Activities of Bert-Jan RUISSEN related to 2020/2260(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Farm to Fork Strategy (debate)
Amendments (27)
Amendment 173 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the Commission communication on a Farm to Fork Strategy sets out a holistic approach of the European food system, with agriculture, as a provider of food, ornamental plants, fibre and fuel, at the centre, while recognising the interconnectedness of all actors throughout the whole supply chain;
Amendment 230 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas Europe’s food system should deliver food and nutrition security in a way that contributes to social well- being, a sustainable income model and fair prices for farmers, and maintains and restores ecosystem health; whereas currently, the food system is responsible for a range of impacts onclosely linked to human and animal health and on the environment, the climate and biodiversity; whereas the way in which we produce and consume food needs to transformadapt in order to ensure coherence with the SDGs, the Paris Agreement, the Convention on Biological Diversity and EU policies, particularly in the areas of sustainability, the environment, climate, public health, animal welfare, food and economic sustainability for farmers;
Amendment 451 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas European agriculture is the only major system in the world that significantly reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions;
Amendment 502 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the farm to fork strategy as an important step in ensuring a sustainable, fair and resilient food system, which is central to achieving the goals set out in the Treaty, the European Green Deal and in the SDGs; emphasises the inextricable links between healthy people, healthy societies and a healthy planet, encourages the Commission tocome forward with a comprehensive and cumulative impact assessment as soon as possible and before considering translateing the strategy into concrete legislative and non-legislative action as soon as possible;
Amendment 650 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Calls for a science-based assessment of the impact on the food security and economic perspectives of European farmers and growers for all the proposed measures of the farm to fork strategy including the cumulative impact of related measures;
Amendment 760 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the decision to revise the directive on the sustainable use of pesticides and the reduction targets forof the risk of pesticides, fertilisers, and antibiotics; emphasises the importance of pursuing these targets through holistic and circular approaches, such as agroecological practices; insists that each Member State should establish robust quantitative reduction targets, accompanied by well- defined support measures ensuring accountability at all levels to help reach these targets; reiterates its call for the translation into legislation of the above targets and objectives and calls on the Commission to clarify how it will deal with individual Member States’ contributions to Union-wide targets and to clarify the baselines for these target, integrated crop management, innovative technological and biological practices and innovative and circular greenhouse production; insists on science-based impact assessments of targets; supports implementation of adjacent legislation, such as new genomic techniques, an efficient authorization policy for low-risk and green products and the recognition procedure for biostimulants; calls on the Commission to clarify the baselines for the targets and to take into account the progress already achieved, as well as Member States’ different starting positions, circumstances and conditions;
Amendment 805 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Highlights that sufficient effective plant protection products will remain indispensable to protect crops from new pests and diseases in order to avoid food losses; expresses concern that further restrictions on the availability of plant protection products as a last resort could undermine efforts made for the holistic approach of Integrated Pest Management;
Amendment 833 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Stresses that food security must be safeguarded at all times; underlines that the strategy must aim to strengthen the agricultural sector and support farmers efforts for enhanced sustainability; highlights the fact that European farmers adhere to the most stringent production requirements in the world and stresses that the strategy must not lead to displacement of production;
Amendment 851 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 c (new)
Paragraph 3 c (new)
3c. Calls for a constructive and positive dialogue on the topic of food and food production; believes that increased awareness by consumers will lead to further appreciation of food and in particular food produced by European farmers; encourages the Commission and the Member States to actively support bottom-up initiatives bringing farmers and citizens closer;
Amendment 893 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Emphasises the importance of recognising the significant impact of agriculture and especially animal production on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and land usHighlights that European agriculture is the only major system in the world that significantly reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions since 1990 and that the emissions from EU agriculture are among the lowest worldwide; stresses the need to enhance natural carbon sinks and further reduce agricultural emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, in particular in the feed and livestock sectors; calls for regulatory measures and targets to ensure progressive reductions in all GHG emissions in these sectorsper unit of product;
Amendment 970 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Highlights the contribution of livestock to a sustainable circular farming system, including by recycling of nutrients, and converting by-products in feed into food for human consumption;
Amendment 979 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Calls on the Commission to improve the possibilities for the re-use of nutrients that have been brought into the nutrient cycle;
Amendment 1037 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Considers that the strength of the European agriculture sector is its diversity and stresses that each type of farming makes its own contribution to a sustainable food production; considers a specific target for the share of land under organic agriculture, not suitable; stresses that a production method cannot be a goal in itself, as each method has its particular benefits for sustainability; believes that the market balance between supply and demand for organic products must not be upset as organic producers are dependent on a higher price due to yields and labour; believes that the future of the organic sector must be characterised by a bottom up rather than a top down approach.
