Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-06-14-Speech-4-012-000"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20120614.6.4-012-000"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, in line with the principle of better regulation, the Commission proposal concerning foods for infants and young children, and foods for special medical purposes seeks to simplify current legislation by removing rules that have become unnecessary or sometimes contradictory.
Regarding advertising, enabling Member States to apply further restrictions to all foods for infants and young children, without distinction, would be disproportionate to the objectives of the draft regulation and can have an impact on the good functioning of the internal market.
As you can see, there is much more that unites us than divides us and I remain confident that discussions both in Parliament and Council will lead to a good final text at second reading. I look forward to having your views.
The protection of vulnerable groups of the population is one of the key objectives of the proposal we are discussing here today. But before turning to the substance of the proposal I would first of all like to thank the rapporteur, Ms Ries, for preparing the report, and also the shadow rapporteurs.
I should also mention the input from other committees – the Committees on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE). The Commission is pleased with the general line taken, as regards the proposed amendments. The proposal would abolish the concept of dietetic food – a concept that is today considered outdated given the evolution of the food market over the past decade.
I am pleased to see that honourable Members openly agree with this approach and recognise the need to fundamentally revise the existing legislation. The scope of the proposed draft regulation would be limited to a number of well-known categories of foods intended for vulnerable groups of the population, namely infants and young children, and people that need products for the dietary management of conditions under medical supervision.
Some of the proposed amendments suggest adding slimming foods intended to replace the total daily diet to the scope of the regulation. Although I believe that these foods could be managed comprehensively under the horizontal rules of food law, I understand Parliament’s concerns and I am open to considering their inclusion within the scope of the proposal.
However, my support cannot extend to the inclusion of gluten-free foods within the scope of the regulation. This, in our view, is unnecessary and would be in line neither with the interest of coeliacs, for whom these products are intended, nor with the principles of better regulation and simplification.
We all agree on the importance of maintaining the existing rules on such foods. But this can be ensured in a simpler and better way by transferring these rules to the recently adopted Regulation on Food Information to Consumers. In addition, such a transfer would guarantee that the existing rules would also apply to non-prepacked foods and would consequently offer higher and broader protection to coeliacs.
Several amendments have been made as regards labelling provisions and restricted use of pesticides in baby foods. I can tell you that I share the same views as Parliament as regards protecting infants and young children, and I can agree in principle with the suggestions made. However, I believe that the details to give effect to these principles should be dealt with in the specific delegated acts.
I also support the same positive approach concerning the preparation of reports on sports foods and growing-up milks. On the other hand, I cannot support the amendments regarding the establishment and update of the Union list of substances by delegated acts instead of implementing acts. The Commission’s proposal is in accordance with the Treaty of Lisbon and the Commission Guidelines on delegated acts. This approach should not be changed."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata | |
| lpv:videoURI |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples