# EUR-Lex - 52012DC0148 - EN

*|*

# 52012DC0148

**COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS on promotion measures and information provision for agricultural products: a reinforced value-added European strategy for promoting the tastes of Europe /* COM/2012/0148 final */**

			*

			*

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1........... Promotion as a key element of
the CAP.......................................................................... 4

2........... The challenges................................................................................................................ 4

2.1........ Securing one’s position in a
situation of growing competition and opening-up markets....... 4

2.2........ A competitive and dynamic
European agri-food sector.................................................... 5

2.3........ Enhancing the image of European
agriculture and European agricultural and food products 5

3........... Objectives of the future
promotion policy........................................................................ 6

3.1........ Higher European added value......................................................................................... 6

3.2........ A more appealing and assertive
policy............................................................................. 6

3.3........ Simpler management....................................................................................................... 6

3.4........ Greater synergy between the
different promotion instruments........................................... 6

4........... Guidelines for the reform................................................................................................. 7

4.1........ A wider scope of application........................................................................................... 7

4.1.1..... The beneficiaries............................................................................................................. 7

4.1.2..... The eligible products and themes..................................................................................... 7

4.1.3..... The indication of origin.................................................................................................... 8

4.1.4..... Brand names.................................................................................................................. 8

4.2........ A wider scope of activity with
the development of technical assistance for operators......... 9

4.3........ Revised intervention methods,
especially in multi-country programmes.............................. 9

4.4........ Promotion and the crisis................................................................................................ 10

4.5........ Simplified and optimised
management............................................................................ 10

4.6........ Greater consistency between information
and promotion activities under the promotion scheme and other promotion
measures within the CAP.............................................................................. 10

4.7........ What should Europe’s budget be to
ensure we can achieve our objectives?.................... 11

5........... Conclusion................................................................................................................... 11

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

on promotion measures and information
provision for agricultural products: a reinforced value-added European strategy
for promoting the tastes of Europe

Introduction

The diversity
and quality of agricultural production in the European Union are values known
throughout the world. While the increasing globalisation of trade does present
challenges, it also opens up new markets and new growth opportunities to be seized.
In this context, offering excellent products that meet stringent standards
remains a priority but is no longer sufficient for durably securing a good
position on the market. The very strong reputation of our regions and of our
know-how must be consolidated and maximised further.

The European
Union, which has extremely diverse, high-quality production and guarantees a
high level of health security, has all the resources necessary to benefit from
the projected growth of world demand as long as it highlights its strengths
through a better targeted and more ambitious promotion policy. In addition, on
the internal market, consumers should be made more aware of the quality and
diversity of the available range of products.

The aim of the
legislative proposals for the reform of the CAP post-2013 currently being
negotiated is to enable this policy to contribute fully to the “Europe 2020”
Strategy by supporting agriculture that guarantees food safety, the sustainable
use of natural resources and the dynamism of rural areas as well as growth and
employment. An efficient promotion policy is key to reaching these objectives.
With this in mind, in-depth discussions were launched in July 2011, including a
public debate, with the adoption of a Green Paper on information provision and
promotion measures for agricultural products[1]
to serve as a flagship measure to reinforce the competitiveness of EU
agriculture. The reflections presented in this Communication are also based on
the external evaluation report, prepared in 2011, on the present promotion
policy[2].

The task of the
Green Paper was to 1) define how this information and promotion policy could
better explain to consumers the effort made by EU producers to reach such a
high quality, 2) to display the entire range of products and tastes from the
different EU regions, 3) to stimulate exports and 4) to help European producers
facing new challenges on the markets and a particularly difficult economic
situation.

The conclusions
of the Council of Ministers and the statements of the Committee of the Regions
and of the European Economic and Social Committee issued in December 2011 in
response to the revision of the promotion policy recommend that existing tools
be improved, simplified and made more consistent in order to revive this
policy. The European Parliament too expressed support for reinforcing promotion
measures, in particular those aimed at quality products.

Against such a background, this
Communication aims at increasing the added value of the agri-food sector and its
contribution to the European economy by moving towards a European and global
promotion policy more focused on the commercial aspects of the sector.

1.           Promotion as an essential
element of the CAP

The regulatory
framework for information and promotion activities targeting agricultural
products has evolved since its introduction in the early 1980s. More than ever,
it aims at improving the image of European agricultural products, stimulating
stagnating or declining consumption trends and winning new markets.

Through the
horizontal promotion scheme[3]
in place since 2000, the European Commission examines the generic promotion
programmes proposed by sectoral trade organisations and validated by the
national authorities. It then selects those schemes that fulfil the criteria
laid down in the Council Regulation and its implementing Regulation. These
programmes are co-financed on the basis of a tripartite agreement where the EU
contributes a maximum of 50%[4],
the trade organisation a minimum of 20% and the Member States concerned pay for
the rest. The annual budget allocated to promotion measures is about EUR 50
million, about one quarter of which goes to promotion in the external market.

This horizontal
scheme co-exists with other promotion measures within the CAP, in the Common
Market Organisation[5]
and as part of rural development[6].
The first mentioned concerns the wine sector in third countries and the fruit
and vegetable sector through the operational programmes of producers’
organisations.

This
arrangement results in a certain lack of consistency as regards the nature of
the actions and the rules, making it difficult to assess their overall impact.
There are also other problems that make it necessary to reform the promotion
policy as a whole, such as bureaucratic management and fragmented action that
is poorly balanced between the internal and external markets.

2.           The challenges

2.1.        Securing one’s position in
a situation of growing competition and opening-up markets

In 2010 the European Union was the world’s
second exporter of agricultural products for a total value of EUR 91 billion,
right after the United States (EUR 92 billion), and the biggest importer (EUR
84 billion). The share of finished and processed products in European
exports has increased continuously over the years. In value, these
products represent over two-thirds of the EU's total agricultural exports. It
is essential for European agriculture to preserve and improve its
competitiveness and market shares both in its internal market and in exports, in
compliance with the international trade commitments entered into by the EU.

In coming years, the possible conclusion of
the Doha Round and the negotiation of new trade agreements will mean new
opportunities that need to be seized by exporters of agricultural products.

2.2.        A competitive and dynamic
European agri-food sector

The food chain
represents 6% of European gross domestic product (GDP). More specifically,
within European manufacturing industry, the food industry is the biggest
employer with 4.2 million jobs (13.5%) and a turnover of EUR 954 billion
(12.9%). The food industry comprises 310 000 companies, 99.1% of which are
SMEs[7], and uses up a big share of the
EU’s agricultural production.

The success of
European agriculture will depend on its ability to increase its market share
and enable the highly competitive food industry sector to maintain an important
position in the EU’s trade and economy.

The markets are
changing increasingly fast. Supply must adapt to demand that may change
radically over a short period of time, especially if there is a loss of
consumer confidence. The development of the internet accentuates this
phenomenon[8].

Favourable in
the medium term, the prospects for agricultural markets are expected
nonetheless to be characterised by greater uncertainty and volatility.

2.3.        Enhancing the image of
European agriculture and European agricultural and food products

The primary role of agriculture is to
produce food. At European level, the CAP contributes to viable food production
while guaranteeing the sustainable management of natural resources and seeing
to balanced territorial development. Through their activities and their
presence in rural areas, farmers have become guardians of natural resources and
of environmental values that are indispensable for the sustainability and
competitiveness of European agriculture.

Our agricultural and food products are the
best testimonials to a Common Agricultural Policy focused on quality. Consumers
in Europe and in third countries should be made aware of and recognise the
advantages of European agricultural products, which comply with extremely
strict standards concerning the environment, food safety and animal well-being,
and of European eating habits.

3.           Objectives of the future
promotion policy

3.1.        Higher European added
value

The promotion of agricultural products must
not replace promotion activities in the private sector but should rather endow
them with a special European dimension. By seeking higher European added value
and anchoring it firmly in our regions, it will be possible to promote growth
and employment and contribute in this way to the “Europe 2020” strategy.

This European added value can be generated
by defining a European information and promotion strategy that targets markets
more precisely and offers products or messages to be highlighted (for example
products with a high added value). Account should be taken of free trade
agreement negotiations and the most profitable markets in order to avoid the
fragmentation of effort. Furthermore, cooperation between the economic players
of the different Member States contributes greatly to European added value and
to highlighting the diversity of European agricultural products.

3.2.        A more appealing and
assertive policy

Besides being unable to create the
necessary added value, the information and promotion policy is also subject to
administrative constraints. Programmes have been submitted too timidly in third
countries. In addition, it is not always easy to assess the range of actions,
whose impact may not be seen until later. It is therefore important to conduct
more appealing campaigns preceded, if necessary, by market analyses, studies of
consumer habits or pilot campaigns. In order to reinforce the
cost-effectiveness of the future policy, each action will require a more
systematic impact assessment to confirm that the objectives set have indeed
been met.

3.3.        Simpler management

Information and promotion programmes are
usually financed and managed on a tripartite basis (trade organisations, the
Member State and the European Commission). In turn, trade organisations rely on
implementing bodies such as advertising agencies to carry out the actions they
have planned.

The contributions to the Green Paper are
often requests to review the method used to select programmes and to make their
planning and execution more flexible so changes can be made during
implementation. The contributions call for a more active role for the
Commission in drafting and coordinating multi-country programmes, especially in
third countries. At the same time, the respective roles of the Member State and
the Commission in following up and monitoring activities will be clarified in
order to avoid duplication of effort and lengthy procedures.

3.4.        Greater synergy between
the different promotion instruments

The objective of the future European
strategy for the promotion of agricultural products is to increase the added
value of the agri-food sector and its contribution to the European economy.
This aim requires more consistent actions to promote the CAP so that their
impact can be guaranteed. While the special features of the different sectors
should be kept in mind, it is desirable to seek linkages and synergies that
strengthen the promotion policy.

Regardless of the scheme, a common
identity, including visual and content-related elements, would provide these
promotion activities with a stronger European identity and better consumer
visibility and improve their performance.

4.           Guidelines for the reform

A variety of reform options for achieving
an information and promotion policy that meets the above objectives will be
examined during the impact analysis process that will accompany and be used to
justify the legislative proposal to be adopted by the Commission before the end
of 2012.

The guidelines elaborated below are
suggested reflections based on currently available reports, in particular the
summary report of the replies to the Green Paper[9]
and the ex-post evaluation report concerning the promotion policy[10].

Information and promotion activities
related to local markets and short supply chains will be covered by
rural development programmes prepared as part of a cooperation project and
excluded from the future promotion scheme.

4.1.        A wider scope of
application

4.1.1.     The beneficiaries

The scope of the information and promotion
measures could be extended beyond trade organisations. In particular, attention
should be paid to the role given to private enterprises that propose programmes
with high added value for the European Union.

4.1.2.     The eligible products and
themes

At present, the list of eligible products
is different for internal and external markets, and this no longer seems
justified. A single, homogeneous list that follows more closely the list of
products covered by the quality policy should be established. The possibility
to add to the list processed agricultural products not included in Annex I to
the Treaty will be examined.

Furthermore, as underlined by the European
Court of Auditors[11],
among others, the promotion of European food quality schemes such as the
protected designation of origin (PDO), the protected geographical indication
(PGI) and traditional specialities guaranteed (TSG), and of products recognised
under these schemes should receive reinforced support.

In addition to providing information on and
promoting agricultural and food products, activities could also deliver
thematic messages illustrating the special characteristics of European products
and, in particular, their quality, gastronomical aspects, health issues,
sustainable development or animal well-being. As a means of bringing consumers
closer to producers, it might be worth using new technologies that would make
it possible to visualise the implementation of good production practices on
farms or sell products online more easily.

4.1.3.     The indication of origin

According to the public consultation, 76%
of respondents consider the indication of origin as the most important element.
This shows clearly the link between food and origin and confirms the results of
consumer attitude surveys. This link can be either positive or negative (fears
following health crises and other notable socio-cultural events).

A mention of “Europe”, European know-how,
the European lifestyle, etc. should always feature, explicitly or implicitly,
in any information and promotion measures in order to help develop the European
image of agricultural and food products.

For PDO or PGI products registered in
Europe, it will still be possible to include the origin as the main indication,
as at present, provided that the reference is exactly the same as that
registered.

Notwithstanding European rules on product
labelling, it would be useful to study how including the indication of origin
in information and promotion activities could boost the effect of these
activities:

- on the internal market, regardless
of the labelling rules applied to the products in question, the purpose of
indicating the national origin (except in the case of a name recognised
throughout Europe) would be to increase the consumption of products from the
Member State concerned, which, pursuant to the rules on the free movement of
goods, would be considered a measure having equivalent effect to quantitative
restrictions on intra-Community trade. Therefore including the origin as the
main indication cannot be authorised but it could be included as a secondary
indication.

- in contrast, on the external market,
indicating the national origin of a product in addition to its European origin,
which is the main indication, might be an advantage on certain markets where,
even though Europe is a well-known geographical area, the national identity of
certain Member States is stronger than their European identity.

4.1.4.     Brand names

While the role of brand names in promoting
products in third countries was discussed in the public consultation,
there was broad consensus on the importance of preserving the generic nature of
information and promotion activities co-financed at European level. Indeed, it
would seem that taxpayers understand better the need to co-finance generic
information and promotion activities.

Products are sold on the basis of contracts
concluded with importers, and therefore it would seem natural to complement
generic promotion by bringing together economic players who, by definition,
sell their own products. Brand names can have a leveraging effect. The impact
analysis should, among other things, examine the possibility of implementing
mixed schemes on the external market that would include a generic section and a
commercial section where private brands could be presented. The participation
of brand names should be subject to a common framework that guarantees
compliance with competition rules.

It should also be examined whether the
indication of collective brands should be subject to specific rules or to the
rules to be laid down for brands in general.

4.2.        A wider scope of activity
with the development of technical assistance for operators

There are three types of information and
promotion activities:

1-Information on the production methods
used in European agricultural policy: in the internal
market, in particular, the goal is to provide better information on the
EU’s agricultural products, highlighting especially the following: their great
diversity, high quality, the traditions underpinning their production, the
know-how and strict production standards (unrivalled outside the EU); respect
for the environment as a solution to the challenges posed by sustainability
requirements and climate change; health standards.

2-information on and the promotion of
European quality symbols (e.g. the PDO, PGI, SGT,
organic logos, etc.);

3-information on and the promotion of
agricultural products and agricultural product ranges. On the external
market, the aim is to help agricultural products from the EU increase their
market share and to contribute to reinforcing the “Europe brand”.

The public consultation is nearly unanimous
about the need to propose at European level a fourth type of activity
consisting of technical support (for example by providing market studies,
importer lists or information on import standards[12]) in order to help operators
participate in co-financed programmes, carry out efficient campaigns or develop
their export activities.

The public consultation and the assessments
resulted in a number of proposals for the implementation of a European platform
for the exchange of information and promotion activities, featuring, for
example, a website, a help desk, a joint calendar of activities, a catalogue of
good practices, etc.

4.3.        Revised intervention
methods, especially in multi-country programmes

The activities would be implemented
primarily through programmes managed by communication and promotion
professionals with proven knowledge of the target markets.

Multi-country programmes make it possible
to share experience and realise economies of scale, in addition to providing
undeniable added value for Europe. However, while they are promoted by the
current policy, they do not yield the desired results. They represented only 8%
of the programmes in 2006-2010 and sometimes consisted simply in juxtaposing
national programmes instead of actually combining strategies or actions. Such a
“renationalisation” of programmes is counter-productive both as regards
administrative management and the intended effect. A different operating method
will have to be considered for multi-country programmes in order to overcome
the present obstacles, such as increasingly high preparation costs,
increasingly difficult coordination between the players (cultural and
linguistic barriers, among others) and implementation involving several Member
States.

On the Commission’s initiative, and owing
to their past positive record, high-level missions of the Commission Member
responsible for agriculture will continue to be carried out in third countries
and the Commission, accompanied by business delegations, will continue to
participate in international fairs.

4.4.        Promotion and the crisis

A crisis is above all unpredictable.
Information and promotion measures are financed under the 1st pillar
of the CAP on an annual basis on the general assumption that the situation of
the agricultural markets will remain normal.

Therefore, up to now, any additional
promotion measures taken in response to crises[13]
have been financed by additional appropriations, added to the initial budget in
the course of the year. However, owing to the constraints of the 2014-2020
financial framework, such ad hoc funding will be more difficult.

Consequently,
the political issue here is whether the Community-level response to a crisis
should stem from the future promotion policy or from the horizontal measures
already included in the proposals for the CAP in 2020.

4.5.        Simplified and optimised
management

The general opinion is that the selection,
follow-up and management of programmes should be simpler and more flexible and
operational. Consequently the management arrangements should be examined as a
whole in order to select the most relevant ones, for example outsourcing direct
management by the Commission to an executive agency or sharing management tasks
with or without “national envelopes”.

Where appropriate, there should be
different management arrangements for the internal and the external market and
for multi-country programmes or crisis programmes.

Furthermore, the requirements applied when
programmes are selected will be revised and it might be possible to adopt a
programme as part of a multiannual framework programme, where information is
given for the first year of implementation but where detailed information for
the subsequent years can be provided later.

4.6.        Greater consistency
between information and promotion activities under the promotion scheme and
other promotion measures within the CAP

While it is essential to boost information
and promotion activities by providing key messages on the characteristics of
European agricultural and food products, there is also the problem of
inconsistency between promotion activities carried out under the CAP but
according to different rules. Consistency will have to be improved by avoiding
the extremes of a simple alignment of activities, on the one hand, and a single
promotion scheme, on the other, and, above all, in a manner that helps better
evaluate all of the promotion measures.

In addition, in order to conduct generic
campaigns with the greatest value for Europe, improve European visibility and
contribute to the building of the European image, it might be useful to
introduce an indication of European identity including both visual and content-related
elements in all information and promotion programmes. This would be done by
developing measures under a single banner, for example using a slogan such as
“Taste of Europe: Quality Guaranteed”. In order for it to be efficient, this
banner system could be used in all information and promotion measures and
adapted to the internal and external markets.

4.7.        What should Europe’s
budget be to ensure we can achieve our objectives?

This issue, raised in the Green Paper, and
more specifically the amount of the budget was the topic of numerous
contributions. When investing in promotion measures, Europe will have to look
for the best possible return on investment.

Table 1: Promotion measures under the 1st
pillar of the CAP (main amounts)

Scheme || Amounts || Source

COM in wine || EUR 112 million (executed in 2011) || Declarations of the Member States

EUR 228 million (estimated expenditure in 2013)[14] || Programming of the Member States

COM in fruit and vegetables || EUR 34 million (executed on average in 2008-2009) || Evaluation report[15]

Horizontal scheme || EUR 47 million (executed in 2011); EUR 55.2 million (budget for 2012) || Declarations of the Member States

In the light of the objectives and in order
to make the new promotion policy more efficient, consideration should be given
to the advisability of reconciling these different budgets and to the financial
aspects while remaining consistent with the Commission's proposals for the new
financial framework.

5.           Conclusion

This Communication bases itself on the
findings of the public consultation and provides a few preliminary guidelines
for reforming the promotion policy. It will be supplemented with an in-depth
impact analysis that will be used to back up the policy reform and to develop a
European promotion scheme that is as ambitious, especially in its external
component, as those implemented by other major international exporters.

The reform of the Common Agricultural
Policy is seeking to improve the organisation of the production, sustainability
and quality of agricultural products. It needs to be accompanied by a promotion
policy that makes it possible to deploy the entire potential of the food sector
in order to favour growth and employment within the European economy.

[1]               COM(2011) 436.

[2]               http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/eval/reports/promotion/index_en.htm.

[3]               Council Regulation (EC) No 3/2008 and its
implementing Regulation, Commission Regulation (EC) No 501/2008.

[4]               This rate is 60% for activities promoting fruits and
vegetables among children in European schools and for information campaigns in
the EU concerning responsible drinking patterns and the harm linked to
irresponsible alcohol consumption.

[5]               Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

[6]               Regulation (EC) No 1698/2005.

[7]               Source: CIAA annual report for 2010.

[8]               The number of internet users totalled 2.1 billion on
31.3.2011, or 480% more than in 2000. Source: internet world stats.

[9]               http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/promotion/policy/consultation/summary-report_en.pdf.

[10]             Cf. footnote 2.

[11]             Special report No 11/2011.

[12]             See
the sanitary and phytosanitary export database:
http://madb.europa.eu/madb_barriers/indexPubli_sps.htm.

[13]             Regulation (EC) No 698/2009 and Regulation (EC) No
688/2011.

[14]             In their national programmes, Member States have the
possibility to reallocate these amounts to other measures. Amendments to the
national support programmes for wine can be made twice a year.

[15]             http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/eval/reports/promotion/index_en.htm (page 23 of the report)