platform and theactions identified therein, by the end of 2005/beginning 2006, platform stakeholders hadpresented a series of concrete commitmentsfor the upcoming year designed to reverse theupward trend of obesity in the EU.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA supported the Commission’s initiative toestablish the European Platform for Action onDiet, Physical Activity and Health and has, sincethe beginning, been actively and constructivelyworking to deliver concrete actions under itsframework.

CIAA and its members submitted concrete com-mitments for 2006 in several areas covering:partnership, public education and physical activity, consumer information with the adoptionby the CIAA Board of a voluntary nutrition labellingscheme based on Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs),responsible advertising and marketing practices,products and choice and research. All these arecurrently being implemented.

Industry efforts were publicly recognised byCommissioner Kyprianou at the end of 2006both at the CIAA Congress and in a “name &praise” event, at which he highlighted concreteand specific examples of the progress madeby the food and drink industry on labelling,responsible marketing practices and productreformulation.

>CHALLENGES

Ever since the launch of the platform,considerable effort and resources have beenundertaken by the European food and drinkindustry in seeking to fulfil its objectives andits obligations, and in contributing to the suc-cess of the platform.

The progress made to date is now being evaluated under the platform monitoring working group with the elaboration of a second monitoring progress report. This reportwill be presented at the second anniversary ofthe launch of the platform in Spring 2007.

CIAA will continue its efforts to strengthen and promote effective and responsible self-regulation (in particular in the area ofadvertising and marketing along with nutritionlabelling and product reformulation) as well asensuring balanced and proportionate solutionsto the obesity issue. Tackling the issue willcontinue to require multiple strategies and thesustained efforts of many sectors.

Environment

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EU Emissions TradingScheme

>BACKGROUND

There is mounting evidence that the world'sclimate is changing and that the burning offossil fuels, releasing carbon dioxide (CO2)into the air, is the principle cause. The EU iscommitted under the Kyoto Protocol to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 8%between 2008-2012, relative to 1990 levels.In addition, the EU has now adopted a morestringent reduction target of at least 20% by2020.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS)aims to ensure that greenhouse gas emis-sions from the covered industry sectors arecut at the lowest possible cost to the econo-my. The trading system is mandatory for foodand drink companies operating combustioninstallations exceeding 20 Mega Watts (MW).The importance of the scheme for the foodand drink sector is reflected in the fact that,for instance, in France 13.6% of all ETSinstallations are food and drink sites. Underthe EU ETS, food and drink companies aremaking continuous progress towards reducedCO2 emissions and contribute their share tothe fight against global warming.

>CHALLENGES

In 2007, the Commission will table a proposalfor a revised ETS Directive for the post-2012period. For the food and drink industry it isvital that the revised Directive provide for aconsistent implementation of the scope of theETS in all Member States, more harmonisedallocation rules across the EU and a significantreduction of the compliance burden for small installations. CIAA fully supports theEU's objective of establishing a truly global climate change agreement, comprising allindustrialised nations and major emergingeconomies.

Integrated PollutionPrevention and Control

>BACKGROUND

Directive 96/61/EC on Integrated PollutionPrevention and Control (IPPC) is paving theway towards more sustainable production patterns by setting common rules on environ-mental permitting of industrial installations.Correct implementation of the IPPC Directiveis therefore a key priority for CIAA. For manyyears, EU food and drink companies havemade significant investments in clean technologies in order to conserve naturalresources and minimise waste.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Over the last six years, CIAA has co-operatedclosely with the Commission and the IPPCBureau to draw up a reference list of BestAvailable Techniques (BREF document) for thefood, drink and milk sectors, which was finallypublished in October 2006. The FDM BREFwill help food and drink industrial sites toimprove their environmental performance andguide authorities in granting environmentalpermits.

>CHALLENGES

In 2006, the Commission launched a reviewof the IPPC Directive with a view to adopting aproposal for a revised Directive by the end of2007. CIAA advocates a technical clarificationof the scope of covered activities and installations in order to ensure a uniformimplementation of the scope of the Directiveacross the EU. Concerning the implementationof the FDM BREF by national authorities, it is important that the FDM BREF be used as a“reference document,” which should neverimpose a “one-technique-fits-all” approach inall cases. Proper consideration of geographicallocation, local environmental conditions andhygiene and food quality constraints should be given when deciding the techniques to be applied.

Integrated managementof resources and waste

>BACKGROUND

Besides their core products, food and drinkcompanies produce a wide range of additionalproducts, which are used by other industriesas valuable economic input. The use of these(by-)products constitutes a significant contri-bution to an efficient use of natural resourcesby industry and to an overall reduction of environmental impacts of industrial productionprocesses. At the same time, the ambiguousdefinition of “waste” under current EU wastelegislation risks leading some of these products being wrongly classified as waste,thereby hampering their most efficient valorisation.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

To overcome this challenge, in 2004 CIAAlaunched the initiative “Integrated Resourceand Waste Management” (IRWM) togetherwith numerous key stakeholders, as well asthe Commission, to develop a decision tool toclearly distinguish between products andwaste in the food and drink sector. InSeptember 2006, CIAA gathered representa-tives from various Commission services,Member States and the European Parliament

for a workshop in Brussels to present theIRWM decision tool and to discuss strategiestowards a harmonised and legally binding status for (by-)products in the EU. Participantsshared a broad understanding that the currentlack of legal certainty for by-products canresult in an unequal treatment of economicoperators and can equally impede the efficient use of natural resources.

>CHALLENGES

In 2006, the European Parliament and Councillaunched the revision EU Waste FrameworkDirective based on the Commission proposalof 2005. For industry it is of vital importancethat the revised Directive contain the urgentlyneeded legal clarification of the distinctionbetween (by-)products and waste, based onthe criteria developed by the European Courtof Justice in its recent jurisprudence. Whereasguidelines developed by the Commission can be of use as an interpretative tool, therequired legal certainty can only be ensuredby the EU legislator.

31

Environment

32

Packaging and packaging waste

>BACKGROUND

The EU Packaging and Packaging WasteDirective (PPWD) aims to harmonise nationalpackaging measures in order to prevent orreduce the environmental impact of packagingand packaging waste and to ensure the func-tioning of the Internal Market. In December,the Commission finalised its review of theimplementation of the PPWD with a report on the impact of the Directive on both the environment and the internal market.In publishing the report, the Commission has launched a debate on the future of packaging waste management in the EU.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The Commission's report concludes that theenvironmental objectives of the Directive arebeing achieved. In 2002, all of the packagingrecovery and recycling targets had been metby the 15 EU Member States and a relativedecoupling of environmental impacts of wastefrom economic growth had taken place.Official figures also show that packagingwaste sent for final disposal fell by nearly10% between 1997 and 2001 and by nearly12% between 2001 and 2004 - an overallreduction of more than 20%.

>CHALLENGES

As confirmed by the Commission's report,more work is needed to accomplish theDirective's internal market objectives for thefree movement of packaging and packagedgoods, and to avoid distortions of competition.Member States should not be allowed to introduce discriminatory national packagingmeasures, such as eco-taxes, product fees ormandatory deposits, which are not justified onenvironmental grounds. In particular, there isno need to systematically promote re-usablepackaging as no hierarchy exists between the re-use of packaging and the recovery of packaging waste. Factors that make packaging re-use systems environmentallypreferable in some cases are very contextspecific.

chain to systematically integrate life-cycle thinking into product and process management.The considerable efforts made by food anddrink companies to date have resulted in acontinuous improvement of the environmentalperformance of products and processes.

Integrated ProductPolicy & SustainableProduction &Consumption

>BACKGROUND

The Commission is working on the implemen-tation of its Communication on IntegratedProduct Policy (IPP), which aims to reduce the environmental impact of products through-out their life-cycle. IPP builds on measures for producers to design products with reducedenvironmental impact, and measures for consumers to prefer products with the lowest environmental impact. In 2006, theCommission published the study “EnvironmentalImpact of Products” which aimed to identifythe product categories with the highest environmental impact.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The European food and drink industry is firmlycommitted to a pro-active approach towardssustainability and has applied life-cycle thinkingalready for many years as a voluntary businesstool to ensure continuous environmentalimprovement of its products. In addition toextensive legislation covering the food-process-ing phase, EU food and drink companies havelaunched voluntary initiatives, measures andpartnerships with other actors along the food

3333

The EU food and drink industry has been ableto achieve a decoupling between economicgrowth and environmental impact in several keyareas, such as water consumption, energy use,waste generation, as well as packaging waste recovery and recycling. Looking ahead, theindustry is committed to building on theseimprovements.

