Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

▸9 unchanged paragraphs

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulations (EU) No 1308/2013, (EU) 2021/2115 and (EU) 2021/2116 as regards the strengthening of the position of farmers in the food supply chain

(COM(2024)0577 – C100209/2024 – 2024/0319(COD))

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

– having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2024)0577),

– having regard to Article 294(2), Article 42, first subparagraph, and Article 43(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C100209/2024),

– having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

– having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of ...,

– having regard to Rule 60 of its Rules of Procedure,

Changed– having regard to the report of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development (A100000/2025),(A10-0161/2025),

1. Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

Changed2. Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal,proposal;

3. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Change 1

RemovedRecital 3: (3) In the interest of increased trust and fairness along the food supply chain, the terms ‘fair’, ‘equitable’ or equivalent terms, should be used only to designate commercial modalities that ensure stability, particularly by means of multi-annual contracts, and transparency in commercial relations between farmers and purchasers and pricing considered equitable by participating farmers, and that support and contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including in a manner that is consistent with Annex I of Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council5 .

AddedRecital 1: (1) The agricultural sector, in particular farmers, who ensure food security, face a range of challenges. The Covid-19 pandemic, growing instability in world trade, increasingly extreme weather events and Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine have led to an unprecedented increase of energy-related agricultural input costs and a prolonged period of high inflation, affecting farmers’ costs and food prices. In parallel, farmers continue to undertake efforts to make their production more environmentally sustainable, and face a significant regulatory burden due to overregulation. Many consumers, dealing with an increased cost of living, have also directed their consumption patterns towards less expensive food products. All the above factors have further destabilised the distribution of value added along the food supply chain and has increased the degree of uncertainty in which farmers, notably small and medium-sized farms, operate, fuelling protests and mistrust. It is thus appropriate to adopt measures to tackle those challenges and to restore fairness and the trust of the actors in the food supply chain, as well as protecting farmers’ incomes and increasing young people’s confidence in the farming profession.

RemovedRecital 4: (4) The term ‘short supply chain’ should be used only to designate commercial modalities where a direct connection exists between farmers and consumers that allows to directly exchange on the production process and the product, provided that the latter is produced in the Union, including by means of distance communication and/or via a limited number of intermediaries who ensure such exchange at the moment of sale. Alternatively, this term may also be used where a close connection between farmers and consumers within their geographic proximity exists, including in cross-border contexts. This geographical proximity may be expressed through a reduced transport distance or time. This will incentivise consumers to pay prices that fairly remunerate farmers for what they produce, strengthen and contribute to the development of rural areas, improve transparency regarding the origin and production methods of the products.

AddedRecital 1 a (new): (1a) To strengthen the position of farmers in the agri-food supply chain, it is necessary to strengthen the role of producer organisations and cooperatives as generators of added value, through public policies that contribute to improving the cost-effectiveness, visibility and competitiveness of the products of their members, as well as to improve the bargaining power of those farmers.

RemovedRecital 11: (11) To ensure a fair standard of living for farmers, enhance their bargaining position vis-à-vis processors and other actors in the supply chain and provide for a fairer distribution of added value along the supply chain, the possibility of negotiating contract terms on behalf of their members should be extended to non-recognised producer organisations, including cooperatives, for some or all of their production, provided that these organisations have already lodged an application for recognition with a Member State within a maximum period of five years of submitting the application for recognition. To ensure equal treatment with members of recognised producer organisations, this possibility should be subject to appropriate limits. In particular, non-recognised producer organisations benefiting from that possibility should comply with the recognition criteria set at Union level and engage in the activities set out in Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council7, including concentrating supply and placing their members’ products on the market.

AddedRecital 3: (3) In the interest of increased trust and fairness along the food supply chain, the terms ‘fair’, ‘equitable’ or equivalent terms, should be used only with the prior and informed consent of the farmer to designate commercial modalities that ensure stability and transparency in commercial relations between farmers and purchasers and pricing considered equitable by participating farmers, and that support and contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including in a manner that is consistent with Annex I of Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council5. It is essential therefore to guarantee transparent pricing, and that value is distributed proportionally along the food chain and reflects the efforts made, and risks assumed, by each party, particularly farmers, who represent the most vulnerable link in that chain.

RemovedRecital 12: (12) To strengthen the negotiating position of recognised producer organisations and to ensure the viable development of agricultural production, recognised associations of producer organisations should be allowed to negotiate contract terms on behalf of their members, including price, for some or all of their members’ production. This possibility should be allowed, subject to the safeguard that the organisations which are members of those associations are not also members of another association of producer organisations and the volume of products covered by the activities of the association does not exceed 33% of the total national production of any given Member State or 5% of production in the EU as a whole. In order to maintain effective competition on the market, recognised associations of producer organisations should also not be allowed to negotiate contract terms where those associations include non-recognised producer organisations.

AddedRecital 3 a (new): (3a) To strengthen the Union’s food sovereignty, support farm incomes and ensure sustainable systems, a European preference for Union agricultural products should be promoted, including in public procurement and storage arrangements. This preference should help reduce dependency on imports and should result in production that adds value being ‘reshored’ within the Union.

AddedRecital 4: (4) The term ‘short supply chain’ should be used with the prior consent of the farmer and only to designate commercial modalities where a direct connection or a limited number of intermediaries exists between the farmer, cooperatives or producer organisation and consumers that allows to exchange on the production process and the product, including by means of distance communication and/or via an intermediary who ensures such exchange at the moment of sale. Alternatively, this term may also be used where a close connection exists between farmers and consumers, including in the form of online sales, or where geographic proximity exists between them, including in cross-border contexts. Geographic proximity should be measured in terms of reduced transport distance or time. This will incentivise consumers to pay prices that fairly remunerate farmers for what they produce, strengthen and contribute to the development of rural areas, improve transparency regarding the origin and production methods of the products. It should apply to products produced in, and paced on, the single market. This tool will contribute to increased transparency and economic justice and to the revitalisation of rural areas, without prejudice to the functioning of the single market.

AddedRecital 5: (5) In light of market conditions, evolving consumer expectations, advances both in marketing standards and in relevant international standards, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of the use of the optional terms designating commercial modalities related to the fair allocation of value added to farmers and the creation and maintenance of short supply chains. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making5a . In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.. / 5a OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_interinstit/2016/512/oj. / (deleted)

AddedRecital 7: (7) While Member States may retain or introduce national provisions stipulating supplementary requirements for the use of optional terms for commercial modalities, those provisions should not hinder, limit, or obstruct the use of these terms for products legally produced or marketed in another Member State or add regulatory burden for farmers, especially small and medium-sized farms.

AddedRecital 8: (8) The use of written contracts plays an important role in the accountability of operators, raising awareness about the importance of market signals, adapting supply to demand, improving price transmission within the supply chain, enhancing transparency and preventing and addressing unfair trading practices and respecting pricing that ensures fair remuneration for farmers. At the same time, the use of written contracts is crucial for the prevention of frequent abusive trading practices such as late payments, unilateral cancellation of orders and the retroactive amendment of terms of contract. Those practices particularly affect small producers, who do not have the legal means to defend themselves. The rules on contractual relations in the milk and milk products sector should therefore be extended to cover products other than raw milk, while ensuring alignment with the rules on contractual relations applicable to other agricultural sectors. Implementing these measures will therefore create a framework for agricultural producers, providing them with the necessary protection to capitalise upon and plan their production and, hence contributing to the development of the local economy.

AddedRecital 9: (9) In order to increase flexibility for Member States and simplify the procedure for the recognition of producer organisations, thereby reducing transaction costs and improving efficiency, the rules on producer organisations should allow for their recognition following a single request covering multiple sectors and products. Moreover, organic product producers are able to use the existing possibility for the establishment and recognition of producer organisations to enhance their collaboration. The criteria for the recognition of producer organisations and their statutes should also provide that producer organisations are established at the initiative of farmers or, in the case of fruit and vegetables, of producers, and are controlled in accordance with rules that enable farmer members to scrutinise democratically their organisation and decisions.

AddedRecital 10: (10) To promote further sustainable development, which is a core principle of the Treaty and a priority objective for the policies of the Union, and to ensure transparency, stability and fairness in commercial relations between farmers and purchasers throughout the supply chain, Member States should be able to recognise producer organisations that pursue specific aims with optional terms for commercial modalities, such as ‘fair’, ‘equitable’ or equivalent terms, and ‘short supply chain’. In addition, promoting the use of such terms could help educate consumers on the impact of their consumption choices on social fairness and economic sustainability in the agri-food sector.

AddedRecital 11: (11) To ensure a fair standard of living for farmers, enhance their bargaining position vis-à-vis processors and other actors in the supply chain and provide for a fairer distribution of added value along the supply chain, the possibility of negotiating contract terms on behalf of their members should be extended to non-recognised producer organisations, including cooperatives, in accordance with national law, for some or all of their production provided that these organisations have already lodged an application for recognition with a Member State within a maximum period of five years after submitting the application for recognition. To ensure equal treatment with members of recognised producer organisations, this possibility should be subject to appropriate limits. In particular, non-recognised producer organisations benefiting from that possibility should comply with the recognition criteria set at Union level and engage in the activities set out in Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council7, including concentrating supply and placing their members’ products on the market.

AddedRecital 12: (12) To strengthen the negotiating position of recognised producer organisations and to ensure the viable development of agricultural production, recognised associations of producer organisations should be allowed to negotiate contract terms on behalf of their members, including price, for some or all of their members’ production, except for fruit and vegetables unless expressly requested by the associations of producer organisations. This possibility should be allowed, subject to the safeguard that the organisations which are members of those associations are not also members of another association of producer organisations and the volume of products covered by the activities of the association does not exceed 33% of the total national production of any given Member State or 5 % of production in the Union as a whole. In order to maintain effective competition on the market, recognised associations of producer organisations should also not be allowed to negotiate contract terms where those associations include non-recognised producer organisations.

AddedRecital 12 a (new): (12a) To strengthen the position of recognised producer organisations and of recognised associations of producer organisations, they should be given the legal certainty and predictability necessary to carry out their activities in accordance with the objectives laid down in Article 39 TFEU. To that end, Article 152(1a) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 should be amended to specify the activities falling within the scope of the derogation from Article 101(1) TFEU, in accordance with the judgment of the Court of Justice of 14 November 2017 in Case C-671/15.

AddedRecital 13: (13) To prevent purchasers from undermining the bargaining position of producer organisations, appropriate safeguards should be established for contacts between purchasers and members of those producer organisations. While purchasers may contact members of producer organisations, those contacts should not undermine the objectives of the producer organisations, or the concentration of supply and placing of products on the market. In parallel, it is recommended that, besides standardised digital tools, farmers should also have the benefit of easily-completable standard contract formats which are available at national level and which can be sent by email, in order to reduce red tape. Moreover, Member States should provide easily-accessible online training courses and instructions for the drafting and registration of contracts.

AddedRecital 13 a (new): (13a) Central purchasing bodies operating at transnational level are exerting increasing pressure on agricultural prices, exploiting regulatory and social disparities between the Member States. Those bodies should be regulated as a matter of urgency to protect agricultural producers from abusive contractual practices, the capture of value added and unfair competition as a result of the Union’s social and environmental legislation.

AddedRecital 15: (15) Certain Member States have decided that all deliveries of agricultural products in their territory are to be covered by written contracts between the parties. Where the Member States do not make use of this possibility, farmers, producer organisations or associations of producer organisations can request the use of written contracts. However, due to the weaker bargaining position of farmers and the fear of commercial retaliation by purchasers, it can be difficult for farmers and their associations to make such a request. To increase trust, transparency, and efficiency within the supply chain and to enable all farmers, producer organisations and associations of producer organisations to benefit from the use of written contracts, deliveries of agricultural products in the Union by a farmer, a producer organisation or an association of producer organisations to a processor, distributor or retailer should be covered by a written contract. Member States should, at the request of an interbranch organisation or an organisation deemed to be largely representative of an agricultural sector, be able to decide whether to exempt certain specific sectors from the requirement for a written contract.

AddedRecital 16: (16) To better take into account the signals of the market and to improve price transmission, Member States should be able to require the use of written contracts for the delivery of agricultural products by producers other than farmers, by producer organisations or associations of producer organisations, and to require that producers make use of written offers for contracts for the delivery of agricultural products. In the interests of simplicity and reduction of transaction costs, this Regulation should lay down certain exceptions to the required use of written contracts or written offers for contracts and allow Member States to exempt certain deliveries from the required use of written contracts or written offers, while leaving farmers and their associations the possibility of requesting the use of written contracts or written offers when there is no such obligation. This flexibility should be applied without compromising the protection of farmers, while the exceptions should be clearly defined in order to prevent abusive interpretations and the circumvention of contractual obligations.

AddedRecital 17: (17) The required use of written contracts for the delivery of agricultural products and the basic conditions for their use should be laid down at Union level, while ensuring that the right of the parties to negotiate all elements of their contracts is not restricted beyond what is strictly necessary. However, Member States should not be prevented from taking stricter measures to combat unfair trading practices within the agricultural and food supply chain, provided that those measures are appropriate and proportionate to their objectives , and are compatible with Directive (EU) 2019/633. Simplification of the contracting process, notably by means of standardised and digitalised templates and formats that can be sent by email, is key in order to ensure effective and fair application of these rules, especially in the case of small producers, while sufficient flexibility should be ensured to properly account for the diversity of the farming sector.

AddedRecital 18: (18) To encourage parties to reach an amicable settlement in case of disputes over the conclusion or review of a written contract, Member States should establish mediation mechanisms. Those mediation mechanisms should remain entirely voluntary for all parties. Member States should ensure that when there is no agreement on the formalisation, interpretation or fulfilment of a contract, the parties are able to request mediation. Member States should inform the Commission about the mediation legal framework or mechanisms in place in their territory, and the Commission may facilitate exchanges of best practices about those legal frameworks or mechanisms.

AddedRecital 19: (19) To facilitate the functioning of price transmission mechanisms, where the final price payable for the delivery of agricultural products is calculated by combining various factors set out in the contract, those factors should include objective indicators, indices or methods of calculation that are easily understandable by the parties. To avoid that farmers are forced to sell systematically below their production costs, the indicators, indices and methods of calculation of the final price should reflect changes in market conditions and production costs of the agricultural products delivered. The final price should cover the full production costs including fair remuneration of producers and total costs for additional services. The EU Agri-Food Chain Observatory (AFCO) might be used to provide information on prices in the agri-food chain, cost structures, as well as of distribution of margins and added value, while adhering to confidentiality and competition rules. Wholesale markets could play an important role in building prices mechanisms. They are accredited structures that can ensure prices transparency and contribute to a more balanced distribution along the value chain.

AddedRecital 20: (20) Considering the vulnerable negotiating position of farmers and their organisations, recent instances of significant volatility in agricultural input costs and market prices, and the need for a more efficient price transmission within the supply chain, contracts with a duration of more than 6 months and 12 months for sectors that trade in future markets should include a revision clause that may be triggered by the farmers and their organisations. Such a clause should permit farmers to request after the 6 months at any moment a revision of the elements of the contract and permit them to end the contract in case no agreement on a revision is reached, without interfering with the right of the parties to negotiate other possibilities for the revision of the contract. It should be possible for those contracts to be revised in the light of unforeseen circumstances, such as extreme weather events, animal disease outbreaks, geopolitical tensions, or any other reason that prevents the agreed price from covering the farmers’ costs, which would contribute to better protection of farmers against market volatility and their better adaptation to economic realities.

AddedRecital 21: (21) To enhance contractual transparency and contribute to fairer trading practices, Member States should be able to require, where justified, the registration of written contracts for the delivery of agricultural products.

AddedRecital 22: (22) Certain vertical and horizontal cooperation initiatives concerning agricultural and food products, which aim to apply requirements that could be more stringent, in ethical and social terms, than the mandatory requirements, can have positive effects on the objective of the common agricultural policy to ensure a fair standard of living for the agricultural community and on the objective of socio-economic and sustainable development of rural areas in the Union. Therefore, under specific circumstances, such initiatives should not be subject to the application of Article 101(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

AddedRecital 23: (23) In periods of severe market imbalance, specific categories of collective actions by private operators can contribute to stabilise the sectors concerned. With a view to ensuring that private operators have the necessary resources to implement these actions, the Commission should be able to make available Union resources from the agricultural reserve to support these actions, while ensuring feasibility and avoiding negative impact on direct payments. In that regard, the Commission should also make available other Union funding sources, if necessary. Member States should also be able to allocate additional national resources.

