WRITTEN QUESTION P-0724/01 by Luciana Sbarbati (ELDR) to the Commission. Regulations governing food and typical food products.
Date: 2001-03-06
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: bovine spongiform encephalopathy, consumer protection, craft production, designation of origin, food inspection, food safety, foodstuff, foot-and-mouth disease, veterinary legislation

C 235 E/240

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.8.2001

(2001/C 235 E/283)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0724/01

by Luciana Sbarbati (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Regulations governing food and typical food products

(6 March 2001)

The spread of BSE and foot and mouth disease in the European Union raises serious questions about the
large-scale production and sale of food products intended for human consumption.

The standardisation of markets has had an adverse effect on the quality of products and their safety.
Locally made products and typical products, on the other hand, could prove to be a good alternative for
consumers whose confidence in the safety of the food they buy needs to be restored.

These products have always offered a guarantee of high quality and are produced with great care using
methods handed down from generation to generation. They are not subject to any kind of adulteration and
are often made using organically produced ingredients.

(cid:145)Niche(cid:146) products, in Italy at least, are in danger of disappearing because of recent European directives,
which are having an adverse effect on small businesses and undermining regional and cultural traditions.
Because such products are not protected, food products can be sold in the EU (cheeses, honey, pork meat
products, etc.), including products from countries outside the EU, which are produced using ingredients of
dubious quality and which hijack traditional product names for the purposes of marketing standardised
imitations.

BSE and foot and mouth disease have revealed the shortcomings in the system of large-scale agricultural
production and have shown that directives need to be accompanied by rigorous checks.

Can the Commission say how it intends to deal with this emergency and what steps it intends to take to
protect consumers?

To what extent the new Commission proposals in the area of hygiene (07/00) will guarantee the degree of
flexibility required by traditional producers and how much leeway will be given to Member States in the
application of the directives?

Given that PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) products in
the Member States need to be given a higher profile, what measures does the Commission have at its
disposal to regulate the production of such products, which are part of our heritage, offer a guarantee of
quality and which must be preserved; and what steps can it take to prevent the placing on the market of
(cid:145)imitation(cid:146) products which are sold using traditional names?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(5 April 2001)

The Commission has adopted a series of measures aimed at dealing with both bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE) and the recent outbreaks of Foot-and-Mouth Disease in a number of member States.
The European Parliament is regularly informed of these measures and also acts as co-legislator on key
proposals under the co-decision process.

the Community has the highest standards of

Assuring that
food safety is a key priority for the
Commission. This is reflected in the Commission(cid:146)s White Paper on food safety (1), where a radical new
approach is proposed. It announces the establishment of a European Food Authority and actions in areas
such as food safety legislation, food safety controls and consumer information. Many of the actions that
were announced in the White Paper are well underway and the implementation of their adoption will
enable food safety to be organised in a more co-ordinated and integrated manner with a view to achieving
the highest possible level of health protection.

21.8.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 235 E/241

The Commission proposals in the area of food hygiene (2) are a response to the need to create a high level
of consumer protection. In addition to the creation of a high level of consumer protection the proposals
provide, more than the existing food hygiene rules contained in Council Directive 93/43/EEC of 14 June
1993 on the hygiene of foodstuffs (3), for the flexibility that is needed to accommodate the needs of
businesses that are involved in traditional ways of
food production. This flexibility applies without
compromising the objectives of food safety. Since traditional food production is a matter that by nature
differs from one Member State to another, and even within Member States, it is up to Member States to
decide upon the level of flexibility that is needed. In order to ensure the correct implementation of the
principle of flexibility, Member States that have recourse to this possibility shall inform the Commission
and the other Member States thereof.

Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 (4)
lays down rules on the protection of
designations of origin and geographical indications of agricultural products and foodstuffs at Community
level. This Regulation has three main objectives: the development of regional and speciality products, the
encouragement of more diversified agricultural output and the promoting of the development of rural
areas. The Regulation also envisages the protection of both consumers and producers.

Many consumers care about agricultural products and foodstuffs produced and/or processed in a particular
geographical area due to the fact that the specific characteristics of these products are attributable to this
region. Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 provides the legal framework to guarantee that consumers
are not misled in this regard. But this Regulation also backs up marketing efforts of producers who make it
possible to individualise products by protecting them from abuse and unfair appropriation. In fact, the
Regulation grants producers with an exclusive right to use a registered name for their products.

(1) COM(1999) 719 final.
(2) OJ C 365 E, 19.12.2000.
(3) OJ L 175, 19.7.1993.
(4) OJ L 208, 24.7.1992.

(2001/C 235 E/284)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0725/01

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(6 March 2001)

Subject: UK university students attending EU universities

British students are able to attend universities on the continent providing they have the necessary
education qualifications. However, there is no financial assistance for these students, and this frequently
acts as a deterrent to those wishing to study abroad.

Given that a key way of encouraging European integration is to encourage our young people to live and
study abroad, what measures is the Commission considering to help students to study in another EU
Member States, particularly vis-(cid:224)-vis financial assistance/grants etc.?

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(24 April 2001)

In order to enable and encourage students in one Member State to study in another Member State, which
as the Honourable Member stated is a way to further European integration, the Commission established
the Erasmus mobility scheme in 1987, first included under the Erasmus programme and from 1996 as
part of the Erasmus action under the Socrates programme.