{"change_dates":[],"dossier":{"amendments":[],"changes":{"2014-11-09T23:50:41":[{"data":[{"body":"EP","date":"2012-01-19T00:00:00","docs":[{"title":"Results of vote in Parliament","type":"Results of vote in Parliament","url":"http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/popups/sda.do?id=21103&l=en"},{"title":"Debate in Parliament","type":"Debate in Parliament","url":"http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?secondRef=TOC&language=EN&reference=20120119&type=CRE"},{"text":["
The European Parliament adopted a resolution on the\nimbalances in the food supply chain, in response to the Commission\ncommunication on a better functioning of the food supply\nchain.
\nThe resolution was tabled by the EPP, ALDE,\nGreens/EFA, S&D, and GUE/NGL groups.
\nIt points out that the food supply chain, agriculture,\nthe agri-food industry and food distribution account for 7% of\ntotal employment in the EU and are worth EUR 1400 billion per year\n- a figure greater than that for any other manufacturing sector in\nthe EU - and that the share of agricultural value added from the\nfood supply chain dropped from 31% in 1995 to 24% in 2005 in the\nEU-25.
\nParliament emphasises that the problem of imbalances\nin the food distribution chain has a clear European dimension,\nwhich calls for a specific European solution. Whilst tackling the\nimbalances in the food distribution chain includes self-regulation,\nit also requires regulation and adjustments to competition\nlaw. The resolution calls on the Commission to propose\nrobust EU legislation - where necessary and without distorting\nthe proper functioning of the markets - to guarantee fair and\ntransparent relationships between producers, suppliers and\ndistributors of food products, and to implement properly the rules\nalready in force. Members note in this regard the latest\nagricultural income figures from Eurostat show that, since 2009,\nthere has been an 11.6% drop in farm incomes at EU level, whilst\ntotal input costs for EU farmers increased on average by almost 40%\nbetween 2000 and 2010. Parliament urges the Commission and Member\nStates to continue to address the problem of unfair distribution\nof profits within the food chain, especially with regard to\nadequate incomes for farmers, stressing that power struggles must\ngive way to cooperative relationships.
\nUnfair practices: Parliament calls on national and European competition\nauthorities and other regulatory authorities to take action against\nabusive buyer practices on the part of dominant wholesalers and\nretailers that systematically put farmers in an extremely unequal\nbargaining position. It calls for a clear, rigorous and\nobjective definition of abusive and unfair practices, so\nthat such practices are subject to specific regulation, supervision\nand objective sanctions. Members highlight a non-exhaustive list\nof practices about which producers have raised concerns in\nrelation to the functioning of the food supply chain. These include\nthe following:
\n\n- \non access to retailers: (i) advance payment for\naccessing negotiation; (ii) listing fees; (iii) entry fees; (iv)\npricing; (v) payment delays; (v) most favoured client\nclause;
\n\n- \non unfair contractual conditions or unilateral\nchanges to contract terms: (i) unilateral and retrospective changes\nto contractual conditions; (ii) unilateral breach of contract;\n(iii) exclusivity clauses/fees; (iv) imposition of a\nforced contribution for private brands; (v) retaliatory\npractices; (vi) margin recovery; (vii) overriding discounts; (viii)\nimposition of payment for waste processing; (ix) inverted\nauctions; (x) unrealistic delivery terms; (xi) payment to cover\n(non-previously agreed) promotions; (xii) imposing unconditional\nreturn of (unsold) merchandise; (xiii) imposition on suppliers of\ncosts related to product shrinkage or theft.
\nParliament calls for the establishment of a\nframework to effectively control these practices, by launching\na full-sector inquiry, through administrative or judicial\nmeans, and then by introducing a system of evaluation and\nmonitoring operated by Member States and coordinated by the\nCommission, with dissuasive sanctions applied effectively and in\ngood time.
