Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-10-23-Speech-2-345"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20071023.26.2-345"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spoken text |
"Mr President, I would have been happy to share my time with the Commissioner, because I am interested to hear her views on GMOs, but I will be here for the entire debate.
I think it is true, because it is not the first time we have said it in this Chamber, that the unpalatable truth is that the era of relatively cheap food is over and that what has happened was not predicted either within the Commission or, indeed, globally.
The Commissioner has gone through some of the reasons why we now have this imbalance in supply and demand and I agree with her: weather, climate change, the demand from the developing countries and, yes, biofuels are impacting globally – the Commissioner has acknowledged that. However, it is important to remember – and there were others in this House prior to my time – what your predecessor Mr Fischler said when reforming the CAP in 2003. He promised farmers better market prices. Perhaps we are seeing the impact of those reforms now, and we are beginning to question those impacts because of the impact on consumer prices.
We have had positive developments on milk and cereals, but we do not have the same on the livestock sector in terms of the beef and lamb producers, chicken and pigmeat that the Commissioner has discussed.
We are asking the questions now about the volatility and whether we are happy with that volatility in demand and supply. A major food company said to me recently that the supermarket buyers have no knowledge or interest in the economics of food production, but they are beginning to take note, and that is positive. However, we need to monitor the power of the supermarkets and to look at whether they are passing on the price increases they are charging to the producers of food. That is something I would urge the Commission – perhaps the Commissioner for Competition – to take a close look at. They have refused to do it in the past.
Concerning GMOs, this is a big issue. There is a problem in relation to the differences of approval methods between the European Union and the US and we need to look at that. So I wait for the Commissioner’s comments on GMOs before making my points in particular.
Lastly, we cannot ignore the impact on the developing world of insecurity, particularly with the grain market, where countries that cannot afford to pay more for food are seeing a massive increase in their food bill. We must acknowledge it in this House and we need to take it into account in our policies going forward."@en1
|
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples