Activities of Emma WIESNER related to 2023/2015(INI)
Plenary speeches (2)
European protein strategy (debate)
European protein strategy (debate)
Reports (1)
REPORT European protein strategy
Amendments (54)
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have had dramatic effects on global trade and have made it more apparent that the EU needs to diversify its food supply chainstrengthen its resilience, food security and diversify its food supply chains, in order to reduce its dependence on inputs imported from single or too few suppliers;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the EU produces 77 % of the feed protein used in the EU;, whereas 96 percent of the low protein content feed originates from the EU, 89 percent of the medium protein content originates from the EU, but only 29 % of the high-protein feedstockcontent feed needed to balance animal feed originates from the EU, making EU reliant on imports of soya grain and meal from the USA and South America, which often are linked to deforestation and biodiversity loss;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas plant-basincreased circularity between plant-based and animal sourced proteins are crucial for the transition towards more sustainable food systems with a reduced climate impact;
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas the environmental footprint of animal products is effected by the feed used, and where the footprint can be reduced by feed additives that contribute to animals ability to digest protein and contribute to the reduction of the animals’ methane and ammonia emissions;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas leguminous crops and grasslands help maintain and improve soil quality and increase biodiversity as well as carbon and nitrogen fixation, so therefore can an increased cultivation and profitability of legumes and grasslands contribute to a more sustainable and diversified agriculture and decrease the need of fertilizer inputs and contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and thereby addresses the environmental and climatic challenges in line with the Green Deal objectives;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the CAP provides the possibility to support the growing of protein crops and grasslands;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the processing of protein crops and grasslands generates by-products that can contribute to a circular economy and that can be used for human consumption, renewable energy, fertiliser, animal feed or the production of green chemicals;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas general training and knowledge transfer only reaches about 10 percent of EU farm holdings; whereas there is a critical need to further invest in training and advisory services for farmers, to spread know-how on protein crops, best practises, behavioural changes, cultivation of grasslands and protein extraction from alternative sources
Amendment 99 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F b (new)
Recital F b (new)
Fb. whereas new breeding techniques would play a key role in enhancing profitability and reach our Green Deal targets, inter alia by increasing yields, protein quality and content and by letting us make more regional adapted crops and crops more resilient to climate change and pathogens;
Amendment 101 #
Fc. whereas the nitrogen needed to grow crops is mainly provided by synthetic fertilisers, which are costly and energy- intensive to produce; whereas RENURE (REcovered Nitrogen from manURE) as part of manure management systems as well as the usage of safe sewage sludge enables a progression towards a more circular economy and increased resource efficiency;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F d (new)
Recital F d (new)
Amendment 105 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the market for sustainably produced animal, plant-based and alternative sources of protein is steadily increasing due to consumer demand; whereas production of these proteins offers many possibilities for European farmers and food producers;
Amendment 133 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
I. whereas cell-based agriculture and seafood farming are promising and innovative solutionsan interest and demand for cell-based food and protein exists, however the sustainability aspects of the production must be analysed;
Amendment 147 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I a (new)
Recital I a (new)
Ia. whereas alternative proteins such as fungi or fermentation require carbohydrate rich inputs; whereas this production could utilize residues and waste streams from conventional food production, contributing to a more circular economy; whereas the EU waste legislation imposes heavy regulatory burden on producers processing food waste;
Amendment 150 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas interest in insects for human and animal consumption is growing; the potential of insects' based protein for human consumption and especially animal nutrition is growing and already to some extend legal, but remains limited for cultural and legal reasons; whereas insects have a good conversion rate from feed to meat transforming biomass (such as food waste) into high- value proteins and could significantly reduce EU's protein import dependency;
Amendment 162 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
K. whereas research and innovation on plant proteins needs to be scaled upsustainably production of all sources of proteins and technological, organizational and behavioural innovations needs to be scaled up, since private and public research and innovation has mainly focused on cereals and oilseeds in the last decades, while countries outside of EU has focused more on plant crops;
Amendment 177 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K a (new)
Recital K a (new)
Ka. whereas consumers request more transparency and information about the sustainability of food; whereas there are no voluntary standardized label or product declaration to ensure the environmental sustainability for neither proteins for human consumption nor animal feed or feed additives;
Amendment 178 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital L
Recital L
L. whereas it is important to adopt a value chain approach in order to create added value for plant-based protein sourcessustainably produced proteins, since the production of high added value products made of protein crops sourced locally secure the value chain and encourage farmers to invest in the necessary machinery;
Amendment 202 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Calls on the Commission to urgently present a comprehensive EU protein strategy covering the sustainable production and consumption of all types of protein in the EU introducing effective measures to increase the EU’s production of protein in the short, medium and long term;
Amendment 274 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines that, from a geopolitical and strategic perspective, dependencies on a single or few suppliers must be reduced; stresses therefore that the production of protein must increase in the EU;
Amendment 290 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Points out that the protein strategy should acknowledge the sustainable development of all possible protein sources and their role in a circular economy; reminds of the importance of and circularity between sustainable livestock rearing and cultivation of crops;
Amendment 311 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Highlights that protein production must be recognised as a crucial aspect of the EU food system; in order to ensure sufficient availability of safe and qualitative food and feed and to maintain functioning and resilient food supply chains and trade flows;
Amendment 322 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Considers that developing the production of plant and alternative sources ofsustainably produced proteins in the EU is an effective way of addressing many of the environmental, societal and climate challenges that the EU faces, as well as preventing deforestation and overfishing outside the EU;
Amendment 345 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Emphasises that protein production starts with farmers, fishers and aquaculture farmers and that they must therefore be central to the strategythe backbone of the strategy, as they are the key to increase the production; stresses that a competitive and profitable agriculture, food and feed sector is a prerequisite for an increased protein production in the EU;
Amendment 357 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Stresses that European businesses and farmers must become more competitive and that the regulatory burden must decrease in order to increase the competitiveness of European protein producers;
Amendment 362 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Highlights that a competitive agriculture sector is dependent on sustainable and affordable inputs such as energy, feed, feed additives, good plant material, fertilisers and healthy soilssoils of good quality;
Amendment 371 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Recognises the importance of feed additives for reducing emissions, for improving protein consumptiodigestion of protein and for ensuring correct feeding strategies and reformulation of feed; stresses that the authorisation period for feed additives must be shortened and provide flexibility; underlines that the renewal process of authorisations must be created in a way that does not risk the phasing out of effective additives;
Amendment 375 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Recalls that it will be impossible to increase the production of plant-based protein without good-quality plant materials; recalls that new breeding techniques will provide great opportunities to develop regionally adapted plants and species optimized for European conditions; sees that more research and development on cereals, protein plants and grass are needed in order to increase the nutritional value, resistance towards natural threats and local adaptation;
Amendment 385 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission to propose medium- and long-term policy measures to close the nutrient loop, such as enabling the use of recovered nitrogen from manure (RENURE) productsfood and industry waste and manure (RENURE) products, by classifying them as a substitute for chemical fertilisers based on scientific criteria, as an opportunity for farmers to reduce their dependence on chemical fertilisers and increase on-farm circularity through the valorisation of residues such as manure;
Amendment 396 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Considers that since the growing of protein plants and grasslands has large benefits for soil quality and biodiversity, Member States should consider introducing eco-schemes for legumes and grasslands and create dedicated protein plants funds, as some Member States have;
Amendment 398 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Recalls that the production of biomethane, biogas, biofuels or other bio- based chemicals that use biowaste streams is a source of important revenue to enhance and capture the value of protein-rich crops and strengthen their business case for farmers, and underlines that a reduction in the production of biofuels could lead to reduced cases of by-products used for livestock feed and hence decrease the economic value and yield from protein crop production;
Amendment 405 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Recognises that the development, growing and utilising of protein-rich crops often requires new management practices and cooperation between farmers and considers that it should therefore be analysed if new organizational structures should be recognized within the CAP;
Amendment 407 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Stresses that, in order to boost investments in healthier soils and new crop rotation practices, long-term goals need to be compatible with strong ownership rights; calls for stronger ownership rights and long-term leasing contracts in the land-based sector as well as financial and organizational structures supporting generation renewal to strengthen the access of younger farmers to land;
Amendment 419 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 4
Subheading 4
Developing plant-based and alternativesustainably produced proteins for the current food and feed systems
Amendment 436 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Highlights the big potential of plant-bassustainably produced proteins and the fact that the development of the sector will benefit European farmers, soil quality, biodiversity, the climate, circular economy and human health;
Amendment 445 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Stresses the importance of grasslands as a protein source and the positive co-benefits grasslands has on biodiversity; highlights the relevance of projects that extract high- quality protein as well as biomethanol from grasslands through biorefining; considers that more funding needs to be directed to research and commercialization for biorefining;