\nOn payment, Members ask for the introduction of\nbetter means to ensure that payment deadlines are complied\nwith, taking into account the provisions of the Late Payments\nDirective, and for new instruments to be put in place to minimise\nthe length of time between delivery and the moment at which payment\nis actually received by suppliers. Solutions are urgently required\nto deal with the specific problems encountered by producers of\nperishable goods with short shelf-lives, who face major cash flow\ndifficulties.
\nParliament also asks the Commission to:
\n\n· \nimprove the European Price Monitoring\nTool and develop a user-friendly,\ntransparent and multilingual interface which allows consumers and\nstakeholders to compare prices of basic foodstuffs within a certain\nMember State and between different Member States at each stage in\nthe food supply chain and which also takes into account differences\nin costs of living in the Member States;
\n\n· \nclarify the application of competition rules\nin agriculture, with the aim of\nproviding farmers and their inter-branch organisations with tools\nthat will make it possible to improve their negotiating\nposition;
\n\n· \nmake an assessment of and changes to existing\nEU competition law, with a view to\nensuring that greater account is taken of the harmful effects of\nvertical concentration on the entire food supply chain, instead of\nthere being a narrow focus on the relative positions of various\ncompanies on the market and distortions of competition being viewed\nsolely on the basis of their detrimental effect to\nconsumers;
\n\n· \nbetter coordinate the work of its various\nservices, so as to be able to play a\nmore effective role in price monitoring throughout the food chain\nand in monitoring retail dynamics and relative market shares\nthroughout the EU. Members calls for the creation of an\nindependent Food Trading Ombudsman to liaise with the relevant\ntrade and competition authorities and with national food trading\nOmbudsmen in each Member State, in order to share information. The\nEuropean Ombudsman and the various national Ombudsmen should be\nresponsible for ensuring compliance with the relevant legislation\nand recommending timely and appropriate sanctions;
\n\n· \nconduct an in-depth study into the differences in approach between the 27\nnational competition authorities and policies and to encourage\nsolutions which involve all partners in the food production chain\nand prevent abuses of dominant positions in one or a restricted\nnumber of parts of the input or output chain, which often occur at\nthe expense of the agricultural producer.
\nLastly, Parliament insists that the Member States\nshould play an active role in supporting existing and in\nestablishing new consultation forums, with proper representation of\nthe actors along the food chain, so as to promote dialogue and\nestablish guidelines to bring about fairer, more balanced\nrelationships.
\nThe European Parliament adopted a resolution on the\nimbalances in the food supply chain, in response to the Commission\ncommunication on a better functioning of the food supply\nchain.
\nThe resolution was tabled by the EPP, ALDE,\nGreens/EFA, S&D, and GUE/NGL groups.
\nIt points out that the food supply chain, agriculture,\nthe agri-food industry and food distribution account for 7% of\ntotal employment in the EU and are worth EUR 1400 billion per year\n- a figure greater than that for any other manufacturing sector in\nthe EU - and that the share of agricultural value added from the\nfood supply chain dropped from 31% in 1995 to 24% in 2005 in the\nEU-25.
\nParliament emphasises that the problem of imbalances\nin the food distribution chain has a clear European dimension,\nwhich calls for a specific European solution. Whilst tackling the\nimbalances in the food distribution chain includes self-regulation,\nit also requires regulation and adjustments to competition\nlaw. The resolution calls on the Commission to propose\nrobust EU legislation - where necessary and without distorting\nthe proper functioning of the markets - to guarantee fair and\ntransparent relationships between producers, suppliers and\ndistributors of food products, and to implement properly the rules\nalready in force. Members note in this regard the latest\nagricultural income figures from Eurostat show that, since 2009,\nthere has been an 11.6% drop in farm incomes at EU level, whilst\ntotal input costs for EU farmers increased on average by almost 40%\nbetween 2000 and 2010. Parliament urges the Commission and Member\nStates to continue to address the problem of unfair distribution\nof profits within the food chain, especially with regard to\nadequate incomes for farmers, stressing that power struggles must\ngive way to cooperative relationships.
