Brussels walks tightrope with farmers as von der Leyen heads to Australia | Euractiv The Commission has pushed for conditionality and safeguards to avoid a Mercosur scenario

#Agriculture is once again proving a major headache for the European Commission, as President Ursula von der Leyen heads to #Australia this week to try to clinch a long-stalled free trade deal.
@sofiamazzanaro.bsky.social for @euractiv.com

www.euractiv.com/news/brussel...

This one is for @alberto-cottica.mastodon.green.ap.brid.gy who tipped me with the name of the French village-good practice mentioned in the article.

Caveat: the spirit is willing, but the... meat is weak :)

@alice.bergoend.euractiv.com 👇

www.euractiv.com/news/eu-plan...

EU innovation scheme failing to involve farmers, auditors say | Euractiv Half of funded projects lacked innovation, and a third had no farm link

Where it ends up that the scheme contrived by the #EU Commission to foster #innovation systems with farmers at their core, are not delivering because they don't involve farmers.

The article of my colleague @alice.bergoend.euractiv.com

👇️

www.euractiv.com/news/eu-inno...

How France is losing its leadership on EU agriculture | Euractiv Italy, Spain and Poland are reshaping the bloc’s food export balance

🚜 Puissance agricole de l’UE, la France voit son modèle vaciller

🪫 Dépendance hors UE, difficultés à répondre à la demande intérieure… pendant que d'autres pays gagnent du terrain

Cet article explore les raisons de cette crise, et comment s'en sortir 👇

www.euractiv.com/news/how-fra...

Diplomatic discord: how Trump’s envoys are rattling Europe | Euractiv The US ambassadors in France, Belgium, Poland and Denmark have courted controversy

'Diplomacy' in #Trump's terms, or how a bunch of non-diplomats are stirring up the #EU. Whether deliberate or not, #US chaos agents are at work in Europe with one idea in mind: business. And you know what? This time, people are not buying it.

👇

www.euractiv.com/news/diploma...

Feb 3, 2026 📍 University of Bari hosts the KNOWS Project final seminar/workshop on sustainable Xylella fastidiosa control 🦠🌱@efsa.europa.eu
Experts (incl. EFSA @efsa.europa.eu) share latest insights on insect–pathogen–agroecosystem interactions.

Do subsidies make meat much cheaper? A little, but not much. Certainly not enough to make them cheaper than meat substitutes.

Do #subsidies make #meat and #dairy much cheaper?

According to Hannah Ritchie, not really, with an important difference to make between direct and indirect subsidies.

substack.com/home/post/p-...

Robots to the rescue of Europe’s declining bee colonies | Euractiv Some drone pollinators, lighter than a paperclip, could help support hives

Research into #Pollinator #robots is ongoing, to help bees and other pollinating insects playing their essential role for #ecosystems

Do Androids Dream of Electric Bees?

My colleague @maria-simon.bsky.social story is below.

www.euractiv.com/news/robots-...

Winter Olympics kick off as sustainability and safety concerns linger | Euractiv Touted as the greenest yet, the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics have left locals unconvinced

This is a piece that you will hardly find in the #press, not in the Italian press for sure.
@butinicecilia.bsky.social for @euractiv.com

www.euractiv.com/news/sustain...

Where’s the beef? Brussels’ Australia trade push runs into farm politics Australia is a major meat exporter with surging exports, though the EU remains a marginal destination

Where’s the beef? Brussels’ Australia trade push runs into farm politics

EXCLUSIVE: Top Commission official Sannino takes early retirement amid EEAS scandal | Euractiv His departure is the first senior resignation linked to the widening investigation

EXCLUSIVE: Top Commission official takes early retirement amid EEAS scandal www.euractiv.com/news/exclusi... @nicolettaionta.bsky.social @sofiamazzanaro.bsky.social

EXCLUSIVE: Commission plans indefinite approval for most pesticide substances | Euractiv The policy is part of the new food safety simplification package

🔦 EXCLUSIVE: The @ec.europa.eu wants to make approvals for most #pesticide active substances indefinite

⛔ Exceptions only for the most hazardous pesticides or those without alternatives

This is part of the food safety #simplification package, draft in my article

www.euractiv.com/news/exclusi...