>CHALLENGES

The food chain is characterised by a highcomplexity of different actors and processes.Besides manufacturers, the decisions of farmers, distributors, retailers, consumers andpublic authorities make a major difference inthe environmental life-cycle of food products.IPP must therefore be based on the principleof shared and accurately allocated responsibility.All actors along the life-cycle need to continuously optimise the environmental performance in their direct sphere of respon-sibility. Environmental, social and economicaspects must be adequately taken intoaccount. In particular, compliance with thehighest nutritional, health and food safetyrequirements constitutes the overridingresponsibility of producers vis-à-vis the con-sumer and must by no means be impacted byIPP policies.

CIAA also underlines the important role thatvoluntary stakeholder initiatives and public-private partnerships can play, both in terms ofsustainable production & consumption andbetter regulation. CIAA views such tools asvital alternatives, complementing traditional”command-and-control” types of environmen-tal policy making, in particular in areas, suchas IPP, where hierarchical government formsshow certain limits in promoting continuousimprovement and innovation. CIAA is open tocontinuing a constructive dialogue with allstakeholders, including the EuropeanCommission, to ensure that voluntary initia-tives make a significant contribution to thesustainable management of the food chain.

CIAA Members*European Committee of large food and drinkcompanies (Liaison Committee)

ADMwww.admworld.comBUNGEwww.bunge.comCADBURY SCHWEPPESwww.cadburyschweppes.comCAMPBELL EUROPEwww.campbellsoup.comCARGILL www.cargill.comCOCA-COLA www.cocacola.comDANONE www.groupedanone.frFERRERO www.ferrero.comHEINEKENwww.heineken.comHEINZwww.heinz.co.ukINBEVwww.inbev.comKELLOGG’Swww.kelloggs.comKRAFT FOODS www.kraftfoods.comMASTERFOODSwww.masterfoods.comNESTLE EUROPEwww.nestle.comPEPSICOwww.pepsico.comPERNOD RICARDwww.pernod-ricard.comPROCTER & GAMBLEwww.pg.comSARA LEEwww.saralee-de.comSÜDZUCKER www.suedzucker.deTATE & LYLEwww.tateandlyle.comUNILEVERwww.unilever.com

34

SWEDENLI - Livsmedelsföretagen www.li.se

THE NETHERLANDSFNLI - Federatie Nederlandse LevensmiddelenIndustriewww.fnli.nl

UNITED KINGDOMFDF - Food & Drink Federationwww.fdf.org.uk

OBSERVERS

NORWAYNBL - Næringsmiddelbedriftenes Landsforeningwww.nbl.no

ROMANIARomalimenta - Federatia Patronala din IndustriaAlimentarawww.romalimenta.ro

TURKEYTGDF - Türkiye Gıda ve Içecek Sanayii DernekleriFederasyonuwww.gdf.org.tr

HUNGARYEFOSZ - Elelmiszerfeldolgozók OrszágosSzövetségewww.efosz.hu

IRELANDFDII - Food & Drink Industry Irelandwww.fdii.ie

ITALYFEDERALIMENTARE - Federazione Italiana dell’industria Alimentarewww.federalimentare.it

LATVIALPUF - Latvijas Pärtikas Uznëmumu Federäcijawww.lpuf.lv

LUXEMBOURGFEDIL - Fédération des Industries Agro-alimentairesLuxembourgeoises

POLANDPFPZ - Polska Federacja Producentów Zywnosciwww.pfpz.pl

PORTUGALFIPA - Federação das Indústrias PortuguesasAgro-alimentareswww.fipa.pt

SLOVAKIAPKS - Potravinárska Komora Slovenskawww.potravinari.sk

UPZPPS - Unia Podnikatelov a Zamestnavatelov vPotravinarskom Priemysle na Slovensku

