Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 14

Changed15.27. Notes that this exemption is essential for allowing some practices used by POs,POs and interbranch organisations, especially in the outermost regions, such as controlling the quantities put on the market by POtheir members in order to stabilise markets and prices, comply with conservation requirements and avoid food waste; concludes that non-recognised collective bodies of producers (e.g. cooperatives, cofradías)Cofradías) may not benefit from the exemption under the current criteria for POs;

Change 15

RemovedMarket intelligence

Added28. Underlines that around 70 % of the seafood that is consumed in the EU is imported from non-EU countries, which consequently leads to the EU being dependant on these imports for its consumption; highlights that the fisheries, aquaculture and related sectors must be profitable in order to make the investments needed to operate, while profitability is only possible if the products are competitive with imports from non-EU countries; calls on the Commission and the Council to ensure that EU trade policy allows for a level playing field between EU and imported products, and to promote the consumption of sustainable (environmental, economic and social) EU aquatic food products;

Added29. Encourages the Commission to initiate a dialogue with POs and other relevant stakeholders on autonomous tariff quotas;

AddedMarket intelligence and crisis management

30. Recalls that the European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture Products (EUMOFA) provides market intelligence to operators in the fishery sector to help them to better understand market trends; notes that a dedicated website and database have been online since April 2013 and have been fully operational since the entry into force of the revised CMO, benefiting research bodies, stakeholders and the general public by increasing access to market intelligence and data;

Change 16

Removed17. Notes that the EUMOFA was used to trigger crisis measures to address the impact of the COVID pandemic;

Added31. Recalls that the EUMOFA provides market intelligence based on the existing combined nomenclature of the EU’s common customs tariff; considers that the latter should be updated to include new product categories of fish products that are traded in increased volumes in the EU, and to offer more intuitive and comprehensive digital tools; calls on the Commission to explore ways of further improving the market intelligence of fisheries and aquaculture products, specifically improving the market analysis by distinguishing between different parts of Europe with different consumption habits of fish species;

Added32. Notes that the EUMOFA was used to trigger crisis measures to address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic;

Added33. Calls on the Commission, during the next revision of the CMO, to consider the possibility of establishing a crisis reserve or system, including storage aid, as a means of protecting the sector from any exceptional situations that might arise in the EU fisheries and aquaculture sector; recalls that exceptional aid recently had to be provided to tackle the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; calls on the Commission to set out the criteria for using such aid and ensuring that it can be tailored to the specific market disturbance, taking as a basis the crisis reserve model already in use for other food sectors, and considering other measures that could be beneficial for alleviating severe market disturbances;

Conclusions

Change 17

Changed18.34. Welcomes the progress made in implementing the CMO rules; highlights the need for further efforts in ensuring that consumers are properly informed, improving labelling, enhancing market transparency and increasing the traceability of fisheryfishery, shellfish and aquaculture products;products as well as gender and youth inclusive policies; notes that some Member States have governments below state level that have competences for fisheries, shellfish and aquaculture and that this should be respected by the Commission and other concerned institutions for advancing the implementation of the CMO;

Change 18

Changed19.35. Believes that the Commission and the Member States need to make more effort to achieve more uniform implementation of the CMO Regulation;Regulation across sectors, by taking sufficient account of the specific conditions under which markets operate in the outermost regions; is of the opinion that more uniform implementation could help to ensure consumer trust in the aquatic food products placed on the single market;market, and serve the objectives of endogenous development and food self-sufficiency in the outermost regions;

Change 19

Removed20. Welcomes the Commission’s intention to present a proposal for a legislative framework for sustainable food systems with the aim of enhancing transparency and providing consumers with more information; highlights the need to ensure that this does not create an additional administrative burden and aligns with the sustainability condition set down in EU legislation;

Added36. Stresses the importance of involving all stakeholders throughout the entire supply chain; underlines, in this regard, the valuable work of the applicable market advisory council (MAC);

Removed21. Welcomes the outcome of the negotiations on the revision of the Fisheries Control Regulation, in particular the rules aiming to strengthen traceability provisions for all fishery and aquaculture products; is of the opinion that this traceability information will be very important for European consumers; calls on the Commission to propose further action to ensure that this information reaches final consumers in a simple, accessible format;

Added37. Welcomes the Commission’s intention to present a proposal for a legislative framework for sustainable food systems with the aim of enhancing transparency and providing consumers with more information; stresses that the proposal should recognise the importance of healthy and sustainable fishery and aquaculture products, enhancing the value of the fisheries sector; highlights the need for this new legislative framework to include the importance of fish consumption in a healthy diet; highlights the need to ensure that this does not create an additional administrative burden and aligns with the sustainability condition set down in EU legislation;

Removed22. Believes that the Member States should make greater use of the EUMOFA in order to further improve the data collected under the instrument; is of the opinion that the EUMOFA could be used more to analyse the market, particularly when there are drastic changes, such as those that occurred during the COVID crisis, with a view to activating crisis tools and options to stabilise the market;

Added38. Welcomes the outcome of the negotiations on the revision of the Fisheries Control Regulation, in particular the rules aiming to strengthen traceability provisions for all fishery, shellfish and aquaculture products, including products imported from non-EU countries; is of the opinion that this traceability information will be very important for European consumers both on the continent and overseas; calls on the Commission to propose further action with the same requirements for all products, regardless of the extent to which they have been processed, the category of food or the Member State in which the company is based, to ensure that the information provided is accurate, clear, complete and harmonised in all Member States and territories, with competence for fisheries, and in all product categories, so that it reaches final consumers in a simple, accessible format;

Added39. Believes that the Member States should make greater use of the EUMOFA, especially in areas where the EUMOFA is used to a lesser extent, as it should further improve the data collected and the market analysis of different parts of Europe with different fish consumption habits, offering more intuitive and comprehensive digital tools through the instrument; is of the opinion that this could make the EUMOFA data more useful for analysing the market, also differentiated by regions, particularly when there are drastic changes, such as those that occurred during the COVID-19 crisis, with a view to activating crisis tools and options to stabilise the market;

40. Is convinced that improving traceability and transparency in the aquatic food sector’s supply chain is crucial for fighting IUU fishing;

Change 20

Changed24.41. Reiterates its call foron all Member States to adapt the criteria for recognising POs toand beinterbranch adaptedorganisations toin betterorder accommodateto recognise all the different organisations in the Member States that perform tasks that largely fall within the remit of a PO; highlights, in this regard, organisations such as cofradíasCofradías and prud’homiesPrud’homie de pêche;pêche, as well as those operating in the outermost regions;

Change 21

Added42. Calls for the Commission to initiate more effective measures to eliminate barriers for POs to fully deliver on their missions by addressing the difficulties for small-scale coastal and island fishery POs regarding differential treatment by national administrations, be it in terms of PO recognition, day-to-day financing, administrative support or eligibility of measures;

Added43. Underlines the importance of ensuring the commitment of all stakeholders, throughout the fishery and aquaculture supply chain and civil society, to increase confidence and understanding in applying the CMO provisions, in particular by maintaining and strengthening collaboration with the MAC;

°

° °

Change 22

Changed25.44. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council andCouncil, the Commission,Commission and to the governments and parliaments of the Member States.