2008CIAA ANNUAL REPORT

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Photographs used with the permission of:Bayerischer Brauerbund e. V., BUNGE, iStock Photos,LKPix.

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4 Role & Mission

5 Message from the President & Director General

6 Communication

8 The EU Food & Drink Industry in Figures

10 Competitiveness

12 International Trade

16 Supply in Agricultural Raw Materials

18 Food Safety

24 European Technology Platform “Food for Life”

26 Consumer Information

28 Diet, Nutrition & Health

30 Environment

34 CIAA Members

36 CIAA Board of Directors

37 Committees & Expert Groups

38 Information & Publications

39 CIAA Secretariat

Contents

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The EU food and drink industry is an important pillar of the European economy, serving approximately 500 million consumers with a vast variety of safe and high quality products.It is the largest manufacturing sector in Europe, with a turnover of € 913 billion a year,and provides employment to over 4 million people.

CIAA represents the European food and drink industry and its mission is to help pro-actively developan environment (enlarged EU and global markets) in which all European food and drink companies,whatever their size, can compete effectively for sustainable growth, meeting the needs of consumersand playing their part in delivering the targets set by the Lisbon declaration of the European Council.

CIAA's permanent Secretariat, based in Brussels, maintains close contacts with European andinternational institutions and has become a major partner in consultations on food-related developments.

CIAA has become a trusted partner as a result of its longstanding work, in particular on horizontalfood issues such as food quality and safety, nutrition and health, novel foods, labelling, theCommon Agricultural Policy, international trade issues, sustainable development, respect for theenvironment and enlargement.

Membership of CIAA is made up of :■ 26 national federations, including 3 observers;■ 28 EU sector associations;■ 19 major food and drink companies.

CIAA co-ordinates the work of more than 700 experts, grouped in Committees and Expert Groupsaround the following three themes:

Through these Committees and Expert Groups, manufacturers from all EU countries provide broadand in-depth expertise. They contribute to establishing CIAA positions on key issues, which, onceapproved, are communicated to European, and international decision makers.

CIAA fulfils its role as a leader in the representation of EU food and drink manufacturers by:■ helping the food and drink industry to maintain consumer confidence;

■ establishing close and fruitful cooperation between all links in the food chain;

■ ensuring maximum coordination between the various sectoral and geographicalgroups that make up the EU food and drink industry.

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Role & Mission of CIAA

SOME FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT THE EU FOOD AND DRINK INDUSTRY

■ largest manufacturing sector in Europe, with a turnover

of € 913 billion;

■ purchases and processes 70% of EU agricultural production;

■ exports some € 55 billion of food and drink products to non-EU countries;

■ contributes to a positive trade balance of around € 2 billion;

■ offers almost 500 million consumers a wide range of safe, whole-some, enjoyable, nutritious and affordable food and drink products;

■ employs over 4 million people.

Trade and Competitiveness

Food and Consumer Policy Environment

As of January 2009

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Message from the President & Director General

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2008 was a challenging year for Europe's foodand drink industry: competitiveness (particularlywithin the High Level Group (HLG)), the foodinformation package, and sustainability withinthe food chain, are but a few areas in whichCIAA has been particularly busy this past year.

The establishment of the High Level Groupprovided an opportunity to put essentialrequirements of the food and drink industryinto the political limelight, and has the potentialto initiate meaningful change. CIAA is stronglycommitted to this process, which will lay thefoundation for improved competitiveness.

The Conference on the 'Competitiveness ofEuropean agro-food SMEs' offered an opportunity to look into a range of issues keyto agri-food SMEs and represented valuableinput into the work of the HLG.

One of the highlights of 2008 was the CIAACongress, held in November, which was a

resounding success. Almost 500 delegatesjoined us at Autoworld Brussels where highlevel speakers from the French AgricultureMinistry, the European Institutions, consumerorganisations, environmental NGOs, science,press and industry came together to discussthis year's theme, 'The Food and DrinkIndustry in the 21st Century - GeneratingGrowth, Serving Consumers, Respecting theEnvironment'.

CIAA continued to be a strong and committedcontributor to the EU Platform for Action onDiet, Physical Activity and Health, with ahealthy 86 commitments coming from thefood and drink industry. An independent survey carried out by APCO Insight into thesecommitments recently won a EuropeanExcellence Award in the category 'Food andBeverages'. This prize recognises the highstandards of both scientific reliability and political credibility of the research methodology

used to carry out the survey of over 2,000food and drink producers - including bothmultinationals and family-owned companies.

The food information package remained a top priority for CIAA, and the survey revealed that European food and drink producers, large and small, are actively implementing the "CIAAGDA Nutrition-Labelling Scheme":

■ CIAA invited Members of the EuropeanCouncil Working Party on Foodstuffs to adebate on the proposal for a regulation onfood information to consumers.

■ CIAA held its annual reception in theEuropean Parliament where over 60 MEPswere invited to visit the stands showcasingexamples of products labelled according tothe CIAA voluntary GDA scheme and demon-strating the difficulties in the proposal withregards the legibility of labels.

■ To celebrate the 3rd anniversary of thePlatform, CIAA organised a successful

dinner debate in Brussels where RobertMadelin and Jean de Kervasdoué joined usas keynote speakers.

The European Technology Platform “Food forLife” marked another key milestone in its workprogramme by officially launching both theEuropean Strategic Research Agenda and itsImplementation Action Plan, which outlinedspecific activities that define priorities andactions for the agro-food sector. A StakeholderMeeting discussed a deployment strategy toachieve the Implementation Plan and askedkey stakeholders from industry, funding bodiesand academia to give input to define thefuture activities of the ETP Food for Life.

The 2008 CIAA Report on the competitivenessof the food and drink industry presented areview of key EU food and drink industry competitiveness indicators. The review extendedto both general economic, as well as food anddrink industry specific indicators. It provided,where possible, a comparison of key EU datawith the performance of food and drink industries from other countries, as well as theCIAA strategic vision on the food and drinkindustry's activities and the general require-ments for its development.

Great appreciation and acknowledgement ofinvaluable professional support should, asalways, be expressed to the whole team in theCIAA Secretariat.

Mella FrewenDirector General

Jean MartinPresident

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Communicationlargest independent study yet carried out intoindustry commitments under the EU Platformfor Action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health.This broad survey measures the extent andquality of food and drink industry efforts andactivities to promote balanced diets andhealthy lifestyles. Carried out by independentresearch specialists APCO Insight, the surveyof 2026 food and drink producers found thatGDA nutrition labels are gaining groundthroughout Europe. Many small companieswere shown to be following the example setby large companies and adopting GDA labelsfor their products. The first results were presented to members of the EU Platform forAction on Diet, Physical Activity and Health inJuly 2008.

Diet & Health Issues

CIAA continued its work in the area of diet,nutrition, physical activity and health in 2008,broadening the range of its communicationactivities to raise awareness of industryachievements and concerns.Following work carried out in the early monthsof the year, CIAA presented the results of the

Competitiveness

In the same month, a range of issues relevant to agro-food SMEs were discussed at a conference hosted by CIAA. The conferenceaimed not only at understanding competitivenessproblems and challenges faced by Europeanagro-food SMEs, but also at identifying possible solutions.

The High Level Group on the competitivenessof the EU food and drink industry was establishedand started work under the leadership ofEuropean Commission Vice-PresidentVerheugen. Its work provided an opportunity tofocus on enhancing the competitiveness of thefood and drink industry and contributing to theLisbon Strategy for growth and jobs.

Events & Congress

Ahead of the traditional Congress, CIAA heldadditional information events at the EuropeanParliament and Council in September 2008.Both events gave companies the chance to showcase their adoption of GDA labels,alongside an overview of remaining concernsabout legibility and origin-labelling in the Proposal for the Provision of Food Informationto Consumers. Both events were well attendedand offered a high profile opportunity to communicate the CIAA position, as the proposal was being debated in the CouncilWorking Group and the European Parliament.06

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In October CIAA and several of its membershosted a press conference on the proposal.Ten journalists from top tier media attended,including Reuters, Dow Jones, PressAssociation (PA), Financial Times Deutschland,European Voice and Belga. The conference led to favourable coverage of concerns overfont size in some of the EU's best-read wire services and newspapers, as well as in specialist publications. The Congress itself wasa resounding success, with almost 500 delegates joining CIAA at Autoworld Brussels.High level speakers from the French Ministryof Agriculture, the European Institutions,consumer organisations, environmental NGOs,science, press and industry, came together todiscuss this year's theme, 'The Food andDrink Industry in the 21st Century -Generating Growth, Serving Consumers,Respecting the Environment'.

Award

The year continued on this positive note, andclosed with a European Excellence Award inthe category 'Food and Beverage' for theCIAA/APCO Insight research. The EuropeanExcellence Awards honour outstandingachievements in the communications profession on an international scale.High standards of both scientific reliability andpolitical credibility had to be met by theresearch methodology. A second round ofresearch is now underway, with resultsexpected later in 2009.

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At a glance, the EU food & drink industry in 2007

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(1) 2006 data (2) EU-15 figure in 2004

Turnover

€ 913 billion(+4.2% compared to 2006)

Largest manufacturing sector in the EU (13.4%),

ahead of the automobile and chemical industries

External trade

Exports € 54.7 billion(+5.1% compared to 2006)

Imports € 52.7 billion (+9.2% compared to 2006)

Trade balance € 2.0 billion

Net exporter of food and drink products

Employment

4.3 million people(-0.6% compared to 2006)

Leading employer in the EU (13.5%),ahead of the fabricated metal and machinery & equipment industries

SMEs

48.5% of the food and drink turnover

63.0% of the food and drink employment

Number of companies

308,0001

Fragmented industry

R&D(% of food and drink output)

0.24%2

Insufficient R&D expenditure

EU market share of global export market

19.8% (24.6% in 1998)Shrinking share of EU exports in global markets

Consumption(% of household expenditure)

12.6%Declining share

Value added(% of EU GDP)

2%

The EU Food & Drink Industry in Figures

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EU food and drink products on world markets

The EU plays a key role in world trade. It is theworld's largest exporter and importer in foodand drink products (excluding intra-EU trade).

The EU’s share of the global export market forfood and drink products has been shrinkingover the last ten years (from 24.6% to 19.8%)due to strong competition from other exporterssuch as Brazil and China.

Exports Share in($ billion) world (%)

EU 74.3 19.8United States 43.0 11.5Brazil 27.6 7.4China 24.5 6.5Argentina 17.7 4.7Canada 17.1 4.6Thailand 16.7 4.5Australia 13.7 3.6New Zealand 0.5 3.3Indonesia 10.5 2.8Malaysia 10.0 2.7Mexico 8.3 2.2India 7.5 2.0Vietnam 7.0 1.9Norway 4.2 1.1

Top 15 exporters, 2007

Exports Share in($ billion) world (%)

EU 70.9 18.8United States 63.4 16.8Japan 36.2 9.6China 19.3 5.1Russia 17.5 4.6Canada 16.6 4.4Mexico 10.8 2.9South Korea 10.7 2.8Hong Kong, China 8.0 2.1Saudi Arabia 6.9 1.8Australia 6.7 1.8Switzerland 6.2 1.6Singapore 5.4 1.4Malaysia 4.6 1.2Taiwan 4.5 1.2

Top 15 importers, 2007 Market shares of world food and drinkexports, 1998-2007 (%)

Intra-EU trade is excluded from total world trade Source: WITS database

Source: WITS databaseSource: WITS database

24.6

19.8

39.1

14.9

11.5

4.9

7.4

4.65.0

6.54.63.6

3.9

45.0

1998

2007

■ EU ■ USA ■ Brazil ■ China ■ Canada

■ Australia ■ New Zealand ■ Others

3.3

2.9

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Competitiveness>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA produced an update of the competitiveness indicators to illustrate thechallenges to the food and drink industry'scompetitiveness. CIAA being an active participant in the HLG, this implied providinginput in the various working groups andmeetings of the Sherpa Group. The individual CIAA contributions, prepared anddistributed for each relevant working group,were ultimately compiled in a comprehensivevision and recommendation document, as acontribution to the High Level Group. CIAAidentified in this document the priorities forthe creation of the necessary frameworkconditions to put the EU food and drinkindustry in a position to generate strongerand more sustained growth and remaincompetitive in the years to come.

>CHALLENGES

It is essential that the High Level Groupaddress issues that have the potential to positively impact the competitiveness of theagro-food industry. The final report of theHigh Level Group should be finalised inspring 2009. Once approved, the policy recommendations included in the report will need to be effectively implemented,which will require close monitoring and further support.

Rising commodity prices

>BACKGROUND

In 2008, prices of agricultural raw materialsand consequently of food continued to rise.In May, the European Commission publishedthe Communication “Tackling the challenge ofrising food prices - Directions for EU actions”.The document included a proposal to createthree task forces, on monitoring price developments, analysing the role of speculation,and investigating the functioning of the foodsupply chain. The findings of the threeCommission task forces, including a roadmap, were published in December 2008.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA continued to monitor the prices of agricultural raw materials and started to lookat the impact of price changes of raw materialson the food supply chain. CIAA also sharedinformation and experiences with the

High Level Group on theCompetitiveness of theEU Agro-Food Industry

>BACKGROUND

CIAA devoted considerable time and effort to

raising the awareness of the competitiveness

of the food and drink industry, which led to

the elaboration of an economic study

commissioned by the European Commission.

At the November 2007 Conference entitled

'Promoting the Leadership of the Agro-Food

Industry', organised under the leadership of

Commission Vice-President Günter Verheugen,

the Commissioner announced his initiative

to set up a High Level Group on the

competitiveness of the EU agro-food industry.

The High Level Group (HLG) was officially

launched in 2008. It held its first meeting in

June and organised a series of consultations

in working group meetings, which took place

in July and September.10

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Commission services investigating the foodsupply chain. This provided opportunities tohighlight the fact that many inputs are facingincreased price volatility and to put emphasison the market power of food retailers and itsimpact on food and drink producers, especiallySMEs. CIAA stressed that a well functioninginternal market and effective competitionbetween grocery retailers is the best way toensure that the effect of higher commodityprices on consumer prices is minimized andthat consumers are provided with a widechoice. The Commission Communication onFood Prices issued in December presented abalanced vision of the situation and challenges ahead.

>CHALLENGES

The follow up given by the Council andCommission on this issue will be critical.CIAA is looking forward to contributing to theimplementation of the Roadmap. Further workwill be needed in order to translate the suggested initiatives into concrete policyactions. Furthermore, CIAA continues to monitor agricultural raw material prices andwill deepen its understanding on the impact ofprice volatility on the food supply chain.

Small Business Act

>BACKGROUND

The Commission published in June its SmallBusiness Act (SBA), which aims at helping smallbusinesses to thrive and to give the best ones alaunch pad to grow into world-players. TheSmall Business Act is considered to be a crucialmilestone in the implementation of the LisbonStrategy for Growth and Jobs. The content ofthe SBA was based on an open on-line consultation launched to allow all interested parties to give their opinion.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA welcomed the commitment of theEuropean Commission to present an ambitious

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policy agenda under the Small Business Act.Not only did CIAA reply to the on-line consultation,it also organised an SME event in early Julyentitled “Promoting the competitiveness ofEuropean Agro-food SMEs”. Speakers at theconference called for more specific action inthe area of food legislation to create an operational framework that allows SMEs tocompete on the internal and external markets.SME representatives also stressed their vulnerability faced with the concentration inthe retail sector and their market power: SMEsare often subject to problems such as longcontractual terms, late payments and unfaircommercial practices. During the workinggroups of the HLG on the competitiveness ofthe EU agro-food industry, CIAA requestedthat the position of SMEs in the food supplychain be taken into consideration.

>CHALLENGES

The recommendations in support of EuropeanSMEs, in particular those contained in theSmall Business Act, need now to be implemented effectively in order to positivelyimpact SME activities. CIAA looks forward tothe proposed revision of the Directive on latepayments, expected in late February 2009.

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International Trade

Multilateral TradeNegotiations

>BACKGROUND

The first half of 2008 was an intensive time inseeking the conclusion to the DohaDevelopment Agenda. In February a newrevised version of the modalities' paper wascirculated by WTO Agriculture CommitteeChair Crawford Falconer to reflect the latestprogress in the talks. A further two revisions ofthe text paved the way for the MinisterialMeeting at the end of July. Despite realprogress, Ministers left Geneva empty-handed.Imminent changes in the US administrationraised questions as to the possibility to conclude the round rapidly. Despite the significant acceleration of the process andanother revised version of modalities beingissued, at the end of the year the momentumto convene a successful MinisterialConference was still not there.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA maintained its support for a conclusionof the multilateral agreement in the WTOwhile emphasising the need to secure therespect of the interests of the European foodand drink industries. The views of CIAAmembers in reaction to the subsequentnegotiating texts and concerning particulardifficult issues were conveyed in meetingsand communicated to Commissioners in writing, as well as through high-level officialsof the Directorates for Trade, Agriculture andEnterprise. To ensure a smooth flow of information in both directions between negotiators and Members, CIAA was alsopresent in Geneva during the MinisterialMeeting in July.

>CHALLENGES

The conclusion of the Doha DevelopmentRound remains a priority for CIAA. A clear setof rules and strengthened disciplines thatwould result from the deal have become evenmore crucial for the European food and drinkindustry. It is essential to preserve what hasalready been achieved and sustain efforts onthe issues that still need technical advancement.The political urgency must be reawakened assoon as possible in order to finalise the Roundwithin a reasonable timeframe.

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Europe's Market AccessStrategy - BilateralNegotiations

>BACKGROUND

Negotiations of Free Trade Agreements (FTA)are at the heart of the European strategy toopen new markets abroad, enhance accessto existing ones and ensure that EU companiesbenefit from fair competition on foreign markets. Two countries, Canada and Libya,have recently been identified as future partners for FTA negotiations, while talkswith a range of other countries are still inprogress. The negotiating process withKorea is the most advanced, and is likely tobe finalised during the first semester of 2009.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA has been following the negotiationprocesses with Ukraine, India, ASEAN andSouth Korea and reminding the parties of thefood industry's particular interests, based onpreviously formulated positions. A strongemphasis has been given to the need for substantial improvement in the area of problemsresulting from sanitary and phytosanitarymeasures, as well as protection for EuropeanGeographical Indications. CIAA also launcheda reflection on the future Free TradeAgreements with Libya and Canada, in orderto convey to the European Commission anearly message concerning the Members' priorities.

>CHALLENGES

Bilateral negotiations are an important tool foraddressing not only tariff reductions, whichcan also be tackled through multilateral negotiations, but most of all, specific tradeproblems. The centre of gravity moves nowadays towards non-tariff issues like sanitary and phytosanitary provisions andother food regulatory constraints. It is essentialto ensure that the results of the bilateralnegotiations in progress bring substantiveanswers to particular difficulties encounteredby the European food and drink industry inaccessing foreign markets.

EU - US Trade Relations

>BACKGROUND

As stressed in the communication publishedjointly by the Directorates General of Trade andEnterprise of the European Commission inDecember 2008, an important number of non-tariff barriers to trade and different types of regulatory obstacles can and should beremoved using international regulatory cooperation. This is particularly true in bilateralrelations with the United States, the biggestmarket for European food and drink productsaccounting for €11.6 billion annually. The longlist of problematic issues, often arising from different regulatory approaches on both sides of the Atlantic, prevents EU food and drink producers from taking full advantage of EU-UStrade potential.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Improving trade conditions with the US is anissue of great importance to CIAA. Despiteefforts under the Transatlantic EconomicDialogue created in 2007, some of the moststringent problems remain unresolved. CIAAreviewed trade issues with the US and compiled a list of the most stringent problemsfor use by EU officials and Members of theEuropean Parliament. CIAA also participated informal consultations undertaken by the USauthorities, notably on third party certification.

>CHALLENGES

Many European products still suffer fromincreased duties resulting from sanctions inthe so-called beef hormone case and the situation is likely to worsen in the near future.What is more, the EU ban on poultry treatedwith chemicals is likely to be subject to WTOdispute settlement, increasing the risk of moreEuropean products being targeted by retaliatorymeasures. Considering these threats, closeregulatory collaboration with the US and theTransatlantic Economic Dialogue should intensify and become an effective tool toaddress trade problems related to legislation.

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International Trade

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Rules of origin

>BACKGROUND

In October 2007, the Commission produced adraft regulation on the reform of rules of originto be applied in the context of the GeneralisedSystem of Preferences (GSP). This draft regulation was in line with the 2005Communication on rules of origin in preferentialagreements. It proposed a new approach torules of origin, based on a value-added criterionfor determining the origin of a product andenvisaging origin certification by registeredoperators in the beneficiary countries.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The food and drink sectors stressed that operators need rules of origin that are adapted

to the products they trade and to the structure of production on world markets.A single criterion based on value-added couldnot fulfil this objective. Finally, in November2008, the Commission released a revised proposal, which gave up the single value-added method and proposed a sectoralapproach. However, the revised draft did notinclude a set of rules for agri-food products,pending additional discussions within theCommission services. CIAA, together withCELCAA and Eurocommerce, stressed itsstrong objections to the proposed origin certification by registered exporters and weredisappointed when, in November 2008, therevised proposal did not show real improvements in this respect.

>CHALLENGES

The Commission seeks approval of the regulation by mid-2009. By this date, MemberStates and stakeholders will try to obtainsome improvements regarding the proposedchange of procedures. On the other pillar ofthe reform CIAA and its members will closelymonitor the new set of rules for agri-foodproducts that should be proposed at thebeginning of 2009. These rules for determiningwhether goods have been sufficientlyprocessed will have to be adapted to eachsector. Implementation of this reform is foreseen in January 2010 for rules of originand January 2013 (with a possible delay until2017) for the registered exporter's system.Finally, the Commission intends to extend thenew approach to all existing and future preferential agreements.

Customs and InwardProcessing Regime (IPR)

>BACKGROUND

The Modernised Customs Code (MCC)entered into force in June 2008. TheCommission, after having worked on theimplementing rules, has published a consolidated preliminary draft of the implementing provisions of the MCC.The preparation of the section on special procedures and inward processing in particular, has led to intensive work within DG TAXUD and the Customs Code Committee.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA examined the working documents published by DG TAXUD in relation to theinward processing regime. Contacts with theCommission enabled CIAA members toemphasize a number of key requests and clarify certain new procedures, notably regardingthe examination of the economic conditions.Current rules on equivalence, on the economictest and on diverse provisions regarding authorisation procedures and deadlines, makeIPR particularly difficult to use for several sectors of the food and drink industry. ForCIAA, it is essential that the MCC leads to athorough simplification of the management ofthe inward processing regime both at nationaland Community levels.

Market Access Strategy In 2008 the implementation of a stronger partnership between the European Commission, MemberStates and business was central to the efforts undertaken under the renewed Market Access Strategylaunched in April 2007. A synergy of the pooled expertise started to bring the first tangible results intargeting barrier cases in third countries. For instance, by taking the example of alcoholic beverages,a few success stories can be noted in access to the markets of Malaysia, Colombia, Russia, Canadaand India. Many continuous and persistent efforts concentrate on barriers related to sanitary and phytosanitary measures. Total or partial lifting of some specific barriers has so far been obtained fromArgentina, Thailand, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Korea, India, South Africa, Ivory Coast,Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Japan. This would probably not have been possible without theinvolvement of the Brussels-based working groups and local Market Access Teams in third countries.CIAA is actively engaged in the partnership, participating in the work of the Market Access AdvisoryCommittee. The food and drink industry is committed to contributing further to the development of theMarket Access Strategy, and hopes it will prove increasingly efficient in the future.

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International Trade

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>CHALLENGES

2009 should be the last year for the elaborationof the implementing rules of the MCC.In particular, DG TAXUD will draft the variousAnnexes, notably on sensitive products and onequivalence. CIAA will continue to monitor andrequest improvements of the draft wheredeemed necessary. The adoption of the draftregulation is foreseen in 2010 and the newrules should be applicable mid-2013 at the latest.

Promotion of agri-foodproducts

>BACKGROUND

The Community regime on promotion measures for agri-food products on the internal market and in non-EU countries hasundergone technical changes in the frame-work of the Action Plan on CAP simplification

implemented by DG AGRI. However, thisprocess did not bring the simplification andthe flexibility necessary for an efficient functioning of this instrument and effectiveuse of limited funds. Since 2007, DG AGRIhas held internal discussions on new strategies for promotion and a working document was announced for release in2008, but has been delayed.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA continued to stress the need forimproving the promotion regime. Togetherwith COPA-COCEGA and CELCAA it requestedclarification of the existing legislative texts onpromotion, in particular regarding the needfor a better balance between generic promotionand the use of trademarks, as well as forsimplification of the management of programmes involving more than oneMember State. Beyond these issues thatrequire urgent improvement, a more

fundamental review of the regime remainsnecessary and CIAA played an active part inthe debate on developing an efficient, flexibleand market-oriented instrument.

>CHALLENGES

The current objectives of the Community promotion policy remain valid both internallyand on expanding world markets where competition with other suppliers is growing.Nevertheless, a number of rules governingpromotion policy, such as the restricted list ofproducts covered and administrative procedures, tend to jeopardize the objectivesof the regime. CIAA will continue encouragingthe Commission to review its strategy and willpursue its call for a higher ambition to adaptthe EU promotion policy to the reality of markets.

Export refunds In 2007/2008, the coordinated actions of CIAAand its members have contributed to maintainingexport refunds for sugar and products containingsugar. CIAA had insisted on the fact that as longas gaps between EU and world market pricesremain, export refunds will be essential toensuring the competitiveness of EU food anddrink products on non-EU markets. However, asa consequence of the sugar reform, refundswere set at zero in October 2008. TheCommission finally approved and implementedthe extension of the validity period of refundcertificates for sugar until mid-2009 as a meansto provide a short-term solution to maintain the competitiveness of processed productscontaining sugar on non-EU markets.

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Supply in AgriculturalRaw Materials

The Health Check andthe CAP post-2013

>BACKGROUND

In view of the continuing modernisation of theCAP and the adjusting of certain instruments,the Commission released a Communication ona CAP 'Health Check' in November 2007.Further to a wide public debate, the legal proposals were released in May 2008 and theFrench Presidency succeeded in concludingthe debates by the end of 2008.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The food and drink industry welcomed thelegislative proposals on the CAP Health Check,which were coherent with CIAA's approachregarding agriculture and food policy. In particular, some of the new measures proposed under the Health Check were aimedat ensuring the availability of raw materials forEU food processors in the coming years.Therefore, CIAA supported the removal ofinstruments that constrained European production, such as a permanent end to theset-aside scheme.

During the second half of 2008, CIAA'sexpectations were raised with Commissionofficials and French representatives, includingnotably Minister Barnier. Finally, a politicalagreement was reached in November 2008,moving the CAP towards more market-orientedand sustainable agriculture but retaining certain instruments to act as safety nets.For CIAA, this should help farmers to respond better to market signals.

>CHALLENGES

The French Presidency launched the debateon the future of the CAP in September 2008but did not succeed in obtaining a substantialconsensus among ministers. As the debatehas now been launched, the Czech Presidencyis committed to pursuing it, notably in regardto direct payments. In 2009, CIAA will alsodevelop its approach on the post-2013 CAP,around which a debate was also initiated in 2008.

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Quality of agriculturalproducts

>BACKGROUND

In October 2008, the Commission released aGreen Paper on agricultural product quality.The scope of this Green Paper is very wide,exploring issues such as marketing standardsand farming requirements, quality assuranceschemes, geographical indications and organicproduction. Stakeholders were invited to takepart in the consultation, which lasted until theend of 2008.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA emphasised on different occasions thatquality is a key issue for the entire food sectorand that a clear distinction needs to be madebetween food quality and food safety. Thecompetitiveness of the food and drink industryis, to a large extent, determined by the qualityof their products. Responding to the GreenPaper, CIAA clearly indicated its main message:there is no need for additional and compulsorylabelling schemes confirming compliance withEU legal requirements. CIAA also expressedopposition to a mandatory indication of theplace of production of primary products(EU/non-EU). CIAA believes that Articles 2 and 3 of Directive 2000/13/EC provide theappropriate framework for the labelling offoodstuffs. On geographical indications (GIs),CIAA proposed a specific step-by-step

approach aimed at dealing with the increasingdiversity and number of GIs. Finally, the foodand drink industry stressed that there is nojustification for regulatory action regardingquality assurance schemes at EU level.

>CHALLENGES

The issue will receive particular attentionunder the Czech Presidency through a high-level conference on food quality policy,followed by the release of a CommissionCommunication on the future developmentof EU food quality policy in May 2009. Withthese milestones in mind CIAA will continueits ongoing efforts to support its key messages.The Communication will pave the way forthe necessary proposals to be preparedunder the next European Parliament andCommission, for example, on geographicalindications.

Biofuels and supply ofagricultural raw materials

>BACKGROUND

In January 2008, the Commission released itsproposal for a directive on the promotion ofrenewable energy in Europe. The Commission'sdraft implemented the March 2007 EuropeanCouncil conclusions on a new European EnergyPolicy. The Commission confirmed the 20%overall target for the share of renewable energyin the EU energy mix by 2020 and the 17

mandatory 10% share of biofuel in transportfuels (petrol and diesel) by 2020. The draftdirective also contained a sustainability scheme.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

For CIAA, the proposed directive did not addressthe core food and drink industry concerns onthe potential impact the policy may have on theavailability of raw materials for food and feedproduction. On several occasions, CIAA stressedthat the 2007 European Council conclusionswere conditional upon second-generation biofuels being commercially available and biofuelproduction being sustainable. We thereforerequested that during the co-decision procedurethe EP and the Council introduce the preparation of a full impact assessment and aformal review clause linked to the availability ofsecond-generation biofuels.

CIAA took an active part in the debate withinthe European Parliament. A large majority ofCIAA members welcomed the compromise

amendment adopted in the IndustryCommittee, which included sub-targets forbiofuels from feedstocks that are not competingwith food and feed production, the preparationof an impact assessment and a formal reviewclause.

>CHALLENGES

In December 2008, following intense discussions between the Commission,European Parliament and Council, the directiveon the promotion of renewable energy wasapproved. Although concerns as regards thepotential impact on food production and priceshave been given consideration, CIAA regretsthe absence of a formal review clause for the10% target and the lack of sub-targets. AsMember States will now have to prepare theirnational action plans, CIAA will closely monitorthese developments in order to ensure that indesigning these plans, particular attention isgiven to the availability of raw materials forthe production of food and feed.

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EUROPEAN FOOD SAFETY AUTHORITYThe European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has provided independent scientific advice on matterslinked to food and feed safety since 2002. Since its existence, EFSA has built up a reputation of independence and credibility. EFSA's Scientific Opinions are of particular relevance for the functioningof the internal market and international trade, which will gain more momentum as business becomesincreasingly globalised. CIAA has contributed to EFSA's public consultation on its Strategic Planning2009-2013 highlighting in particular the importance of fast-track procedures for emerging issues.EFSA has already made good progress on a number of emerging issues and has delivered statements, e.g. in the case of melamine which was discovered in Chinese products. CIAA encourages EFSA's position at the forefront of the development of risk assessment methodologies -not just across Member States but worldwide.

CIAA has also contributed to EFSA's consultation on the Scientific Opinion on the Potential RisksArising from Nanoscience and Nanotechnologies on Food and Feed Safety. The paper is a literaturereview, and offers a rather generic perspective. It cannot, therefore, serve as instructions for thepreparation of risk assessment dossiers, in the event of submission of applications.

CIAA is also an active member of EFSA's Stakeholder Consultative Platform. Geoff Thompson, CIAA'srepresentative within the Platform, is a Vice-Chairman of the Platform.

The Food Safety Platform aims to facilitatethe exchange of views between the mainpartners of the food chain on a diverserange of issues related to food safety. The core membership of the Platform consists of the following European sectororganisations:

■ Farmers/Cooperatives: COPA COGECA■ Agri-food Trade: CELCAA■ Feed Producers: FEFAC■ Food Producers: CIAA■ Retail/Wholesale/Import/Export:

EuroCommerce

■ Food Service: EMRA■ Consumers: BEUC

The Food Safety Platform met twice duringthe course of 2008 to discuss issues ofcommon interest, namely the functioning ofthe EU Rapid Alert System for Food andFeed; nanotechnology; cloning; the reviewof the EU's legislative “Hygiene Package”;and the implementation of import requirements for certain products of non-animal origin.

FOOD SAFETY PLATFORM

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Food Hygiene

>BACKGROUND

The EU's legislative “Hygiene Package,” whichentered into force on 1st January 2006, aimsto merge and simplify complex hygienerequirements which had previously been scattered across seventeen Directives. TheEuropean Commission is currently undertakinga review of the Package with a view to drafting a report by 2009 and, if appropriate,legislative proposals at a later stage.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA continued to actively contribute to thereview process throughout 2008 by participationwithin European Commission consultations.Of particular concern was the potential impactof the hygiene requirements on the availabilityof fish oil, DHA-rich oil in particular, for use ininfant formula and formula for special medicalpurposes in Europe. The Commission hassince agreed to request an EFSA Opinionregarding fish oil for human consumption.

>CHALLENGES

Although the hygiene package generally benefited food business operators, its implementation revealed some areas with roomfor improvement. CIAA therefore welcomes theCommission's efforts to channel stakeholderinput into the legislative review, and remainscommitted to working with DG SANCO toensure both a successful review of the 19

FOOD CHAIN ROUNDTABLE ON PLANT PROTECTION

The Food Chain Roundtable acts as an informal platform for food chain partners to discuss issues relating to plant protection. The following European organisations constitute the core members of theRoundtable:

■ CELCAA: European Liaison Committee ofAgricultural and Agri-food trade

■ CIAA: European Confederation of the Foodand Drink Industry

■ COLEACP: EU-ACP Liaison Committee -Interprofessional Network promotingSustainable Horticultural Trade

■ COPA/COGECA: Agricultural Producers andCo-operatives

■ ECPA: European Crop Protection Association

■ FEDIOL: EU Oil and Proteinmeal Industry

■ FEFAC: European Association of the

Compound Feed Industry

■ FRESHFEL: European Forum for the Fresh

Fruits and Vegetables Chain

■ OEITFL: Association of Fruit and Vegetable

Processing Industries

package, based on scientific risk assessment,and a consistent, coherent and workableapproach to the implementation of the currentlegislation across the food chain.

In parallel to the above, CIAA will continue toremain closely involved with other hygiene-related developments where necessary. CIAAwas pleased to contribute to a number of DGSANCO consultations on EU Guidance for FoodBusiness Operators for the conducting of shelf-life studies to determine the complianceof ready-to-eat (RTE) foods with microbiologicalcriteria for Listeria monocytogenes, which weresubsequently adopted in December 2008.

Food Ingredients

>BACKGROUND

Following its second reading at the EuropeanParliament's plenary session in July 2008,European legislation was adopted and a package of four proposals was developed bythe Commission, which included regulationson food additives, food enzymes, flavouringsand food ingredients with flavouring properties,and a common authorisation procedure. Thepackage was published in the Official Journalin December and entered into force in January2009.

>ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES

CIAA welcomes the package of proposals andsupports the European Commission's intention

to ensure coherence with respect to theframework that has already been in place forover 15 years.

Following an extensive consultation of itsmembership, and in liaison with relevantstakeholders, detailed CIAA input was submittedon the proposals.

CIAA was pleased to note that the majority ofthe issues raised were taken into considerationwithin the adopted package, which it hopeswill ultimately lead to a more competitiveEuropean food industry.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA is concerned about the recentCommission Decision requiring warning labels

to be placed on products containing the foodcolours featured in the "Southampton Study".

Following the publication of the SouthamptonStudy, EFSA, as the EU risk assessor, carriedout an evaluation and concluded in its ScientificOpinion that there was currently insufficient evidence of a need for any public health measures to be taken. The EuropeanCommission, however, under pressure from theEuropean Parliament and NGOs, decided to disregard EFSA's science-based conclusions andadopted a decision mandating warning labels.

CIAA believes that this sets a dangerous precedent in policymaking. Not only does itseriously undermine the value of scientific risk

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20

assessments as a policy tool, but it demonstrates that EU legislation may notalways be based on scientifically proven foodsafety concerns. As a direct result, lawsbecome unpredictable, legal certainty decreases and the industry's competitivenesswill unnecessarily suffer.

>ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES AND INITIATIVES

Food categorisation systemCIAA continues its involvement in theCommission Working Group on the food additives categorisation system. This groupwas created to address the transfer of theexisting additives authorisations into the Annexof the new Regulation on food additives.In close cooperation with its membership,CIAA is contributing to ensure the new Annexis effectively developed.

IntakesCIAA continues to be actively involved in thework of the Commission Ad Hoc WorkingGroup on intake assessment, in collaborationwith Member States and other sectors in thefood chain. The work aims at refining information on food additive dietary intake atEuropean level. In cooperation with its entiremembership, CIAA carried out a comprehensiveIntake Data Collection Exercise, which collated,among other information, a set of data on typical use concentrations of food additivesthat are currently used in foodstuffs.

CulturesFollowing a European consultation, CIAA,together with relevant stakeholders, submitteda position on the regulatory status of culturesuse. CIAA will continue working together withCommission officials and other stakeholders to address related concerns.