Commission refuses to allow more water in chicken meat | Euractiv Producers say that the current limits don’t apply to today’s fast-growing animals

🍗 More water in poultry products? EU Commission says no 💦

The industry warns that current limits don’t match today’s breeds 🐓

But the Commission won’t move. “When you fry the breast in the pan, you can be disappointed…”

Full story 👇🏼

www.euractiv.com/news/commiss...

Unlikely to sit well with EU ministers...🐟

EU Ombudsman accuses Commission of maladministration over farm rule changes | Euractiv The first CAP simplification package followed a wave of farmer protests across the EU and was deemed politically urgent by the Commission

📣“Good law-making cannot be compromised even for the sake of urgency” said @ombudsman.europa.eu

#Agrifood: #EU heads closer to food gene-editing law after Parliament changes course, by @maria-simon.bsky.social & @sofiamazzanaro.bsky.social | Euractiv
www.euractiv.com/news/eu-head...

Brussels strikes long-awaited deal on gene-edited crops | Euractiv If approved, the transitional deal will ease market access for plants obtained with techniques more sophisticated than those used for GMOs

In case you missed it ⚠️🧬 The latest on NGTs, as usual w/ @sofiamazzanaro.bsky.social 👇
www.euractiv.com/news/brussel...

A close-up of an individual’s hands, wearing a fuzzy, light-colored fleece, arranging cans of food on a table. Cans of black beans and tomato are visible. A headline reads: "Trump Administration Demands States ‘Undo’ Work To Send Full Food Stamps." Photo by Marco Postigo Storel for The New York Times.

The Trump administration told states that they must “immediately undo” any actions to provide full food stamp benefits to low-income families, in a move that added to the chaos surrounding the nation’s largest anti-hunger program during the government shutdown. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/09/b...

📣 Stay in the loop on the next EU budget 💶

🎢 Our reporters are covering every twist and turn, LIVE, of what is set to be the most important budget in EU history.

🔖 Bookmark and keep this link open, as we report on von der Leyen's proposal, and initial reactions.

www.euractiv.com/section/econ...

Fertiliser prices in Europe are already feeling the impact of the conflict between Israel and Iran, as disruptions to gas flows and concerns over the strategic Strait of Hormuz threaten to rattle global supply chains.

Austria’s farmer MEPs at loggerheads over EU anti-deforestation rules “It’s not about withdrawing this one,” Bernhuber said. “It’s really only about making changes.”

Austria’s farmer MEPs at loggerheads over EU anti-deforestation rules

Berlin plans rollback of key anti-pollution farming rule The Agriculture Ministry calls the rule “unnecessary bureaucracy” – though it takes just five hours a year to complete.

Berlin plans rollback of key anti-pollution farming rule

Kyiv must meet EU farm standards to unlock more tariff-free exports Talks with between the EU and Ukraine formally kicked off on 2 June, an EU official said, are ongoing “almost daily,” and both sides want to reach a new agreement by July.

Kyiv must meet EU farm standards to unlock more tariff-free exports

Great explainer on rare earths and why they’re so crucial for defence

EU eyes fast-track for novel foods in Biotech Act A draft version of the Life Sciences Strategy, set to be published on 2 July, states that the upcoming Biotech Act will address the EU’s novel food regulation.

EU eyes fast-track for novel foods in Biotech Act

MEPs pull plug on gene-editing talks, blame Council for deadlock - Euractiv Final negotiations collapse as Parliament accuses EU Council and Commission of sidelining its position on sustainability, labelling, and patents.

NEW: The European Parliament has called off the final round of negotiations on gene-edited crops under the Polish EU Presidency, with MEPs accusing the Council and Commission of sidelining them during the talks.

www.euractiv.com/section/agri...

MEPs pull plug on gene-editing talks, blame Council for deadlock Final negotiations collapse as Parliament accuses EU Council and Commission of sidelining its position on sustainability, labelling, and patents.

MEPs pull plug on gene-editing talks, blame Council for deadlock

Heavy metal traces in bread and pasta worry French doctors - Euractiv Originating from rocks used in phosphate fertilisers, cadmium is a carcinogenic heavy metal that accumulates in soil and crops through agricultural use, making food the main source of human exposure.

🍞Traces of heavy metals in bread and pasta are worrying French doctors... and why the problem extends beyond France's borders⬇️
www.euractiv.com/section/agri...

“In Ukraine, you have agri holdings that have 600K ha. This is 4 times the entire production of the member state where I come from!” (🇱🇺) said @christophehansen.bsky.social