SLOVENIAGZS - Gospodarska Zbornica Slovenijewww.gzs.si

SPAINFIAB - Federación Española de Industria de laAlimentación y Bebidaswww.fiab.es

(*) 2006

National Federations

AUSTRIAFIAA - Fachverband Lebensmittelindustriewww.dielebensmittel.at

BELGIUMFEVIA - Fédération de l’Industrie Alimentaire /Federatie Voedingsindustriewww.fevia.be

CZECH REPUBLICPKCR - Potravinárská Komora Ceské Republikywww.foodnet.cz

DENMARKFI - Foedevareindustrienwww.fi.di.dk

ESTONIAETL - Eesti Toiduainetööstuse Liitwww.toiduliit.ee

FINLANDETL - Elintarviketeollisuusliittowww.etl.fi

FRANCEANIA - Association Nationale des IndustriesAlimentaireswww.ania.net

GERMANYBLL - Bund für Lebensmittelrecht undLebensmittelkunde www.bll.de

BVE - Bundesvereinigung der DeutschenErnährungsindustrien www.bve-online.de

GREECEΣυνδεσµος Ελληνικων Βιοµηχανιων Τροφιµωνwww.sevt.gr

Sectors

Bakery

AIBI - International Association of Industrial Bakerywww.aibi-online.org

Beer

THE BREWERS OF EUROPEwww.brewersofeurope.org

Bottled Water

EFBW - European Federation of Bottled Waterwww.efbw.org

Breakfast Cereal

CEEREAL - European Breakfast Cereal Association

Broth & Soup

FAIBP - Federation of the Associations of the EUBroth and Soup Industries

Cereal Flour

GAM - European Flour Milling Associationwww.ecco-eu.com

Chocolate, Biscuits & Confectionery

CAOBISCO - Association of the Chocolate,Biscuit and Confectionery Industries of the EUwww.caobisco.com

Dairy Products

EDA - European Dairy Associationwww.euromilk.org

Dietetic Products

IDACE - Association of Dietetic Food Industries of the EUwww.idace.org

Fruit & Vegetable Juices

AIJN - Association of the Industry of Juices & Nectarswww.aijn.org

Fruit & Vegetable Preserves

OEITFL - Organisation of European IndustriesTransforming Fruit and Vegetableswww.oeitfl.org

Ice Cream

EUROGLACES - European Ice Cream Associationwww.euroglaces.eu 35

Intermediate Products for Bakery & Confectionary

FEDIMA - European Federation of theIntermediate Products Industries for the Bakeryand Confectionery Tradeswww.fedima.org

Isoglucose

API - Association of Producers of Isoglucose ofthe EU

Margarine

IMACE - International Margarine Association ofthe Countries of Europewww.imace.org

Non-alcoholic Beverages

UNESDA - Union of European BeveragesAssociationwww.unesda-cisda.org

Oils

FEDIOL - The EU Oil and Proteinmeal Industrywww.fediol.be

Pasta

UNAFPA - Union of Organisations ofManufacturers of Pasta Productswww.unipi-pasta.org

Pet Food

FEDIAF - The European Pet Food Industrywww.fediaf.org

Processed Meat

CLITRAVI - Liaison Centre for the MeatProcessing Industrieswww.clitravi.com

Processed Potatoes

UEITP - European Association of PotatoProcessing Industries

Salt

EUSALT - European Salt Producers’ Associationwww.eu-salt.com

Sauces

FIC - Federation of the Condiment and SauceIndustries

Semolina

SEMOULIERS - Union of Associations ofSemolina Manufacturers in the EUwww.semouliers.org

Snacks

ESA - European Snacks Associationwww.esa.org.uk

Soluble & Roasted Coffee

ECF - European Coffee Federationwww.ecf-coffee.org

Spices

ESA - European Spice Association

Starch

AAF - European Starch Industry Associationwww.aaf.eu.org

Sugar

CEFS - European Committee of SugarManufacturerswww.cefs.org

Tea & Herbal Infusions

EHIA - European Herbal Infusions Associationwww.ehia-online.org

ETC - European Tea Committeewww.etc-online.org

Vegetable Proteins

EUVEPRO - European Association ofManufacturers, Distributors and Users of VegetableProteins for Human Consumptionwww.euvepro.org

Yeast

COFALEC - The Bakery Yeast ManufacturersCommittee of the EUwww.cofalec.com

Board of Directors

36

THE NETHERLANDS

Mr Dick ToetVice-President Public Affairs Food, Unilever

Mr Philip Den Ouden* Director, FNLI

POLAND

Ms Malgorzata SkoniecznaVice-President CIAA, President PFPZ, Frito Lay Poland Sp.z.o.o.