\nUnfair practices: Parliament calls on national and European competition\nauthorities and other regulatory authorities to take action against\nabusive buyer practices on the part of dominant wholesalers and\nretailers that systematically put farmers in an extremely unequal\nbargaining position. It calls for a clear, rigorous and\nobjective definition of abusive and unfair practices, so\nthat such practices are subject to specific regulation, supervision\nand objective sanctions. Members highlight a non-exhaustive list\nof practices about which producers have raised concerns in\nrelation to the functioning of the food supply chain. These include\nthe following:
\n\n- \non access to retailers: (i) advance payment for\naccessing negotiation; (ii) listing fees; (iii) entry fees; (iv)\npricing; (v) payment delays; (v) most favoured client\nclause;
\n\n- \non unfair contractual conditions or unilateral\nchanges to contract terms: (i) unilateral and retrospective changes\nto contractual conditions; (ii) unilateral breach of contract;\n(iii) exclusivity clauses/fees; (iv) imposition of a\nforced contribution for private brands; (v) retaliatory\npractices; (vi) margin recovery; (vii) overriding discounts; (viii)\nimposition of payment for waste processing; (ix) inverted\nauctions; (x) unrealistic delivery terms; (xi) payment to cover\n(non-previously agreed) promotions; (xii) imposing unconditional\nreturn of (unsold) merchandise; (xiii) imposition on suppliers of\ncosts related to product shrinkage or theft.
\nParliament calls for the establishment of a\nframework to effectively control these practices, by launching\na full-sector inquiry, through administrative or judicial\nmeans, and then by introducing a system of evaluation and\nmonitoring operated by Member States and coordinated by the\nCommission, with dissuasive sanctions applied effectively and in\ngood time.
\nOn payment, Members ask for the introduction of\nbetter means to ensure that payment deadlines are complied\nwith, taking into account the provisions of the Late Payments\nDirective, and for new instruments to be put in place to minimise\nthe length of time between delivery and the moment at which payment\nis actually received by suppliers. Solutions are urgently required\nto deal with the specific problems encountered by producers of\nperishable goods with short shelf-lives, who face major cash flow\ndifficulties.
\nParliament also asks the Commission to:
\n\n· \nimprove the European Price Monitoring\nTool and develop a user-friendly,\ntransparent and multilingual interface which allows consumers and\nstakeholders to compare prices of basic foodstuffs within a certain\nMember State and between different Member States at each stage in\nthe food supply chain and which also takes into account differences\nin costs of living in the Member States;
\n\n· \nclarify the application of competition rules\nin agriculture, with the aim of\nproviding farmers and their inter-branch organisations with tools\nthat will make it possible to improve their negotiating\nposition;
\n\n· \nmake an assessment of and changes to existing\nEU competition law, with a view to\nensuring that greater account is taken of the harmful effects of\nvertical concentration on the entire food supply chain, instead of\nthere being a narrow focus on the relative positions of various\ncompanies on the market and distortions of competition being viewed\nsolely on the basis of their detrimental effect to\nconsumers;
\n\n· \nbetter coordinate the work of its various\nservices, so as to be able to play a\nmore effective role in price monitoring throughout the food chain\nand in monitoring retail dynamics and relative market shares\nthroughout the EU. Members calls for the creation of an\nindependent Food Trading Ombudsman to liaise with the relevant\ntrade and competition authorities and with national food trading\nOmbudsmen in each Member State, in order to share information. The\nEuropean Ombudsman and the various national Ombudsmen should be\nresponsible for ensuring compliance with the relevant legislation\nand recommending timely and appropriate sanctions;
\n\n· \nconduct an in-depth study into the differences in approach between the 27\nnational competition authorities and policies and to encourage\nsolutions which involve all partners in the food production chain\nand prevent abuses of dominant positions in one or a restricted\nnumber of parts of the input or output chain, which often occur at\nthe expense of the agricultural producer.
\nLastly, Parliament insists that the Member States\nshould play an active role in supporting existing and in\nestablishing new consultation forums, with proper representation of\nthe actors along the food chain, so as to promote dialogue and\nestablish guidelines to bring about fairer, more balanced\nrelationships.
\n