AddedRecital 26: (26) To strengthen the position of farmers in the food supply chain, several provisions of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 of the European Parliament and of the Council8 should be amended as regards the types of intervention in certain sectors. These amendments aim to support farmers to become or remain members of producer organisations or associations of producer organisations recognised under Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, in light of the positive role these organisations and associations play in strengthening the bargaining power of producers. Moreover, to ensure a more efficient and targeted support of producer organisations through the CAP Strategic Plans, the possibility of an increase of the Union financial assistance to operational programmes in certain sectors should be provided for, while ensuring feasibility and avoiding negative impact on direct payments.

AddedRecital 26 a (new): (26a) In order to enhance the competitiveness and sustainability of producers, operational fund co-financing should be primarily directed towards investments directly linked to agricultural production, collective actions benefiting all members of the producers organisations and digitalisation. The administrative and bureaucratic burden on producers organisations in the implementation of operational programmes should be significantly reduced, in order to encourage engagement by beneficiaries.

AddedRecital 30: (30) In order to support the setting-up of types of intervention in the other sectors referred to in Article 42, point (f), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115, Member States should be allowed, as of 2025, further flexibility to adjust the allocation of funds to these sectors by using up to 6 % of their allocations for direct payment while ensuring feasibility and avoiding negative impact on direct payments.

AddedRecital 32: (32) With a view to ensuring that Union resources from the agricultural reserve can be made available to the Member States in a fair and transparent manner in order to support collective actions by private operators in periods of severe market imbalance, the possibility to use the agricultural reserve should be extended to the support of collective actions when the Commission decides that competition rules do not apply to those actions while ensuring feasibility and avoiding negative impact on direct payments.

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Change 2

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 88 a – paragraph 1 – point a: (a) Stability, in particular through multi-annual contracts between producers and buyers, traceability and transparency in the relations of farmers with purchasers along the supply chain,

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point -1 (new), Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point l a (new): (-1) In Article 1(2), the following point is inserted: / (la) vinegar, Part XIIa;

Added(Part I of regulation)

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Change 3

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 88 a – paragraph 1 – point b a (new): (ba) Payment of an additional amount to the producer, in particular to fund joint projects;

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point -1 a (new), Article 7 – paragraph 2: (-1a) in Article 7, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: / ‘2. The reference thresholds shall be subject to regular review in accordance with the seasonality of products, upon a proposal by the EU Agri-food Chain Observatory (AFCO), in the light of economic developments and real production costs. The Commission shall ensure the development of a methodology for the regular revision of those thresholds, based on objective indicators such as inflation, production costs and changes on agricultural markets. Production costs shall include the costs of measures contributing to the implementation or surpassing of the sustainability standards required by Union or national law as defined in Article 210a(3). That methodology shall allow the thresholds to be updated regularly so as to reflect current economic realities and remain an effective tool for stabilising the markets.’

Added(02013R1308 - Part I)

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Change 4

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 88 a – paragraph 2 – point a: (a) a direct connection, or a reduced number of intermediaries, between the farmer and the final consumer of the product, provided that the latter is produced in the European Economic Area; or

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point -1 b (new), Article 11 – paragraph 1 – points e a, e b, e c, e d (new): (-1b) in Article 11, the following points are added: / “(ea) white sugar; / (eb) sheep meat falling within CN code 0104 10 30 or 0204; / (ec) pigmeat, fresh, chilled or frozen, falling within CN code 0203; / (ed) chicken, fresh, chilled or frozen, falling within CN code 0207.’

Added(02013R1308 - Part II -Title I - Chapter I - Section 2)

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Change 5

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 88 a – paragraph 2 – point b: (b) a close connection and geographical proximity, understood as a short distance or short travelling time, between the farmer and the final consumer of the product.