Mr Andrzej Gantner* Director General, PFPZ

PORTUGAL

Mr Jorge Manuel Tomas HenriquesPresident, FIPA

Mr Rui Fontes* Administrator, Cerealis

SLOVAKIA

Mr Marian PavelkaPublic Affairs & Communications Director,Coca-Cola Beverages Slovakia

Ms Edita Rusinova* Board Member, St Nicolaus-Trade a.s.

SLOVENIA

Ms Ivanka ValjavecPresident, Ljubljanske Mlekarne d.d.

Ms Tatjana Zagorc* Director, GZS - Food Industries Association of Slovenia

SPAIN

Mr Alfredo Sanfeliz MezquitaSecretary General, Campofrio Alimentación

Mr Juan Camin Torrents Vice-President FIAB, Nestlé Spain

SWEDEN

Mr Peter Elving President, LI

Ms Agneta Dreber* Director General, LI - Swedish Food Federation

UNITED KINGDOM

Mr Peter BakerChairman and CEO, PB Services

Ms Aileen Richards Vice-President Supplier Development, Masterfoods Europe

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF LARGE F&D COMPANIES (LIAISON COMMITTEE)

Mr Guido KayaertVice-President Relations with EU Institutions, Nestlé

Mr José Nuñez CerveraPresident European Public Affairs, Coca Cola Europe,Eurasia & Middle East

SECTORS

Animal origin products

Mr Joop F. KleibeukerSecretary General, EDA

Mr Dirk Dobbelaere* Secretary General, CLITRAVI

1st transformation vegetal

Mr Henri RieuxCorporate Affairs Director, BUNGE

Mr Jean-Louis Barjol*Secretary General, CEFS

2nd transformation liquid

Ms Dominique ReinichePresident UNESDA

Mr Rodolphe De Looz-Corswarem* Secretary General, The Brewers of Europe

2nd transformation solid

Mr David ZimmerSecretary General, CAOBISCO

Intermediary products

Mr Yves GoemansPresident EUVEPRO

Mr R. Lenne* President FEDIMA

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEThe 13-member Executive Committee is responsible forpreparing Board meetings and executing its decisions. It takesthe lead in policy debates as and when the need arises.

representing

Mr Jean Martin President CIAA

Ms Dominique Reinche 2nd Processing sectorsMr Henri Rieux 1st Processing sectors

Ms Malgorzata Skonieczna CEECsMr Jaroslav Camplik CEECs

Mr Peter Elving Other CountriesMr Michel Delbaere Other Countries

Mr Guido Kayaert Liaison Committee

Mr Patrick O'Quin FranceMr Peter Baker United KingdomMr Luigi Rossi Di Montelera ItalyMr Alfredo Sanfeliz Mezquita SpainMr Heinz Von Kempen Germany

The Board of Directors is CIAA’s policy-making body. It defines the broad lines andstrategic direction of CIAA’s policies and priorities.

FRANCEMr Patrick O’QuinDirector External Relations, Groupe Danone

Mr Robert VolutPresident, FICT - Fédération française des industriels char-cutiers

GERMANYMs Susanne Langguth Director, Südzucker AG

Mr Heinz Von Kempen President of the Board, Schwartauer Werke GmbH & Co

GREECEMr Ioannis Yiotis Vice-President, Yiotis SA

Mr Evangelos Kaloussis* President SEVT

HUNGARYMr Attila BorodiExecutive Chairman, Federation of Hungarian FoodIndustries

Mr Bela Fischer* CEO, Magyar Cukor Plc

IRELANDMr Colin GordonChief Executive, Glanbia Consumer Foods

Mr Paul Kelly* Director, FDII

ITALYMr Luigi Rossi Di MonteleraVice-President CIAA, Past-President, Federalimentare

Mr Piero Perron President Heineken Italia, S.p.A.

LATVIAMs Arlita SedmaleManaging Director, Latvian Federation of Food Enterprises

Vacant*

LUXEMBOURGMr Alessandro CagliDirector European General Affairs, Ferrero

Mr Edmond Müller* President, FEDIL

AUSTRIAMr Johann MarihartVice-President CIAAPresident FIAA and CEFS, AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG

Mr Otto Bloder*Director General, Unilever Austria GmbH

BELGIUMMr Michel DelbaereHonorary President FEVIA, Crop’s NV

Mr Jean-Philippe Despontin*President FEVIA, Spa Monopole SA

CZECH REPUBLICMr Jaroslav CamplikPresident, PKCR-FFDI

Mr Miroslav Koberna*Director, PKCR-FFDI

DENMARKMr Erik Würtz KnudsenManaging Director, Cerealia Denmark A/S

Mr Ole Linnet Juul*Director, Danish F&D Federation

ESTONIAMr Anti OravManaging Director, Poltsamaa Felix

Ms Sirje Potisepp*Director, ETL- Estonian Federation

FINLANDMr Berndt BrunowPresident, ETL-Finnish Federation

Mr Heikki Juutinen*Director General, ETL-Finnish Federation

PresidentMr Jean Martin

Vice PresidentsMr Johann MarihartMr Luigi Rossi Di MonteleraMs Malgorzata Skonieczna

TreasurerMr Michel Delbaere

(*) Substitute

As of March 2007

Committees & Expert GroupsFood and ConsumerPolicy Committee

■ Chairperson: John Wood (FDF)

■ Steering Group

Michael Blass (FIAA)Andreas Kadi (Coca-Cola/UNESDA)Guido Kayaert (Nestlé/FEVIA)Angelika Mrohs (BLL-BVE)Daniele Rossi (FEDERALIMENTARE)Dick Toet (Unilever/FNLI)Pilar Velázquez (FIAB)

■ Expert Groups

PROCESS CONTAMINANTS GROUPRichard Stadler (Nestlé)

ADDITION OF NUTRIENTSMarta Baffigo (Kellogg’s/CAOBISCO)

CLAIMSAndreas Kadi (Coca-Cola/UNESDA)

CONSUMER INFORMATIONAngelika Mrohs (BLL-BVE)

CONTAMINANTSSam Lalljie (Unilever)

FEEDvacant

FOOD CONTACT MATERIALSJohn Horwood (Cadbury)

FOOD SAFETY MANAGEMENTGunter Fricke (Nestlé)

FOOD INGREDIENTSLynn Insall (FDF)Joy Hardinge (FDF)

HYGIENEDario Dongo (Federalimentare)

INTERNATIONAL STANDARDSIrina du Bois (Nestlé/ECF)

NUTRITION POLICYMarta Baffigo (Kellogg’s/CAOBISCO)

NOVEL FOODS/GMOSAgnès Davi (Groupe Danone/ANIA)

SCIENCEMichael Knowles (Coca-Cola/UNESDA)

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENTDaniele Rossi (FEDERALIMENTARE)

Environment Committee

■ Chairperson

Franki Grilli (Ferrero/CAOBISCO)

■ Steering Group

David Bellamy (FDF)Claire Bosch (FEVIA)Yves Buchsenschutz (Danone/ANIA)Salvatore Gabola (Coca-Cola)Pascal Greverath (Nestlé/AFCASOLE)

37

Thomas Ingermann (Kraft Foods)Joop Kleibeuker (EDA)Jean-Pierre Rennaud (Danone)Teresa Luis Ruiz (FIAB)Francesco Senesi (Annalisa/FEDERALIMENTARE)

■ Expert Groups

ITP (SCP)Thomas Sénac (AAS)

CLIMATE CHANGEStephen Reeson (FDF)

INTEGRATED PRODUCT POLICY (IPP)/RESOURCESPascal Greverath (Nestlé/ECF)

PACKAGINGSalvatore Gabola (Coca-Cola)

REPORTINGThomas Ingermann (Kraft Foods)

