Activities of Bert-Jan RUISSEN related to 2019/2131(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on) competition policy – annual report 2019
Amendments (8)
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas Article 42 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union grants special status to the sector in respect of competition law, outlining that the provisions relating to rules on competition shall apply to production of and trade in agricultural products only to the extent determined by the European Parliament and the Council within the framework of Article 43(2);
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
A a. whereas the agriculture sector with approximately 11 million farms in the EU is the least concentrated level in the food supply chain, while its suppliers and buyers on the other hand are heavily concentrated;
Amendment 16 #
Draft opinion
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
A b. whereas the perishable nature of food products and the unpredictable production circumstances, such as adverse weather conditions, further weaken the bargaining position of farmers vis-à-vis buyers;
Amendment 43 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Considers it essential to clarify the provisions governing producer organisations and associations thereof and interbranch organisations in Regulation (EU) No 1308/20131 , particularly as regards competition policy, recognition criteria and activities, and to consolidate the progress made by Regulation (EU) No 2017/23932 (the ‘Omnibus Regulation’), supplemented by the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 14 November 2017 (‘the Endives Case’)3 , and asks the Commission to issue guidance documents to interpret EU law provisions where needed, thereby providing greater legal certainty and improving the position of farmers in the food chain; _________________ 1 OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 671. 2 OJ L 350, 29.12.2017, p. 15. 3 Judgment of the Court of Justice of 14 November 2017, President de l’Autorité de la concurrence v Association des producteurs vendeurs d’endives (APVE) and Others.
Amendment 62 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the adoption of the Directive on unfair trade practices4 in the agricultural and food supply chain and calls on the Commission to monitor closely progress on transposition thereof, reminds however that the tackling of unfair trading practices, albeit an important step forward, does not in itself resolve the root cause of imbalanced bargaining power in the chain; _________________ 4Directive (EU) 2019/633 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on unfair trading practices in business-to-business relationships in the agricultural and food supply chain (OJ L 111, 25.4.2019, p. 59.
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Considers that the public demand for more sustainable food systems needs to be addressed, and calls on the Commission to clarify for producers and national competition authorities the conditions under which sustainable agreements can be exempted from competition law, thereby recognizing the contribution of sustainability agreements to improving the production while benefitting society as a whole and consumers, the agricultural nature of the products involved, and the need for primary producers to receive fair compensation for additional costs made for extrastatutory sustainability agreements; namely in the framework of the CAP reform and the current review of the Horizontal Block Exemption Regulations and related guidelines;
Amendment 107 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5 a. Stresses that the level playing field for European farmers is being undermined by unfair competition in case of duty free imports produced against lower regulatory standards in terms of animal welfare, environment and social norms, and calls on the Commission not to concede in trade negotiations to duty free import quota that would undermine the level playing field for European farmers;
Amendment 111 #
5 b. Recognizes the role of interbranch organisations in the chain serving as a platform for dialogue, research and development, best practices and market transparency;