EFFAT applauds the European Parliament plenary adoption of the INI report on the Farm to Fork Strategy. With a strong majority (+452 – 170 and 76 abstentions), the European Parliament has put forward its demands on the Farm to Fork strategy, giving a strong signal to the European Commission about the need for an ambitious implementation.
MEPs took on board some of the EFFAT key demands outlined in the EFFAT Orientation Paper “For a Successful EU Farm To Fork Strategy”.
EFFAT is particularly pleased about the following achievements:
- The recognition of the need to ensure that the social dimension is fully integrated in all future initiatives of the farm to fork strategy to achieve policy coherence for sustainable development
- The demand to achieving decent working, living and employment conditions and fair opportunities across the whole food value chain
- The consideration of the 8 fundamental ILO conventions, respect for collective bargaining and social protection as sustainability criteria
- The right for all users to receive protective equipment as well as comprehensive information and training about the use and the associated dangers of pesticides, and the possibility for every agri-worker to access related official documentation on the pesticides used during their work career.
- The inclusion of social and labour standards in trade policy and the rejection of the Mercosur agreement in its current draft
- The need to halt consolidation in the retail sector to ensure fair prices for farmers and decent labour conditions for worker with the need for agricultural production costs to be considered by upstream actors.
- The end of EU double standards on pesticides, which allow the export from the EU of hazardous substances banned in the Union;
Commenting on the adoption of the report today, Kristjan Bragason, EFFAT Secretary General said: ‘Workers are tired to sit in the audience. The European Parliament has sent a strong message to the Commission today. All future initiatives to be launched in the framework of the F2F Strategy must take on board social considerations and improve working and living conditions of people harvesting and processing our food’.
It is now up to the European Commission to take up the demands the European Parliament in the development of the future EU initiatives linked to the farm to fork strategy.