WASTEJoop Kleibeuker (EDA)

Trade andCompetitivenessCommittee

■ Chairperson

Jean-Luc Pelletier (USIPA/ANIA)

■ Steering Group

Eduard Arruga i Valeri (Nestlé/AFCASOLE)Stefan Feit (BDSI, BLL-BVE)Bruno Guichard (FIAB)Eberhard Hetzner (BLL-BVE)Willem-Jan Laan (Unilever/IMACE)Susanne Langguth (Südzucker/BLL-BVE)Ruggero Lenti (FEDERALIMENTARE)Nicholas Simms (Irish Dairy Board/FDII)Henri Rieux (Bunge)

■ Expert GroupsAGRICULTURAL POLICYBruno Guichard (FIAB)

IMPORT/EXPORT PROCEDURESEduard Arruga i Valeri (Nestlé/AFCASOLE)

TRADENicholas Simms (Irish Dairy Board/FDII)

Biofuels Task Force

■ ChairpersonHenri Rieux (Bunge)

■ Vice-ChairpersonWillem-Jan Laan (Unilever/IMACE)

Competitiveness Task Force

■ CoordinatorNathalie Lecocq (CIAA)

Commercial Relations Task Force

■ ChairpersonHoracio González Alemán (FIAB)

Diet, Physical Activityand Health Task Force

■ ChairpersonLyn Trytsman-Gray (Kraft Foods)

SUB-GROUP ON COMMUNICATIONPaul Fitzsimmons (Kellogg’s)

SUB-GROUP ON ADVERTISING AND MARKETINGJeanne Murphy (Ferrero)

DIET MONITORING SUB-GROUPSalvatore Gabola (Coca-Cola)

Delegates from national federations, European sector associations and companies, as well as expertson F&D form the CIAA’s Committees and Expert Groups. They work together using their expertise tofollow various dossiers, analysing specific issues and propose to the Board of Directors on how toapproach and pursue a political solution.

March 2007

Information & publications

38

Publications

Data and Trends 2006

Every year CIAA publishes an up-to-datebrochure on the state of the EU food anddrink industry. The brochure for 2006 analyses the key data and trade figures forthe period 2001-2006, highlighting in particular important information and data on global food trade, the growing importanceof many Asian countries for European foodand drink exports, consumption figures andhabits, as well as the ranking of leading food and drink companies both in Europeand internationally.

CIAA Memoranda to the EU Presidencies

At each rotation of the EU Presidency,CIAA publishes a summary of its positions on major EU legislative proposals and issuesduring the Presidency, and puts forward the challenges facing the food and drinkindustry.

European Technology Platform on Foodfor Life - The vision for 2020 and beyond

The European Commission is facilitating thedevelopment of various European TechnologyPlatforms (ETPs) designed to promote inno-vation in Europe. Launched in July 2005,the ETP Food for Life brings together stake-holders from key food and drink economicsectors, pan-European organisations andacademia so as to develop a long-term visionfor the sector. Under the auspices of CIAA,the core team has published this brochure.The brochure describes the vision for thefood and drink for 2020 and beyond. CIAA’sETP website complements this publication.

CIAA Benchmarking Report onCompetitiveness

This report is CIAA’s input to the annualreview of the Lisbon strategy aimed at drivingthe EU towards becoming the most competi-tive knowledge-based economy in the world.It reviews the progress being made, or not, inone of the major pillars of the European econ-omy and provides suggestions for necessaryactions that will allow the food and drink sec-tor to contribute to the Lisbon agenda.

CIAA Nutrition Labelling leaflet

The purpose of CIAA’s Nutrition Labellingleaflet is to help inform consumers on howbest to interpret nutrition labelling informationas it appears on packaged food and drinkproducts and how such information translatesinto their diet. It is part of CIAA’s commitmentsto the EU Platform for Action on Diet, PhysicalActivity and Health. The aim is also forNational Federations to use the leaflet as atemplate and to translate it accordingly intodifferent languages.

Promoting Healthy Diets and Lifestyles:Europe’s food and drink industry in action

To celebrate the second anniversary of the EUPlatform for Action on Diet, Physical Activityand Health, CIAA collected data and casestudies demonstrating the full scale and scopeof European industry action in the fightagainst obesity. The brochure highlights activity in each of the areas of the platform -Public-Private Partnerships, Public Education,Products and Choice, Consumer Information,Advertising and Commercial Communicationsand Research - as well as activities outsidethe formal scope of the platform.

All publications are available for download from CIAA’s website, and free hard copies can also be ordered via our website.Keep up-to-date with the latest food and drink industry news and developments by subscribing to CIAA’s e-newsletter: www.ciaa.eu/e-newsletter

CIAA: Information source on the European food and drink industry

the most up-to-date legislative developments.The site covers adopted and proposed legislation, as well as draft proposals.It allows users to follow step-by-step thedevelopment of a legislative text, from itsdrafting by the Commission to its publicationin the Official Journal and its subsequent entry into force.

EUROPEAN TECHNOLOGYPLATFORMhttp://etp.ciaa.eu

Under the auspices of CIAA, the EuropeanTechnology Platform (ETP) Food for Life web-site, is a tool intended to bring together aca-demia, food and drink industry stakeholdersand pan-European organisations. The site is a focus point for information on the latestplatform developments, and in particular, formonitoring the development of the upcomingETP Food for Life Strategic Research Agenda(SRA).

Electronic media

CIAAhttp://www.ciaa.eu

CIAA’s website is the gateway to informationon the European food and drink industry.Broken down into a number of different areas,the portal covers a broad spectrum of issues,and seeks to provide users with relevant andup-to-date information, both quickly and easi-ly. The site gives access to the latest food anddrink industry statistics, positions, pressreleases, highlights previous and upcomingevents, summarises important issues affectingthe EU food and drink sector, and also acts asa gateway to CIAA’s other websites.

EU FOOD LAWhttp://eufoodlaw.ciaa.eu

The EU Food Law website replaces CIAA’sexisting CD-Rom on EU Food Law. Previously,CIAA issued two editions of the CD-Romannually. The benefit of the new websitemeans that information is updated at regular intervals, allowing users access to

CIAA Secretariat

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Economic Affairs Environmental Affairs CommunicationsConsumer Information,Diet & Health

Food Policy, Science and R&D

DirectorNathalie Lecocqn.lecocq@ciaa.eu

ManagerChristoph Tamandl

c.tamandl@ciaa.eu

DirectorSabine Hensslers.henssler@ciaa.eu

DirectorSabine Nafzigers.nafziger@ciaa.eu

DirectorBeate Kettlitzb.kettlitz@ciaa.eu

ManagerMarta Bertran

m.bertran@ciaa.eu

ManagerClara Thompsonc.thompson@ciaa.eu

Manager & ETP SecretariatVirginie Rimbertv.rimbert@ciaa.eu

Secretary-AssistantSophie Margetiss.margetis@ciaa.eu

ManagerJuliana Martínezj.martinez@ciaa.eu

ManagerElena Cogalniceanue.cogalniceanu@ciaa.eu

Secretary-AssistantMaryline Crooijmans

m.crooijmans@ciaa.eu

ManagerEvelyne Dollete.dollet@ciaa.eu

ManagerThomas Verbeett.verbeet@ciaa.eu

Junior ManagerGaspard Demurg.demur@ciaa.eu

Secretary-AssistantDonata Nickeld.nickel@ciaa.eu

EP ManagerKatie Carson

k.carson@ciaa.eu

Junior ManagerNiall Doheny

n.doheny@ciaa.eu

ManagerEva De Bleeker

e.debleeker@ciaa.eu

Secretary-AssistantSamantha Naccachian

s.naccachian@ciaa.eu

Secretary-AssistantGreta Muyshondtg.muyshondt@ciaa.eu

Office ManagerRégine Mynsbergher.mynsberghe@ciaa.eu

Reception-AssistantJacqueline Maréchal

j.marechal@ciaa.eu

Director GeneralDaniela Israelachwili

d.israelachwili@ciaa.eu

As of March 2007

CIAA AISBLAvenue des Arts 43B-1040 BrusselsBelgium

Phone: +32.2.514 11 11Fax: +32.2.511 29 05E-mail: ciaa@ciaa.euwww.ciaa.eu