Amendment 1062 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Stresses the need to enhance resource efficiency, using less inputs to produce more food for the growing world population;
Amendment 1084 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Welcomes the notion of rewarding carbon sequestration in soils; stresses, however, that intensive and industrial agriculture and farming models with negative impacts on biodiversity should not receive clim and stresses thate funding or be incentivised; calls for the proposals to be in line with the environmental objectives and the ‘do no harm’ principle of the Green Dealmust be made available;
Amendment 1166 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Underlines the importance of seed security and diversity, notably of promoting EU-grown plant proteins to deliver locally sourced food and feed stuffs with high nutritional value while granting farmers access to quality seedsplant reproductive material for plant varieties adapted to the pressures of climate change, including traditional and locally-adapted varieties, while ensuring access to innovative plant breeding and genetic resources in order to contribute to healthy seeds and protect plants against harmful pests and diseases; ensuring an incentive for open innovation though plant variety protection; raises awareness of the potential negative effects of concentration and monopolisation in the seed sector;
Amendment 1250 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls for CAP National Strategic Plans to ensure adequate financial support and incentives to promote sustainability of all sectors, new ecological ‘green’ business models for agriculture, precision farming and artisanal food production, notably through fostering smart and short supply chains and quality food production;
Amendment 1389 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Expresses its deep concern about the emergence of zoonotic diseases that are transferred from animals to humans (anthropozoonoses), such as Q fever, avian influenza and the new strain of influenza A (H1N1), which is exacerbated by anthropogenic climate change, the destruction of biodiversity, environmental degradation and our current food production systemsand calls on the Commission to further promote the implementation of on farm biosecurity;
Amendment 1454 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Welcomes the announced clarification of the scope of competition rules with regard to sustainability in collective actions; stresses that vertical agreements throughout the chain are essential for fairly rewarding additional efforts for environmental sustainability and animal welfare made in response to societal and consumer demands; calls on the Commission to bring forward the initiative;
Amendment 1461 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 b (new)
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12b. Urges the Commission to update marketing standards as swiftly as possible, aligning existing marketing standards with new developments for further sustainability in all areas, allowing for win-win situations for animal health and welfare, environmental and economic sustainability;
Amendment 1886 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Highlights the recognition in the strategy that Europeans’ diets are not in line with recommendations for healthy eating, and that a population-wide shift in consumption patterns is needed towards more healthy and plant-based foods and less red and processed meat, sugars, salt, and fatfoods, which will also benefit the environment; emphasises that EU-wide guidelines for sustainable and healthy diets would bring clarity to consumers on what constitutes a healthy and sustainable diet and inform Member States’ own efforts to integrate sustainability elements in national dietary advice; calls on the Commission to develop such guidelines and specific actions to effectively promote healthy plant-based dietshighlights the high nutritional value of fresh agriculture produce;
Amendment 1934 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Considers that the further development of plant protein production and alternative sources of protein in the EU is a way of effectively addressing many of the environmental and climate challenges that EU agriculture is facing, as well as preventing deforestation in countries outside the EU; calls on the Commission to address both the ecological and economic sustainability of the development of the European protein production;
Amendment 1958 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Highlights that accelerating the breeding of better adapted protein crop varieties will be paramount for the development of a more viable protein crop production in Europe;
Amendment 2158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 a (new)
Paragraph 25 a (new)
25a. Highlights the need to ensure farmers have access to the best available tools and techniques, including new breeding techniques sustained by science which allows breeding of stronger and more resistant varieties, thereby enabling to deliver greater sustainability and benefits for the environment;
Amendment 2172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 b (new)
Paragraph 25 b (new)
25b. Calls on the Commission to ensure the availability of sufficient effective plant protection products by avoiding delays in authorisation, in order to fight against new pests and diseases, and to ensure a science based approach for access to plant protection products throughout the EU;
Amendment 2181 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 c (new)
Paragraph 25 c (new)
25c. Calls on the Commission to develop a plan to increase accessibility of smart farming techniques, thereby increasing benefits for the efficient management of resources and digitalisation throughout the whole food chain;
Amendment 2186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25 d (new)
Paragraph 25 d (new)
25d. Calls on the Commission to ensure access to new technologies for European farmers and to enable continuous development in the agriculture sector by ensuring an innovation-friendly regulatory framework;