Amendment 484 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Considers that innovativeNotes that cell- based food can help increase protein production and support agricultureis entering the global market; considers that it might also be allowed soon in the EU via the novel food legislation;
Amendment 495 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Stresses that insects, if meeting high safety demands, should be considered as a promising and circular alternative sources of protein, particularly for animal nutrition, contributing to reducing the EU protein deficit and increasing the agricultural circularity; recognizes that unjustified regulatory burdens hinder the development of circular and sustainable agriculture, such as the ban on using biodegradable waste as feed to insects or for protein fermentation;
Amendment 514 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Is of the opinion that authorisations made solely through novel food legislation should be based on the safety of the product; high food safety assurances of the product for human consumption; stresses that the authorisation process needs to be faster, more transparent and more efficient, without lowering the high food safety standards;
Amendment 528 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Underlines that policies must create a level playing field between all stakeholders and products and that protein consumption must be more sustainable; supports policy measures that allow consumers to compare performance between products, as indicated in the upcoming legislative framework for a sustainable food system;
Amendment 534 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Calls for more research and development into plant-based and alternative proteinsthe sustainable production of proteins in the EU; underlines the urgent need for public and private research, research infrastructure, demo facility and upscaling of protein production;
Amendment 555 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Underlines that improved coordination and collaboration between the supply chain’s stakeholders is needed to bridge the current gaps between farmers, processors and retailers; stresses that stronger collective collaborations between the actors should be actively promoted with a view to shaping higher added value chains;
Amendment 569 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Reiterates the farm to fork strategy’s target of reducing food waste by 50 %, which could be partly reached through a more circular agriculture sector and food production if biodegradable waste is viewed as a resource rather than as waste;
Amendment 575 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Highlights that protein production in the EU will not increase if there is no market-driven demand for itsustainable produced protein; urges market actors to develop techniques for determining the protein content and quality in cereals, protein plants and feed in order to better mirror the value of the protein; stresses that increased market transparency can lead to lower prices, less waste and a more circular food sector;
Amendment 586 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Recognises that the production of renewable energy is linked to the production of protein and that an increased protein production can therefore help the EU to enhance the production of biofuels and biomethane;
Amendment 598 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 30
Paragraph 30
30. Stresses that action at all levels is needed in order to increase protein production; calls therefore on Member States to introduce investment and research support on system, business and production level;
Amendment 607 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 31
Paragraph 31
31. Recalls the need to promote effective agricultural knowledge and innovation systems, enabling all food chain actors to become sustainable by speeding up innovation and accelerating knowledge transfer;
Amendment 625 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point ii
Paragraph 32 – point ii
ii. NA novel food legislation that ensures high food safety standards and simplifies and speeds up authorisation processes, and puts forward scientific and technical guidance for the preparation and submission of applications for novel food, as well as increased staffing at EFSA working with novel food;
Amendment 634 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point iii
Paragraph 32 – point iii
iii. A directive on waste that allows more types of biodegradable waste to be considered as feed and that allows food production residues to be used and transported between production sites with greater flexibility and less regulatory burden;
Amendment 640 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point iv
Paragraph 32 – point iv
iv. A renewable energy directive that allows for thecreates long-term and stable regulation of biofuel productionfor utilization of side streams from protein crops, agricultural residues and food production waste streams for the production of biomethane and biofuel;
Amendment 647 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point v
Paragraph 32 – point v
v. An energy taxation directive that provides clear and long-term rules fortaxation rules and that incentivises the production of all bio-based fuels;
Amendment 680 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point ix
Paragraph 32 – point ix
ix. A front-of-pack label regulation that compares the carbonscience based and voluntary label in the legislative framework for sustainable food systems that allows for comparison of the environmental footprint of food and feed;
Amendment 684 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point xi
Paragraph 32 – point xi
xi. A framework that has a higher tolerance towards techregulation on anicmal difficultiesby- products that, while maintaining high safety levels of processed agricultural products, opens up for using more former foodstuffs and fish-origin ingredients as feed;
Amendment 692 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32 – point xiii
Paragraph 32 – point xiii
xiii. A clear research and development funding strategy to promote and stimulate the market uptake of plant-basedall types of proteins for food and feed in the EU utilizing and unlocking the potential of Horizon Europe, the Innovation Fund, the LIFE Program, EIT Food and other relevant EU funding for food technology and agricultural development;