G/SPS/GEN/1797  
 
22 June 2020 
(20-4358) Page: 1/1 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
FARM TO FORK STRATEG Y 
COMMUNICATION  FROM T HE EUROPEAN UNION  
The following document , received on 22 June 2020, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of the European Union . 
 
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1.1.  On 20 May 2020, the European Commission adopted a Farm to Fork Strategy  for a fair, 
healthy and environmentally friendly food system. The strategy is at the heart of the 
European  Green Deal , presented in December 2019, and is crucial for its implementation . 
The strategy addresses comprehensively the challenges arising when making food systems 
sustainable and recognises the inextricable links between healthy people, healthy societies and a 
healthy planet. It is central to the European Commission’s agenda to achieve the Uni ted Nation’s 
Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs ). 
1.2.  The COVID -19 pandemic has underlined the importance of a robust and resilient food system 
that functions in all circumstances, and is capable of ensuring access to a sufficient supply of 
affordable food fo r all citizens. It has also made us acutely aware of the interrelations between our 
health, ecosystems, supply chains, consumption patterns and planetary boundaries.  
1.3.  The Farm to Fork Strategy  will enable the transition to a sustainable EU food system  that 
safeguards food security and ensures access to healthy diets sourced from a healthy planet. It will 
reduce the environmental and climate footprint of the EU food system and strengthen its resilience, 
protecting citizens' health and ensuring the livelihood s of economic operators.  
1.4.  The strategy sets concrete targets  to transform the EU food system, including a reduction by 
50% of the use and risk of pesticides ; a reduction by at least 50% of nutrient losses, while ensuring 
that there is no deterioration in so il fertility;  a reduction by 50% in sales of antimicrobials used for 
farmed animals and aquaculture ; and reaching 25% of agricultural land under organic farming by 
2030. It also proposes ambitious measures to ensure that healthy options are the easiest for  EU 
citizens, including improved labelling to better meet consumers' information needs on healthy, 
sustainable foods.  
1.5.  For its development  and implementation, the action plan accompanying the strategy lists a 
set of regulatory and non -regulatory measures, including a legislative framework for a sustainable 
food system.  
1.6.  The Farm to Fork Strategy has an important international dimension . It aims to promote a 
global transition to sustainable food systems, in line with the SDGs and in close cooperation with 
international partners. Indeed, through international cooperation , bilaterally and multilaterally, 
the E uropean Union will promote more sustainable farming and fisheries practices, reduc ing 
deforestation, enhanc ing biodiversity, and improv ing food security an d nutrition outcomes. The 
Commission will incorporate these priorities in the programming guidance for cooperation with non-
EU countries in the period 2021 -2027.  G/SPS/GEN/1797  
 
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  1.7.  A more sustainable EU food system also requires increasingly sustainable practices by our 
trading partners . The E uropean Union will engage actively with trading partners, especially with 
developing countries, to accompany the transition towards a more sustainable use of pesticides to 
avoid disruptions in trade and promote alternative plant protecti on products and methods.  
1.8.  With the Farm to Fork Strategy the E uropean Union has decided to pursue an ambitious level 
of protection that does not only look at the EU territory , but makes sure that environmental  
problems are not shifted to other parts of the world. Certain environmental issues are matters of 
global concern  that go far beyond national boundaries, e.g. the decline of pollinators in many parts 
of the world, and the accumulation in the environment of persistent, bio -accumulative and toxic 
substanc es. Therefore, in line with WTO law, the E uropean Union will start to take into account such  
environmental concerns when assessing requests for import tolerances  for pesticide substances 
no longer approved in the E uropean Union.  
1.9.  Also related to matters of global concern, the strategy envisages legislative and other measures 
to reduce the E uropean Union’s contribution to global deforestation  and forest degradation. 
Similarly, imported products of animal origin will have to comply with relevant EU requirements to 
address the global threat of antimicrobial resistance . 
1.10.   The E uropean Union will strive to develop Green Alliances  on sustainable food systems to 
respond to distinct challenges in different parts of the world . It will promote a global transition  to 
sustainable food systems in international standard setting bodies, relevant multilateral forums and 
international events,  including the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN 
Convention on Biological Diversity, the Nutrition for Growth Summit and the UN Food Systems 
Summit in 2021. Equally, the E uropean Union will seek to ensure that ambitious sustainab ility 
chapters are included in all EU bilateral  trade agreements.   
1.11.   As part of its approach to food information to consumers, and combined with the legislative 
framework on sustainable food systems, the E uropean Union will promote new innovative schemes 
(including an EU sustainable food labelling framework) and intends to lead the work on 
international sustainability standards  and environmental footprint calculation methods in 
multilateral forums to promote a higher uptake of sustainability standards. It wil l also support 
enforcement of rules on misleading information.  
1.12.   The Farm to Fork Strategy is an opportunity to reconcile the EU food system with the needs 
of the planet and to respond positively to people’ s aspirations for healthy, equitable and 
environment ally friendly food. It also aims to make the EU food system a global  standard  for 
sustainability.  
1.13.   Next steps : 
▪ In parallel with internal debates within the European Union, the European Commission will 
engage in an intensive and meaningful discussion with al l WTO Members both at  a bilateral 
and multilateral level.  
1.14.   More information : 
a. Documents : 
▪ European Green Deal : https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities -2019-
2024/european -green -deal_en . 
▪ Farm to Fork Strategy : https://eur -lex.europa.eu/legal -
content/EN/TXT/?qid=159040460249 5&uri=CELEX:52020DC0381 . 
b. Website:  
▪ Farm to fork: https://ec.europa.eu/food/farm2fork_en . 
 
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