REACHAlthough substances intended for food andfeed use are exempt from the REACHRegulation (Article 2), CIAA monitored thereview of REACH Annexes IV and V as therewere concerns that there might be an impacton ingredients which also have non-food technical applications. Sectors looked morecarefully into the details of the potentialimpact of REACH on their businesses.

FACETCIAA has successfully launched its participationas one of the key project partners in the EUfunded R&D project FACET (Flavours, Additivesand food Contact material Exposure Task).The project aims to develop a tool for the estimation of probabilistic exposure to foodchemical intake. CIAA will be actively involvedin the “Additives” group in particular.

Novel Foods

>BACKGROUND

In 2007, the European Commission announcedits intention to revise Regulation 258/97/EC onNovel Foods and Novel Foods Ingredients.CIAA welcomed this announcement as initialdiscussions had revealed that administrativeburdens, timing and legal uncertainty addedcosts to the overall procedure. In response tothe proposed amendment, CIAA, together withthe Platform for Ingredients in Europe (PIE),commissioned the UK economist GrahamBrookes to undertake an extensive study withleading European ingredients companies tolook at why the industry is reluctant to comeforward with new products. The report confirmed that food innovation in Europe is notpossible without a fundamental reform of current procedures. Exclusive access to themarket for innovative products, combined withshort, predictable and proportionate procedures,have been consistent demands from the foodand drink industry.

On 14 January 2008, the Commission issuedits proposal for the revision of the Novel FoodsRegulation. The text meets several of thedemands raised by the food and drink industry.In particular, it introduces a centralised authorisation procedure and includes data protection provisions for newly developed innovative food. The initial applicant would beauthorised to market the food for five yearsbefore it becomes a generic foodstuff that can

be produced and marketed by others.The proposal also makes provisions for foodwhich has never been consumed in Europe, butwhich has a history of safe use elsewhere.For such foodstuffs, the authorisation procedureis simplified.

>ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES

Both the Slovenian and the FrenchPresidencies have made substantial progresswith the dossier and important amendmentsto the initial text were introduced.

Meanwhile, the European Parliament, in itsvote in the Environment Committee inDecember 2008, has also introduced animportant amendment on data protection tothe proposed legislation.

CIAA hopes that it will be possible to finalisethe Revision of the Novel Food Regulation asquickly as possible and that the followingareas will be further looked at to ensure thatthe competitiveness of the food and drinkindustry is maintained and that SMEs, in particular, can benefit from simpler proceduresin the future, thereby encouraging their investment in innovation by:

■ establishing a more explicit link between anovel food authorisation and the applicantcompany;

■ providing appropriate transitional mechanismsfor pending novel food applications;

■ ensuring an operable relationship betweenthe Novel Foods and Health ClaimsRegulation, and

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■ introducing a simplified notification (fasttrack) procedure for foods and ingredientswith a history of safe use, such as foods and ingredients that have already beenauthorised, but which are intended for use in a novel food.

Food Contact Materials

>BACKGROUND

The European Commission worked on severalproposals in the area of food contact materialsin 2008. CIAA closely followed the variousproposals under development as well as theactivities of the European CommissionWorking Group on Food Contact Materials, toensure that the views of the EU food and drinkindustry are taken into consideration.

>ACHIEVEMENTS AND CHALLENGES

CIAA continued to be involved in several 'jointindustry groups' with the packaging supplychain, including groups dealing with: metal closures, packaging inks, exposure and thetransfer of compositional information in theplastics supply chain.

PlasticsCIAA is contributing to the preparation of aCommission Regulation relating to plasticsmaterials and articles intended to come intocontact with foodstuffs (so called Recast ofPlastics Directives), which aims to codify intoone regulation all rules on plastic food contactmaterials. After consultation of its membership,

CIAA submitted several positions to theCommission, and will continue working in order to ensure that the food industry's concerns are properly addressed.

Packaging InksThe 'Packaging Inks Joint Industry Task Force'was created under the initiative of CIAA andcomprises representatives from printing inkmanufacturers, packaging manufacturers andfood and drink industry representatives. TheTask Force has become a reference group,which provides key expertise on assessingand controlling the risk of contamination offood contact surfaces by packaging inks. In2008, the group presented its report to theCommission Working Group on Food ContactMaterial. It included extensive data collectionand assessment of the substances used inpackaging inks. CIAA will continue its involvement in the Task Force.

Active and Intelligent MaterialsCIAA has contributed to the EuropeanCommission's Working Document on activeand intelligent materials and articles intendedto come into contact with food from the outset. CIAA provided written comments onthe Working Document and further contributedto the debate at the different Working Groupmeetings. CIAA was pleased to note that all itsconcerns were properly adopted in the draftdocument, which the Commission considers tobe finished, and which will be voted on by theStanding Committee in early 2009.

Paper and BoardCIAA monitored industry and government initiatives related to paper and board packaging materials, in particular the creationof a “Paper and Board Industry Guideline”.CIAA is liaising with the paper and boardindustry to ensure that the concerns of the EUfood and drink industry are addressed.

Contaminants

>BACKGROUND

Regulation 1881/2006, setting maximumlevels for certain contaminants in foodstuffs,includes maximum levels for the FusariumToxins deoxynivalenol, zearalenone andfumonisins in maize and maize products.These limits have since been subject to revision under Regulation 1126/2007.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In January 2008, CIAA delivered presentationsto the annual DG SANCO stakeholder FusariumToxins Forum, detailing the concerns of the foodchain as a whole with regard to the proposedlimits.>CHALLENGES

To supplement existing maximum levels fordeoxynivalenol, zearalenone and fumonisins,the Commission intends to consider the possible introduction of limits for T-2 and HT-2toxins by summer 2009. These toxins will

form the focus of the DG SANCO FusariumToxins Forum in February 2009.

CIAA will continue to steadfastly support theCommission’s efforts to maintain a dialoguewith stakeholders on maximum levels forFusarium Toxins as a whole, and in doing so willencourage the Commission and Member Statesto ensure that existing and future levels are also realistically achievable, in other words which:

■ ensure the protection of consumer health;

■ are set in accordance with a risk-benefit(e.g. safety, nutrition, quality) approach;

■ take agricultural feasibility into account (seasonal, geographic and crop variations, etc);

■ acknowledge the interrelationship betweentoxins.

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Process contaminants:Acrylamide

>BACKGROUND

Acrylamide was first discovered in food inearly 2002. Since this discovery, many civilsociety groups such as industry, academiaand government research laboratories havedeveloped a deep level of understanding ofacrylamide formation in many types of foodswhich provides the basis for interventions toreduce the levels of acrylamide in productsbefore their placement on the market.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA created its Acrylamide Technical ExpertGroup in 2003 to reflect on mitigation strategies,which led to the publication of the “AcrylamideToolbox” in 2005 (http://www.ciaa.eu).

The Acrylamide CIAA “Toolbox” reflects theresults of more than three years of industrycooperation to understand acrylamide formation and potential intervention steps. Itsaim is to provide brief descriptions of theintervention steps evaluated and, in manycases, already implemented by food manufacturers and other partners in the foodchain. The 11th update of this Toolbox waspublished in September 2007. Its 12th revision to take into consideration newestdevelopments in research and industrial applications was finalised at the end of 2008.

For the first time, the Grocery Manufacturers ofAmerica (GMA) have also worked closely withCIAA to introduce information generated in theUnited States.

In a continued effort to make these tools easierfor SMEs throughout Europe to implement, CIAAand the European Commission's DG SANCO incollaboration with national authorities, developedthe Acrylamide Pamphlets for five key sectors:Biscuits, Crackers and Crispbreads, BreadProducts, Breakfast Cereals and Fried PotatoProducts such as potato crisps and French fries.Individual operators can use the tools outlined inthe pamphlets to adapt their unique productionsystems. The pamphlets are available in 20languages on the European Commission's website.

>CHALLENGES

■ Promote the use of the tools to try to mitigate acrylamide;

■ As appropriate, check the results of mitigation efforts;

■ Maintain efforts to regularly update theToolbox to possibly make it a global tool.

Low-Level Presence ofNon-Authorised GMOs

>BACKGROUND

In light of the widening gap between EU GMOauthorisations and increased authorisations inthird countries from which the EU imports, it isincreasingly difficult to segregate commodities,despite the rigid segregation methods put inplace. The EU regulatory system does notallow any presence of GMOs in food that hasnot been approved in the EU. In 2007, theEuropean Commission's DG AGRI undertook a study on unapproved GMOs in EU feedimports and on livestock production that indicated that the impact of the current zero-tolerance policy for EU-unapproved GMOswould be as devastating for the food sector as for the feed sector.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA and partners of the food chain havecommissioned a study (the Graham Brookesreport) into the impact of the European zerotolerance policy on the food industry, and distributed it to all relevant Directorates-General and Commissioners.

Codex Alimentarius discussed the recognitionof a safety assessment in situations of low-level presence in which a recombinant-DNAplant has already been found to be safe andauthorised for commercialisation for food by

one or more countries through an assessmentperformed according to the Codex PlantGuidelines, but where the importing countryhas not determined its food safety.

Meanwhile, at its 31st session in Geneva,Switzerland, the Codex Commission and itsmember countries approved the Annex onFood Safety Assessment in Situations of Low-Level Presence of Recombinant-DNAPlant Material in Food.

These standards represent Codex's commitmentto promoting food safety for consumers, whileembracing scientific advances and fosteringtrade of biotech-derived agriculture products.

Adoption of guidance related to food safetyassessments of low-level presence is essentialto facilitate international trade while regulatingincidental or trace amounts of biotechnologyevents in food and feed products. The newguidance recognizes that low-level presence isa natural part of plant biology, seed productionand the distribution of commodity crops, and itcan be managed in ways that ensure foodsafety and minimize trade disruptions.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA is actively participating in two roundtables- the European Food and Feed Group and theLow Level Presence Food Group. Both groupshave undertaken major activities to continue tocreate awareness of this issue at the highestCommission levels.

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In spite of such efforts, and global recognitionthat this is an issue that also needs to beaddressed in Europe, a technical solution forboth feed and food has not yet been offered.This may undermine the legal security ofoperators in the food chain.

CIAA will continue its efforts which began in2007 and will focus on key issues includingdisruptions to EU trade and the endangermentof the adequate supply of raw materials and,together with authorities and key stakeholders,will seek technical solutions that will removethe threat that the EU food and drink industryis currently facing.

Nanotechnology

Emerging technologies may raise questions inthe minds of consumers. CIAA firmly believesthat stakeholders should be helped to under-stand technologies if their confidence is to bemaintained. To this end, in September 2008,a medley of stakeholder representatives fromthe European Commission (DGs SANCO,Research and Enterprise), the chemicalsindustry (CEFIC), the European ConsumerOrganisation (BEUC), the European FoodSafety Authority (EFSA), Friends of the Earth(FOE), academia and others, assembled at theCIAA offices for an animated stakeholderdebate on the food industry and nanotech-nologies, at which the draft principles of a

food industry Code of Practice onNanotechnologies were presented for initialfeedback. The debate was welcomed as auseful initiative and starting point for futuredialogue, which CIAA hopes to nurture bymeans of a similar event and other initiativesin 2009.

CIAA INCIDENT MANAGEMENTSYSTEMIn summer 2006, the CIAA Board approvedthe establishment of a CIAA IncidentManagement System in order to assist thefood industry to take prompt action inresponse to emerging/potential food safetyincidents. The system comprises a perma-nent Incident Management Group (IMG) tocoordinate the identification of emergingincidents, in addition to Incident Teams (IT),each formed in response to a specific incident and dedicated to its managementon a day-to-day basis. The efficiency of thesystem was subsequently demonstratedfollowing the discovery of the unauthorisedGM LL rice 601 in August 2006.

PREREQUISITE PROGRAMME (PRP)

The British Standards Institute (BSI) has published PAS 220:2008 “Prerequisite programmes on foodsafety for food manufacturing”. This Publicly Available Specification (PAS) specifies requirementsfor prerequisite programmes which assist in controlling food safety hazards, including areas suchas the layout of premises and workspace, hygiene of personnel and product recall procedures.

Developed by BSI, PAS 220 is largely based upon the requirements of Codex Alimentarius, but hasin addition been cross-referenced with existing industry practices by industry experts.

PAS 220 is designed for use by any organisation involved in the manufacturing step of the foodchain, regardless of its size or complexity. It is intended that PAS 220 will be used in conjunctionwith BS EN ISO 22000 Food safety management systems: Requirements for any organization in thefood chain, which states that an organisation should establish prerequisite programmes to assistwith controlling food safety hazards.

The potential benefits of PAS 220 include:

■ Harmonisation of prerequisite programmes' best practice for food manufacturing;

■ Meeting the prerequisite programmes' expectations and the requirements of food manufacturingstakeholders;

■ Complementing and aligning with ISO 22000, the internationally recognised food safety management system standard;

■ Fully integrating with other management system standards such as ISO 9001.

In essence the ISO-22000/PAS 220 scheme marks a very significant step forward for all foodprocessors. Both large and small manufacturers and retailers now have the opportunity to uniteunder a commonly agreed set of prerequisite programmes for the international control of food safety hazards.

INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS (CODEX ALIMENTARIUS)In June 2005, CIAA re-launched itsInternational Standards Expert Group, taskedwith actively participating in the developmentof international regulations. CIAA submitted anumber of positions to Codex Alimentariusthroughout the course of 2007 on, for exam-ple, the Codex Guidelines on the Applicationof General Principles of Food Hygiene to theControl of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-To-Eat Foods, the Codex Guidelines for theUse of Nutrition Claims, Definition of DietaryFibre, Implementation of the WHO GlobalStrategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health(labelling matters), and on the CodexProposed Draft Code of Practice for theReduction of Acrylamide in Foods.

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EuropeanTechnologyPlatform

“Food for Life”

24

>BACKGROUND

The European Technology Platform (ETP) Foodfor Life was created in 2005 following the principles of the Lisbon Strategy, under the auspices of the CIAA. The main goals of the ETPare to strengthen the European innovationprocess, improve knowledge transfer and stimulate European competitiveness across thefood chain. The vision of the ETP, published inJuly 2005, identified the need for an effective integration of strategically-focused,trans-national, concerted research in the nutritional, food and consumer sciences andfood chain management. The aim is to deliverinnovative, novel and improved food productsfor, and to, national, regional and global marketsin line with consumer needs and expectations.

The ETP Food for Life Strategic ResearchAgenda (SRA) followed in September 2007.Extensive consultations were held with all relevant stakeholders through face-to-facemeetings across Europe and via web-basedactivities. The SRA focused on the scientific andtechnological research requirements initiated byWorking Groups on Food and Health, FoodQuality and Manufacturing, Food and Consumer,Food Safety, Sustainable Food Production andFood Chain Management. An additional WorkingGroup developed an outline for needs inCommunication, Training and TechnologyTransfer, while the Horizontal Activities WorkingGroup focused, amongst other issues, on optimising internal and external contacts andcooperation.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

• Launch of the Implementation ActionPlan on 17 October 2008

The Implementation Action Plan explains howthe research priorities identified in theStrategic Research Agenda (SRA) of the ETPFood for Life can be implemented most effectively. Like the SRA, it has been the subject of stakeholder consultations, and illustrates activities required by the ETP andits stakeholders to facilitate the processrequired to address these Key Thrusts.The Key Thrusts derived from the keyresearch challenges of the SRA to meet thecriteria required to stimulate innovation, createnew markets and meet important social andenvironmental goals are:

Food Safety

Sustainable Food Production

Food Quality &Manufacturing

Food &Health

Food &Consumer

Communication,Training &

Technology Transfer

Food Chain Management

Schematic presentation of the research areas requiredto reach the vision of the ETP Food for Life

CIAA’s ETP website

can be found at

http://etp.ciaa.eu

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 25

Finally, the Implementation Action Plan alsofulfils the important task of taking the key priority research thrusts of the SRA a stage further by considering the costs of the workproposed, the major funding mechanisms thatmust be adopted and the obstacles inhibitingresearch uptake by industry.

• ETP Member State Mirror Group A Mirror Group, bringing together 18 nationalMembers, which are in close dialogue with,or will belong to national food research agencies, ministries or equivalent fundingbodies, was officially launched in June 2006.The Mirror Group is a driver for trans-European dialogue between bodiesfunding food research, as well as betweenthese bodies and the ETP to encourage the stakeholders to optimise research funding,avoid duplication and thereby releasing funding for shared strategic goals.Its main activities are focused on exchanging

25

CIAA INVOLVEMENT IN EUROPEANRESEARCH PROJECTS

• Coordinator of the Specific Support Actionthat funds the ETP Food for Life activities(project funded under the 6th FrameworkProgramme of the European CommissionFOOD-43177-EUFOOD4LIFE from September2006 to June 2008).

• Partner of the TRUEFOOD Traditional UnitedEurope Food project (Contract number:FOOD -CT-2006-016264) which aims atintroducing suitable innovations into traditional food industry to maintain andincrease the competitiveness of the industryin an increasingly global European marketplace (http://www.truefood.eu/).

• Partner of the FACET project (Flavours,additives and food contact material exposure task Pr.N. 211686) whose conceptis the creation of a food chemical exposuresurveillance system, which covers representative regions of the EU and whichmeets, to the highest possible standard, theneeds of the EU regulatory authorities in theprotection of consumer health.

As defined in EURAB 04.010-final (January2004), a European Technology Platform(ETP) is “a major mission-oriented initiativeaimed at strengthening Europe's capacityto organise and deliver innovation -strengthening the Europe-wide innovationprocess. It will bring together relevantstakeholders to identify the innovation challenge, develop the necessary researchprogramme and implement the results”.

best practices and information about the topics included in national strategic programmes of research, identifying overlapsand duplication, and sharing the results.In the longer term, opportunities will beexplored for aligning research programmesand developing joint calls (for example,through ERA-NETplus activities).

• National Technology Platforms Through its extensive consultation processwith influential industrialists, key researchworkers throughout Europe, representatives ofconsumer organisations and the national public bodies that support research, the ETPalso influences the future direction of nationalresearch activities. Since national branching isconsidered to be one of the major successfactors for Food for Life, the Platform hasencouraged and supported the establishmentand the related work of national platforms.Since 2006, 34 1 National TechnologyPlatforms (NTPs) have been established underthe umbrella of the ETP Food for Life.The ETP Food for Life supports this network ofNTPs as a useful tool in communicating andaddressing the needs and opportunities of thePlatform across Europe. The NTPs will contribute to the content of the ImplementationPlan via data collection of national researchpriorities and funding possibilities.

The discussion on future activitiesfocused on:

■ ETP involvement in the Lead Market Initiative(LMI) for the food sector. The ETP hasresponded to the LMI by identifying the

healthy foods sector as the sector where thegreatest market growth opportunities lie andwhich reflects the increasing consumerdesire for a healthy and varied diet.

■ Development of closer cooperation withother ETPs, national governments (via theETP Mirror Group and potential ERA-NETs)and National Technology Platforms.

(1) Albania, Austria, Belgium (Flanders' Food platform), Belgium(Wagralim platform), Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Israel, Italy,Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia,Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (Swiss Food Research),The Netherlands, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom

“TROPHELIA EUROPE”

As part of its research and science activities, CIAA supported the first“Trophelia Europe,” the European-widecompetition aimed at encouraging the creation, implementation and developmentof new products by teams of students fromscientific and commercial establishmentsof higher education.

The competition took place at the SIAL exhibition in Paris on 20 October 2008.

Eight nations took part in the first Europeancompetition: Austria, Belgium, Denmark,France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, and Spain.

A European jury comprising representativesfrom food federations, the EuropeanCommission and large companies, andchaired by CIAA President Mr. Jean Martin,awarded the final prize to the Spanish team.

Trophelia Europe's aim is comparable tothat of the Strategic Research Agenda of theEuropean Technology Platform “Food forLife,” which includes an educational dimension aimed at:

■ Attracting young people to choose acareer in the food sector;

■ Improving the culture of innovation andawareness.

Trophelia Europe not only attracts studentsto the food sector but also provides a sourceof innovative ideas for the food industry forthe development and commercialisation ofawarded food products.

■ improve health, well-being and longevity,■ build consumer trust in the food chain, and■ support sustainable and ethical production.

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The new proposal would require the food anddrink industry to provide mandatory nutritionlabelling on all products and to label detailedinformation on energy and five nutrients - carbohydrates, sugars, salt, fat and saturated fat - on the front of the pack.

All information on food packages should belegible, but legibility is a complex issue,dependant on a number of inter-related factors that extend far beyond the font size of3mm that was in the proposal.

The Commission proposal also allows thecoexistence of national schemes, which wouldsubstantially weaken the Single Market andthe competitiveness of the European food anddrink industry.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In June 2006, CIAA made a commitment toimplement proactively a voluntary nutritionlabelling scheme, the “CIAA Nutrition LabellingScheme”, for the entire food and drink industry,across all EU Member States. This schemehas made rapid progress with an increasingnumber of companies adopting this approach.The scheme is based on internationallyaccepted and scientifically derived GuidelineDaily Amounts (GDAs) and aims to help consumers to choose a balanced diet as partof an overall healthy lifestyle. By the end of2009, at least ten of the biggest food anddrink companies in Europe will be using thelabelling system on 100% of their products.

Food Information toConsumers - FoodInformation Package

>BACKGROUND

In January 2008 the European Commissionadopted a proposal that revises the existing EULabelling Rules (Directive 2000/13/EC), includingthe rules on nutrition labelling (Directive90/496/EC). This proposal was welcomed bythe European food and drink industry in thespirit of Better Regulation and reduction ofadministrative burdens, in order to focus on thesimplification of existing legislative measures.The aim of this new legislation on food information is to provide a basis of informationfor consumers to make informed and betterchoices and to achieve, within the EuropeanUnion, the free movement of manufactured food.

Other large companies, as well as SMEs, arenot far behind. Studies have shown that GDAsare easy to understand and widely acceptedby the consumer.

CIAA considers its Guidelines for the Legibilityof Labelling to be a more workable solutionthan legislation. CIAA's Guidelines for theLegibility of Labelling provide guidance tomanufacturers on the key factors affectinglegibility, such as layout, font, colour and contrast.

>CHALLENGES

During the legislative process, one of the corechallenges will be to achieve European-wideacceptance of the CIAA GDA scheme with itsreference values as reliable voluntary nutritioninformation. Explaining portion size will play animportant role during the legislative process, toprovide objective, easily understandable,at-a-glance nutrition information at the point ofpurchase, to help consumers to make healthyand better informed choices. It is important toavoid information overload or consumer confusion but that there is flexibility for smallerpackages and labels.

CIAA will continue to elaborate its expectationsregarding the Commission's proposal and inparticular step-up its efforts with regard to therepresentatives of the European Parliament andthe Council. CIAA looks forward to discussingits position with the Czech and SwedishPresidencies in 2009.

ConsumerInformation

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 27

Nutrition and healthclaims

>BACKGROUND

The Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation(EC/1924/2006) was published in the OfficialJournal on 18 January 2007. At that stage,the Regulation still needed to be amended tointroduce the new comitology procedure,which was adopted on 15 January 2009(EC/107/2008).

The Regulation aims to ensure that any claimmade about foods is accurate and scientificallysubstantiated, establishing a harmonised regulatory framework encompassing all typesof claims, including disease risk reductionclaims.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA supported the general objective of theRegulation and focused its work throughout2008 on this dossier. In particular, CIAA submitted a detailed contribution as well as a representative virtual basket of products to the European Commission towards the establishment of nutrient profiles.

In January 2008, CIAA finalised its approachto nutrient profiles, which consisted of 23 food categories accompanied by their respective values for energy, saturated fat and sodium.Further to the publication of the firstCommission draft document on the setting ofnutrient profiles, the outreach effort was left to

the sectors given the specificity of the issues.Meanwhile, CIAA focused on cross-sectoraspects of the debate, such as the need tostrongly support innovation and reformulation,to avoid discriminating against particular foodcategories by omitting them from the nutrientprofiling scheme, to foster diversity in food bycreating enough categories, and exemptingwhere appropriate. All of the above decisionsshould be based on scientific evidence.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA would like to engage in further dialoguewith the European Commission to ensure that

■ a consistent approach is applied to all product categories;

■ testing of any proposed profiling models isbased on an appropriate range of productsrepresentative of the whole EU market.

Addition of vitamins,minerals and other substances to foodstuffs

>BACKGROUND

The Addition of Vitamins and Minerals toFoodstuffs Legislation (EC/1925/2006)entered into force on 19 January 2007. TheCommission is currently working on a proposalto set maximum levels for fortification to besubmitted to Member States in 2009. CIAAtogether with stakeholders have been encouraged by the Commission to come

27

forward with a proposal on how to handle thequestion of setting maximum levels in fortifiedfoods and food supplements.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA is of the opinion that the key condition foradding any vitamin or mineral to a food is thatit must be safe for the consumer. This principleforms the basis of the Commission's proposal,and safe maximum levels are the main criterionapplied when setting maximum thresholds for the addition of vitamins or minerals to foodstuffs.

To establish maximum levels for the additionof nutrients to foods and food supplements,a scientific risk management model was developed on behalf of ERNA (EuropeanResponsible Nutrition Alliance) and EHPM(European Federation of Associations of HealthProduct Manufacturers). In order to complement the ERNA/EHPM methodology,the CIAA developed a method, revised by Prof. Albert Flynn, to calculate maximumamounts for addition of nutrients to foods.This model is referred to as the Gubbio model.

The CIAA's approach is based on the followingprinciples:

■ Setting maximum levels for addition to foodsand in food supplements is a risk management measure, which needs to bebased on a scientific risk assessment.

■ Any model used to calculate the maximumsafe levels needs to take into consideration

the upper safe levels set for individual nutrients by international scientific committees. This should take appropriateaccount of the different degrees of potentialrisk each upper safe level represents.

■ Intake from all sources must be taken intoaccount when assessing the risk. This figurehas to be based as closely as possible onactual intake data. The intake data mustprovide the most recent and complete dataavailable that reflects current Europeanmarkets that are considered as well established.

■ Categorising the nutrients into three groupsaccording to their potential risk of exceedingthe upper level is an appropriate and practicalapproach from the point of view of safety.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA has finalised its contribution, which isbased on current fortification practices withinthe EU and a model based on most recentintake data. CIAA is seeking further dialoguewith the European Commission to presentCIAA’s contribution on setting maximum levelsin fortified foods.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 28

Diet, Nutrition & Health

28

ment in the field of Product Reformulation,Advertising, Marketing, and better ConsumerInformation. These initiatives were undertakenwithin the framework of the EU Platform forAction on Diet, Physical Activity and Health,and focus on the following commitments:

1. Support the development of EPODE andSHAPE UP programmes at national level;

2. Establish a common framework for aninformative/educational brochure onNutrition Information;

3. Develop a Healthy Lifestyles PublicInformation Advertising Campaign (Green Lace Project);

4. Adopt CIAA Principles for Food andBeverage Advertising and ProductMarketing Communication;

5. Participate in the drafting of the StrategicResearch Agenda and Implementation Plan “European Technology Platform - Foodfor Life”;

6. Draft a CIAA Recommendation for aCommon Nutrition Labelling Scheme;

7. Conduct a survey on ProductReformulation, Innovation and Labelling.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA supports the important success andachievements of public-private partnershipsalready underway. Effective self-regulationand voluntary cooperation with stakeholdersis the most effective way to bring togetherresources for the successful promotion ofhealthy diets and physical activity. CIAA

European CommissionWhite Paper “A Strategyfor Europe on Nutrition,Overweight and Obesityrelated health issues”

>BACKGROUND

The White Paper "A Strategy for Europe onNutrition, Overweight and Obesity relatedhealth issues" was published on 30 May2007, the aim of which was to set out an integrated European approach to reducing illhealth due to poor nutrition, overweight andobesity. It highlights the multifactorial natureof obesity and identifies several fields ofaction both at European and national level.The food and drink industry welcomed thisapproach and showed a significant engage-

believes that the development of effectiveand well-defined partnerships among all relevant stakeholders, including publichealth authorities, must be the basis of theoverall Community Strategy.

Multiple factors contribute to obesity and itsrelated illnesses and the White Paperacknowledges this integrated approachacross all policy areas and activity levels.These policies range from food to consumeraffairs, sports to education and transportissues, and no sector or area is excluded.Furthermore, CIAA members fully supportresponsible advertising and marketing, andhave developed specific self-regulatoryguidelines in this area (EU Pledge).

>CHALLENGES

CIAA will continue to build on its commitmentsto promote balanced diets and healthylifestyles in Europe. In 2010, the Commissionwill carry out a progress review to report onthe incidence of obesity and the extent towhich actors across the EU are contributing tothe achievement of the objectives agreed.Particular attention will be paid to industry self-regulatory measures and their effects.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 29

European Platform forAction on Diet, PhysicalActivity and Health

>BACKGROUND

In March 2005, the European Commissionlaunched the European Platform for Action onDiet, Physical Activity and Health, the overallaim being to improve public health nutrition,promote healthy lifestyles and fight theincreasing public health threat posed by obesity across Europe.

The Platform is a successful forum, whichbrings together diverse stakeholders to sharebest practices and foster action in the following fields:

■ Consumer education, including labelling■ Education■ Physical activity promotion■ Marketing and advertising

■ Composition of foods, availability of healthyfood options, portion sizes.

The Platform has been a catalyst for actionand CIAA and its members have deliveredconcrete and specific commitments in each ofthe above areas for action.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In 2008 the Platform Members submitted 171 monitoring forms to report on their commitments. The majority of them camefrom the private sector.

Industry commitments are a significant

contribution to the Platform, and their impact,combined with the commitments of all theother industry contributions to the Platform,are a significant step forward.

One of the most ambitious steps taken so farby a Platform member was the CIAA's voluntary commitment to implement a voluntary nutrition-labelling scheme for theentire food and drink industry across all EUMember States. The scheme is based oninternationally accepted and scientificGuideline Daily Amounts (GDAs), to promotebalanced diets as part of an overall healthylifestyle.

Moreover another important commitmentundertaken in 2008 by CIAA and APCO Insightwas the CIAA Survey of European Food andBeverage Manufacturers, which was carriedout to measure the extent and quality ofindustry efforts and activities to promote balanced diets and healthy lifestyles. Highstandards of both scientific reliability andpolitical credibility had to be met by theresearch methodology. Indeed, CIAA andAPCO Insight have been awarded a EuropeanExcellence Award in the category 'Food andBeverage' for their work to showcase theefforts made by the food and drink industry to promote healthy lifestyles.

The Platform is demonstrating that voluntarymeasures are a fast and effective tool to promote balanced diets and healthy lifestyles,a role that has already been acknowledged inthe Commission's White Paper on Nutrition.

29

>CHALLENGES

The results after three years of process areevident and the European food and drinkindustry has started to monitor the complianceof its activities in a transparent, participative andaccountable way. Industry efforts will continue inthis direction to support the Platform as part ofthe European Nutrition Strategy.

Reformulation – Sodium

>BACKGROUND

The EU Framework for national salt initiativesemerged from two workshops run by nationalexperts and organised by the EuropeanCommission. It was presented at the plenarymeeting jointly organised by a High LevelGroup and EU Platform for Action on Diet,Physical Activity and Health in July 2008. Thecommon goal is to support Member States’ initiatives to meet national and WHO guidelinesfor population salt intake. From an initial list of12 food categories, Member States have identified four priority categories, which represent the major sources of salt in diet.These are bread, ready meals, cheese andmeat products. The goal of this framework is toachieve a 16 % reduction in salt over four years.The initial focus will be to work with the foodindustry within the EU, addressing intra-EU trade.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

CIAA adopted the mandate for the reformulationof sodium content in foods - a public-private

partnership project between CIAA, the EuropeanCommission, the WHO and the Member States- and requested the working group on productreformulation to start working for its execution.This initiative has been undertaken in the context of the EU Platform and in the light ofthe last developments at European Level(White Paper on Nutrition and the WHOEuropean Action Plan for Food and NutritionPolicy). A technical high-level discussion groupon reformulating / optimising sodium contentin foods was held in February 2008 with presentations from WHO Europe, the EuropeanCommission, the UK Food Standards Agencyand CIAA. The EU Platform and High LevelGroup held joint meetings on "salt initiativesand awareness raising campaigns" and "public-private partnerships governance" inOctober 2008 in Luxembourg. CIAA drafted aresponse to DG SANCO on the Frameworkdelivering a clear and constructive messagebut also highlighting the challenges of theEuropean Food and Drink Industry in this area.Food manufacturers all over Europe will pursuetheir efforts in the sodium reformulation / optimisation process taking into account taste, food safety, consumer acceptance,technological and legal constraints.

>CHALLENGES

The European food and drink industry is committed to continue investigating how to support reformulating / optimising sodium content in food and encourage their nationallevel members to work with health ministries tocreate a supportive environment for the initiatives.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 30

Environment

30

Sustainable Consumptionand Production andSustainable IndustrialPolicy

>BACKGROUND

On 16 July 2008, the European Commissionpublished an Action Plan on SustainableConsumption and Production (SCP) andSustainable Industrial Policy (SIP), accompaniedby a set of legal proposals (Eco-design,Eco-label, EMAS) and a Communication onGreen Public Procurement (GPP). The ActionPlan aims to create a policy framework to foster resource-efficient production patternsand to help consumers make informed choices: an objective CIAA warmly welcomes.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

One element of the Commission's Action Planis a proposal for a revised Community Eco-label scheme. Since the Eco-label Regulationwas first adopted in 1992, food has beenexcluded from its scope. This is due to theimmense diversity of food and drinks and theirspecificities in terms of health and nutrition.The 2008 Commission proposal for a revisedRegulation suggests extending the scope to alimited number of food products (processedfood, fishery and aquaculture products). TheEco-label assessment for these productswould be limited to processing, packaging andtransport and disregard all other stages of theirlife-cycle, namely agriculture and consumptionwhich generally have significant environmental

impacts. CIAA has voiced serious concernsabout this fragmented approach, which notonly disregards the life-cycle principle but alsodraws an arbitrary distinction betweenprocessed and fresh food. In addition, CIAAnotes that the generic Eco-label Regulationwas not designed to take account of food interms of health and nutrition. CIAA thereforecalls for food to remain outside the scope ofthe Eco-label Regulation.

At the same time, CIAA sees a strong need towork towards scientifically reliable, EU-wideenvironmental assessment methodologies for food and drink products, as well as toidentify effective ways to communicate theenvironmental aspects of a product to consumers. It is vital to ensure that consumersare no longer confused or misled by the currentpatchwork of inconsistent consumer informationschemes across the EU. Information must berelevant and scientifically reliable, in line withlegal requirements and international standards.

Against this background, CIAA in 2008 developed “Principles on the EnvironmentalAssessment of Food and Drink Products andEnvironmental Communication to Consumers”.These principles build on existing internationalstandards and promote scientifically reliableenvironmental information that is comparableacross the EU. This means taking account of a product's most significant life-cycle environmental impacts, which includes notonly greenhouse gases, but also water use,soil, air and bio-diversity impact. These CIAAprinciples were discussed with a series offood chain stakeholders. They are also

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 31

reflected in the work of the French standardisation body AFNOR, which in July2008 issued a guidance document on environmental product assessment and consumer communication.

In the next steps of its work in this field, CIAAwill work with its food chain partners to agreeon concrete assessment methodologies andvoluntary communication tools to turn theseprinciples into action. This work will also contribute to other elements of theCommission's Action Plan, in particular in thearea of Green Public Procurement, whereexisting purchasing criteria for food are currentlynot based on scientifically reliable methodologiesand lack stakeholder involvement.

>CHALLENGES

Building on its 2008 work, CIAA will in 2009further intensify its efforts in the field of SCPwith the establishment - together with othermajor food chain organisations - of theEuropean Food SCP Roundtable. First prioritiesof the Roundtable will be to establish reliableand uniform environmental assessmentmethodologies for food throughout Europe, andto identify ways to communicate effectively withconsumers. In addition, it will examine key sustainability challenges along the food chain,such as climate change, water conservation,resource efficiency and waste reduction, anddevelop effective strategies to address these.The Roundtable will constitute a major sector-wide contribution to the EU's efforts in the field of SCP.

Revision of theDirective on Waste

>BACKGROUND

Following a Commission proposal in 2005, theEuropean Parliament and Council have beenworking for more than two years on the revision of the EU Waste Framework Directive(WFD). The aim of the revision was tostrengthen and simplify EU waste legislationand to put the Union on track towards a recycling society. In line with the objectives ofresource-efficiency and the prevention of bio-waste in Europe, it was of vital importancefor the food and drink industry that the revisedWFD contains the urgently needed legal clarification of the distinction between wasteon the one hand, and economically valuableby-products on the other hand. Negotiationsbetween the European Parliament and Councilproved difficult and lengthy and final agreement on the revised WFD was onlyreached in June 2008.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

The final text of the revised Directive was published in the Official Journal of theEuropean Union on 22 November 2008 asDirective 2008/98/EC. It contains a newArticle 5, which lays down the criteria for distinguishing between by-products (to whichthe Directive does not apply) and waste,based on recent jurisprudence of the EuropeanCourt of Justice. Unlike waste materials,by-products can be used directly without

further processing other than normal industrialpractice. Their further use is certain and theyfulfill all relevant product, environmental andhealth protection requirements for the specificuse. CIAA warmly welcomes this legal clarification which reflects the business realityin the European food and drink industry where manufacturers have long been acting as bio-refineries, in which agricultural crops are separated into different components, each ofwhich finds useful applications in the economyincluding animal feed, fertilisers, cosmetics,pharmaceuticals or bio-plastics.

>CHALLENGES

Article 5 of the revised Directive on waste also foresees the possibility of additionalimplementation measures under comitology,where this is required to specify the by-product criteria laid down in this Article for specificmaterial types. CIAA is supportive of this provision as it allows the Commission andMember States to provide for further guidancein material-specific cases while the generalcriteria of Article 5 will provide legal certaintyfor the assessment of all by-products on themarket. CIAA is ready and committed to workconstructively with the European Commissionservices to assess whether, and in whichcases, such implementation measures couldprovide advantages for the classification of by-products from food and drink processing.

31

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 32

Environment

32

Revision of the EUEmissions TradingSystem (ETS)

>BACKGROUND

On 23 January 2008 the European

Commission tabled a far-reaching package

of proposals to deliver on the EU's

commitments to reduce its overall green-

house gas emissions by at least 20%, to

improve energy-efficiency by 20% and to

increase the share of renewables in energy

use to 20% (to be achieved by 2020).

Central to the strategy is a strengthening

and expansion of the EU Emissions Trading

System (ETS) beyond 2012. Emissions from

the sectors covered by the system, including

about 900 food and drink industry

installations, should be cut by 21% by 2020

relative to 2005. A 10% cut in emissions is

required from sectors not included in the EU

ETS - such as transport, housing and

agriculture. Based on its experience with the

first two trading periods, CIAA supported the

proposal's objective to further harmonise the

ETS in order to remove competitive

distortions between Member States and

called for a reduction of the EU ETS

compliance burden on small emitters.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

In the second half of 2008, the EU ETS revisionentered into a very intensive phase under theFrench Presidency, which sought to reach firstreading agreement in 2008. The final compromise negotiated between Parliamentand Council in December brought about several fundamental changes for EU ETS participants. CIAA welcomes the establishmentof a centrally determined EU cap, replacingthe National Allocation Plans, and the movetowards full harmonisation of allocation methods.This will greatly simplify the EU ETS andensure a level playing field for companiesoperating in different EU countries. CIAA also

welcomes the introduction of an opt-out provision for installations emitting less than25,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, but regretsthat the final decision on the opt-out lies withthe Member States, thereby creating a risk ofan uneven treatment of small emitters withinthe EU. At the same time, the revised EU ETSwill cause a significant increase in compliancecosts for covered installations since, from2013 onwards, auctioning will be phased inas the general allocation methodology. Alsothe most efficient EU ETS installations, whichdeliver CO2 cuts in line or beyond the 21%reduction target, will have to pay for anincreasing share of their remaining emissions.

>CHALLENGES

The revised ETS Directive leaves a number ofimportant decisions to be adopted by theEuropean Commission under comitology procedure. This includes, amongst others, thedevelopment by 2010 of sector benchmarksfor the transitional allocation of freeallowances. CIAA is committed to work constructively with the European Commissionin order to identify the most suitable benchmarking method for the food and drinkindustry, which is characterised by an extremevariety of different products and correspondingCO2 intensities per tonne of output. By theend of 2009, the European Commission willalso set up a list of sectors subject to a signficant risk of carbon leakage. While thefood and drink sector, when viewed in aggregate, is not energy-intensive, some sub-sectors, including sugar, starch, oils andyeast, are energy-intensive at levels comparable to other industrial sectors and areexposed to full international competition asthey operate in international markets. CIAAcalls for the potential impacts of auctioning on the competitive position of these sub-sectors to be taken into full consideration inthis process.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 33

3333

Integrated PollutionPrevention and Control

>BACKGROUND

Directive 96/61/EC on Integrated PollutionPrevention and Control (IPPC) aims at minimisingpollution from industrial sources throughout theEU by laying down criteria for the environmentalpermitting of industrial installations by nationalauthorities. In accordance with the Directive,Member States are setting licensing conditionson the basis of sector-specific Best AvailableTechniques (BATs), which are summarised inthe so-called BAT Reference Documents(BREFs). The BREF for the food, drink and milksectors was published in October 2006. Due tothe very recent adoption of this BREF, sufficienttime is needed to assess its implementationand functioning before any revision of the document can be considered.

>ACHIEVEMENTS

Following a comprehensive review of the implementation of the IPPC Directive, theEuropean Commission in December 2007tabled a legislative proposal for a Directive onIndustrial Emissions. The proposal recastsseven existing directives related to industrialemissions, including the IPPC Directive, into a single legislative instrument. It aims to simplify the existing legislation, specify the requirements for granting IPPC permits and

modify certain minimum emission standards.The proposal is now under discussion in theEuropean Parliament and the Council. CIAAwelcomes the review process and advocates atechnical revision of Annex 1 of the IPPC Directive,in particular to better define the thresholds ofactivities and installations covered and toensure a uniform implementation in all MemberStates. CIAA developed a set of food-sectorspecific improvement proposals on theseaspects and is communicating them with theEuropean Parliament and the Member States.

>CHALLENGES

CIAA is concerned about the proposal to movetowards a more rigid implementation of theBREFs. The reference documents should neverimpose a 'one-size-fits-all' solution. Properconsideration should be given to local environmental conditions, cross-media effects,hygiene and food quality constraints. As no twoindustrial installations are identical, BAT associated emissions values as defined in theBREFs should not be prescribed as absoluteemission limits for an entire sector, but shouldremain guiding references to be consideredtogether with local conditions. CIAA is also concerned that the proposed lowering of thethreshold for combustion installations from50MW to 20MW would impose a significantburden on numerous small installations, withoutbringing a significant environmental benefit.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 34

CIAA MembersMajor food and drinkcompanies

ADM

BUNGE

CADBURY

CAMPBELL EUROPE

CARGILL

COCA-COLA

DANONE

FERRERO

GENERAL MILLS

HEINEKEN

HEINZ

KELLOGG’S

KRAFT FOODS

MARS

NESTLE EUROPE

PEPSICO

SÜDZUCKER

TATE & LYLE

UNILEVER

34

SPAINFIAB - Federación Española de Industrias de laAlimentación y Bebidaswww.fiab.es

SWEDENLI - Livsmedelsföretagen www.li.se

THE NETHERLANDSFNLI - Federatie Nederlandse LevensmiddelenIndustriewww.fnli.nl

UNITED KINGDOMFDF - Food & Drink Federationwww.fdf.org.uk

OBSERVERS

CROATIAHUP/CEA - Hrvatska udruga poslodavacawww.hup.com.hr

NORWAYNBL - Næringsmiddelbedriftenes Landsforeningwww.nbl.no

TURKEYGDF - Türkiye Gıda ve Içecek Sanayii DernekleriFederasyonuwww.gdf.org.tr

HUNGARYEFOSZ - Élelmiszerfeldolgozók OrszágosSzövetségewww.efosz.hu

IRELANDFDII - Food & Drink Industry Irelandwww.fdii.ie

ITALYFEDERALIMENTARE - Federazione Italiana dell'in-dustria Alimentarewww.federalimentare.it

LATVIALPUF - Latvijas Pãrtikas Uz ,nemumu Federãcijawww.lpuf.lv

LUXEMBOURGFIAL - Fédération des Industries Agro-alimentairesLuxembourgeoises

POLANDPFPZ – Polska Federacja Producentów Zywnosciwww.pfpz.pl

PORTUGALFIPA - Federação das Indústrias Portuguesas Agro-alimentareswww.fipa.pt

ROMANIARomalimenta - Federatia Patronala din IndustriaAlimentarawww.romalimenta.ro

SLOVAKIAPKS - Potravinárska Komora Slovenskawww.potravinari.sk

UPZPPS - Unia podnikatel'ov a zamestnávatel'ov v potravinárskom priemysle na Slovensku

SLOVENIAGZS - Zbornica kmetijskih in zivilskih podjetijwww.gzs.si

National Federations

AUSTRIAFIAA - Fachverband Lebensmittelindustriewww.dielebensmittel.at

BELGIUMFEVIA - Fédération de l'Industrie Alimentaire /Federatie Voedingsindustriewww.fevia.be

CZECH REPUBLICPKCR - Potravinárská Komora Ceské Republikywww.foodnet.cz

DENMARKFI - Foedevareindustrien www.fi.di.dk

ESTONIAETL - Eesti Toiduainetööstuse Liitwww.toiduliit.ee

FINLANDETL - Elintarviketeollisuusliittowww.etl.fi

FRANCEANIA - Association Nationale des IndustriesAlimentaireswww.ania.net

GERMANYBLL - Bund für Lebensmittelrecht undLebensmittelkunde www.bll.deBVE - Bundesvereinigung der DeutschenErnährungsindustrie www.bve-online.de

GREECEΣυνδεσµος Ελληνικων Βιοµηχανιων ΤροφιµωνFederation of Hellenic Food Industries

www.sevt.gr As of January 2009

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 35

35

Bakery

AIBI - International Association of Industrial Bakerywww.aibi-online.org

Beer

THE BREWERS OF EUROPEwww.brewersofeurope.org

Bottled Water

EFBW - European Federation of Bottled Waterwww.efbw.org

Breakfast Cereal

CEEREAL - European Breakfast Cereal Association

Broth & Soup

FAIBP - Federation of the Associations of the EUBroth and Soup Industries

Chocolate, Biscuits & Confectionery

CAOBISCO - Association of the Chocolate,Biscuit and Confectionery Industries of the EUwww.caobisco.com

Dairy Products

EDA - European Dairy Associationwww.euromilk.org

Dietetic Products

IDACE - Association of Dietetic Food Industries of the EUwww.idace.org

Fruit & Vegetable Juices

AIJN - Association of the Industry of Juices & Nectarswww.aijn.org

Fruit & Vegetable Preserves

OEITFL - Organisation of European IndustriesTransforming Fruit and Vegetableswww.oeitfl.org

Ice Cream

EUROGLACES - European Ice Cream Associationwww.euroglaces.eu

Intermediate Products for Bakery & Confectionary

FEDIMA - European Federation of theIntermediate Products Industries for the Bakeryand Confectionery Tradeswww.fedima.org

Margarine

IMACE - International Margarine Association ofthe Countries of Europewww.imace.org

Non-alcoholic Beverages

UNESDA - Union of European BeveragesAssociationwww.unesda-cisda.org

Oils

FEDIOL - The EU Oil and Proteinmeal Industrywww.fediol.be

Pasta

UNAFPA - Union of Organisations ofManufacturers of Pasta Productswww.unipi-pasta.org

Pet Food

FEDIAF - The European Pet Food Industrywww.fediaf.org

Processed Meat

CLITRAVI - Liaison Centre for the MeatProcessing Industrieswww.clitravi.com

Processed Potatoes

UEITP - European Association of PotatoProcessing Industries

Sauce & condiment

FIC - Federation of the Condiment and SauceIndustries

Snacks

ESA - European Snacks Associationwww.esa.org.uk

Soluble & Roasted Coffee

ECF - European Coffee Federationwww.ecf-coffee.org

Spices

ESA - European Spice Association

Starch

AAF - European Starch Industry Associationwww.aaf.eu.org

Sugar

CEFS - European Committee of SugarManufacturerswww.cefs.org

Tea & Herbal Infusions

EHIA - European Herbal Infusions Associationwww.ehia-online.org

ETC - European Tea Committeewww.etc-online.org

Vegetable Proteins

EUVEPRO - European Association ofManufacturers, Distributors and Users of VegetableProteins for Human Consumptionwww.euvepro.org

Yeast

COFALEC - The Bakery Yeast ManufacturersCommittee of the EUwww.cofalec.com

Sectors

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 36

Board of Directors

36

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF LARGE F&D COMPANIES (LIAISON COMMITTEE)

Mr G. KAYAERTVice-President Relations with EU Institutions, Nestlé

Mrs C. OADESPublic Affairs & Comm. Director, Coca-Cola

Sectors

Animal origin productsMr J. KLEIBEUKERSecretary General, EDAMr D. DOBBELAERE* Secretary General, CLITRAVI

1st transformation vegetalMr H. RIEUXCorporate Affairs Director, BUNGEMr. J-L. BARJOL*Secretary General, CEFS

2nd transformation liquidMs D. REINICHE President UNESDA, The Coca-Cola Company European Union GroupMr R.De LOOZ-CORSWAREM* Secretary General, The Brewers of Europe

2nd transformation solidMr D. ZIMMERSecretary General, CAOBISCOSubstitute*

Intermediary productsMr Y. GOEMANSPresident EUVEPRO, The Solae Company- Solae Europe S.A.Mr R. LENNE* President FEDIMA, Puratos

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEThe 13-member Executive Committee is responsible forpreparing Board meetings and executing its decisions. It takesthe lead in policy debates as and when the need arises.

Name representingMr Jean MARTIN President CIAA

Mr Peter BAKER UK (+ Vice-President CIAA)Mr Johan MARIHART Vice-President CIAAMrs Malgorzata SKONIECZNA CEECs (+ Vice-President CIAA)Mr Miroslav TOMAN CEECs (+ Vice-President CIAA)

Mr Michel DELBAERE Other countriesMr Mogens GRANBORG Other countriesMr Guido KAYAERT Liaison CommitteeMr Patrick O'QUIN FranceMr Piero PERRON ItalyMrs Dominique REINICHE 2nd Processing SectorsMr Henri RIEUX 1st Processing SectorsMr Alfredo SANFELIZ MEZQUITA SpainMr Heinz VON KEMPEN Germany

The Board of Directors is CIAA’s policy-making body. It defines the broad lines andstrategic direction of CIAA’s policies and priorities.

FRANCE

Mr P. O'QUIN

Director External Relations, Groupe Danone

Mr R. VOLUT

President, FICT

GERMANY

Ms S. LANGGUTH

Director, Südzucker AG

Mr H. von KEMPEN

Vorsitzender der Geschäftsführung,

Schwartauer Werke GmbH & Co.

GREECE

Mr I. YIOTIS

Vice-President SEVT, Yiotis S.A.

Mr E. KALOUSSIS*

President SEVT

HUNGARY

Mr A. BORODI

Executive Chairman, EFOSZ

Mr B. FISCHER*

CEO, Magyar Cukor Plc

IRELAND

Mr C. GORDON

Chief Executive, Glanbia Consumer Foods

Mr P. KELLY*

Director, FDII

ITALY

Mr P. PERRON

President, Heineken Italia

Dr L. SCORDAMAGLIA

CEO, Inalca JBS Spa

LATVIA

Ms L. KRASTINA

Executive Director, LPUF

Vacant*

AUSTRIA

Mr J. MARIHART

Vice-President CIAA

President FIAA & CEFS, AGRANA Beteiligungs/AG

Mr O. BLODER*

Director General, Unilever Austria GmbH

BELGIUM

Mr M. DELBAERE

Honorary President FEVIA, Crop’s NV

Mr J-P DESPONTIN*

President FEVIA, Spa Monopole SA

CZECH REPUBLIC

Mr M. TOMAN

President, PK CR-FFDI

Mr M. KOBERNA*

Director, PK CR-FFDI

DENMARK

Mr M. GRANBORG

Executive Vice-President, Danisco A/S

Mr O. L. JUUL*

Director, DI Fødevarer

ESTONIA

Mr A. ORAV

Vice-Chairman Board, Managing Director, Poltsamaa Felix

Ms S. POTISEPP*

Director, ETL

FIıNLAND

Mr K. SEIKKU

CEO, KHScan

Mr H. JUUTINEN*

Director General, ETL

President

Mr Jean MARTIN

LUXEMBOURGMr. A. CAGLIDirector European General Affairs, FerreroMr E. MÜLLER* President, FEDIL

THE NETHERLANDSMr D. TOETVice-President Public Affairs Food, UnileverMr Ph. den OUDEN* Director, FNLI

POLANDMs M. SKONIECZNAPresident PFPZ, Frito Lay Poland Sp. z.o.o.Mr A. GANTNER* Director General, PFPZ

PORTUGALMr J. HENRIQUESPresident FIPA, Mineracqua PortugalMr R. FONTES* Vice-President of the Board, Parmalat Portugal SA

ROMANIA

Ms D. CAVACHECorporate Affairs Manager, Kraft Foods

Mr V. PAVEL* Vice-President, ROMPAN

SLOVAKIA

Mr M. PAVELKAPublic Affairs & Communications Director,Coca-Cola Beverages Slovakia

Vacant

SLOVENIA

Mr I. BRICLChairman of the Management Board, ZITO D.D.

Ms T. ZAGORC* Director, GZS

SPAIN

Mr A. SANFELIZ MEZQUITASecretary General, Campofrio Alimentación

Mr J. CAMIN TORRENTS Vice-President FIAB, Nestle Espana SA

SWEDEN

Mr Per STENSTRÖM President, LI

Ms A. DREBER* Director General, LI

UNITED KINGDOM

Mr P. BAKERChairman & CEO, PB Services

Mr B. CLARKE Vice-P. & Area Director, Kraft Europe (*) Substitute As of January 2009

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 37

37

Committees & Expert Groups

Food and ConsumerPolicy Committee

■ Chairperson: Geoff Thompson (Danone/ANIA)

■ Steering GroupMichael Blass (FIAA)Andreas Kadi (Coca-Cola/UNESDA)Guido Kayaert (Nestlé/FEVIA)Helen Munday (FDF)Angelika Mrohs (BLL-BVE)Daniele Rossi (FEDERALIMENTARE)Dick Toet (Unilever/FNLI)Pilar Velázquez (FIAB)

■ Expert GroupsCONTAMINANTSSam Lalljie (Unilever)

PROCESS CONTAMINANTS GROUPRichard Stadler (Nestlé)

ADDITION OF NUTRIENTSMarta Baffigo (Kellogg's)

CLAIMSAndreas Kadi (Coca-Cola/UNESDA)

CONSUMER INFORMATIONAngelika Mrohs (BLL-BVE)

FOOD CONTACT MATERIALSJohn Horwood

BETTER REGULATIONDick Toet (Unilever/FNLI)

NANOTECHNOLOGYMike Knowles (Coca-Cola)

FOOD SAFETY MANAGEMENT & HYGIENEGunter Fricke (Nestlé) PDario Dongo (Federalimentare) VP

FOOD INGREDIENTSINTAKE DATA COLLECTIONADDITIVES CATEGORISATIONLynn Insall (FDF)Joy Hardinge (FDF)

INTERNATIONAL STANDARDSIrina du Bois (Nestlé/ECF)

NUTRITION POLICYMarta Baffigo (Kellogg's)

NOVEL FOODS/GMOSAgnès Davi (Groupe Danone/ANIA)

RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT & SCIENCE Daniele Rossi (FEDERALIMENTARE) PMichael Knowles (Coca-Cola/UNESDA) VP

Environment Committee

■ Chairperson: Pascal Greverath (Nestlé))

■ Steering GroupDavid Bellamy (FDF)Yves Buchsenschutz (Danone/ANIA)Thomas Ingermann (Kraft Foods)Joop Kleibeuker (EDA)Ann Nachtergaele (FEVIA)Jean-Pierre Rennaud (Danone)Teresa Luis Ruiz (FIAB)

■ Expert Groups

SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION & PRODUCTIONPascal Greverath (Nestlé)

CLIMATE CHANGEStephen Reeson (FDF)

INTEGRATED POLLUTION PREVENTION AND CONTROLL (IPPC)Thomas Senac (Roquette/AAF)

PACKAGINGVacant

REPORTINGThomas Ingermann (Kraft Foods)

WASTEJoop Kleibeuker (EDA)

Trade andCompetitivenessCommittee■ Chairperson: Ruth Rawling (Cargill)

■ Steering GroupDamiano Di Natale (Ferrero)Stefan Feit (BDSI, BLL-BVE)Bruno Guichart (FIAB)Peter Hofland (Cargill)Willem-Jan Laan (Unilever/IMACE)Susanne Langguth (Südzucker/BLL-BVE)Bénédicte Masure (EDA)Henri Rieux (Bunge)

■ Expert Groups

AGRICULTURAL POLICYVacant

IMPORT/EXPORT PROCEDURESDamiano Di Natale (Ferrero) PPeter Hofland (Cargill) VP

TRADE

Bénédicte Masure (EDA)

■ Task Force

BIOFUELS

Henri Rieux (Bunge) PWillem-Jan Laan (Unilever/IMACE) VP

Competitiveness Task Force

■ Coordinator

Murk Boerstra (FNLI)

Commercial Relations Task Force

■ Chairperson

Horacio González Alemán (FIAB)

Diet, Physical Activityand Health Task Force

■ Chairperson

Lyn Trytsman-Gray (Kraft Foods)

SUB-GROUP ON COMMUNICATION

Paul Fitzsimmons (Kellogg’s)

SUB-GROUP ON ADVERTISING AND MARKETING

Jeanne Murphy (Ferrero)

DIET MONITORING SUB-GROUP

Sylvie Charton (Mars/ANIA)Truus Huisman (Unilever)

DIET PRODUCT REFORMULATION WORKGROUP

Sarah Clisci (ANIA)

Delegates from national federations, European sector associations and companies, as well as expertson F&D form the CIAA's Committees and Expert Groups. They work together using their expertise tofollow various dossiers, analysing specific issues and propose to the Board of Directors on how toapproach and pursue a political solution.

As of January 2009

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 38

38

Information &Publications

Managing Environmental Sustainability inthe European Food & Drink Industries(2nd edition)

An important element of CIAA's work on sustainability is to share key environmentalissues affecting European food and drinkindustries with internal and external stakeholders. This publication highlightsissues, industry actions and future strategiesalong the food chain, including the areas ofraw materials, resource efficiency, waste,energy, water, packaging, transportation and sustainable consumption, among other topics. The report also intends to provideinspiration for continuous improvement by allfood and drink manufacturers across Europe,including small and medium-sized enterprises,by demonstrating through case studies howprotection of the environment makes sensefor both good corporate citizens and goodbusiness.

ETP Food for Life: Layman´s version ofETP Vision and Strategic ResearchAgenda (SRA)

This document is targeted to the generalpublic to present a summary of the two mainbrochures published by the ETP: the Visionpublished in July 2005 and the StrategicResearch Agenda published in September2007. This Layman's version outlines theobjectives and research priorities defined bythe ETP to enhance innovation in the agro-food sector.

European Technology Platform Food forLife: Implementation Action Plan

This Implementation Action Plan (IAP)explains how the research priorities thatwere identified in the Strategic ResearchAgenda (SRA) of the ETP Food for Life, canbe implemented most effectively. The IAP

focuses on the three multi-disciplinary KeyThrusts that were derived from the keyresearch challenges of the SRA, and whichreflect the most important priorities forEuropean investment. Like the SRA, it hasbeen subjected to stakeholders' consultationsand illustrates activities required by the ETPand its stakeholders to facilitate the processrequired to address these Key Thrusts. Whilethe SRA focused on topics and themes, thisIAP focuses on activities and actions.

CIAA review of key competitiveness indicators - 2008 report

The 2008 Report on the competitiveness ofthe food and drink industry presents first areview of key EU food and drink industrycompetitiveness indicators. The 2008 competitiveness review extends to both general economic indicators as well as food and drink industry specific indicators.It provides, where possible, a comparison ofkey EU data with the performance of foodand drink industries from other countries.

The indicators will be complemented at alater stage by policy recommendations,which will provide guidance on CIAA's objectives addressed to the members of the High Level Group.

The 2008 CIAA competitiveness reviewincludes, at this stage, the CIAA strategicvision on the food and drink industry's activities and the general requirements for itsdevelopment.

All publications are available for download fromCIAA’s website

CIAA: Information source onthe European food and drinkindustry

EUROPEAN TECHNOLOGYPLATFORMhttp://etp.ciaa.eu

'BALANCED DIETS, HEALTHYLIFESTYLE' WEBSITEhttp://www.active-lifestyle.eu

MANAGING ENVIRONMENTALSUSTAINABILITYhttp://envi.ciaa.eu

ALL YOU WANTED TO KNOWABOUT GDAS & NUTRITIONLABELLINGhttp://gda.ciaa.eu

Publications

Data and Trends 2008

The brochure for 2008 analyses the key structural data and trade figures for the periodup to 2007, highlighting in particular importantinformation and data on the role of SMEs inthe European food and drink sector, the globalfood trade, the growing importance of emergingcountries for European food and drink exports,consumption figures and habits, as well as theranking of leading food and drink companiesboth in Europe and internationally.

CIAA Memoranda to the EU Presidencies

At each rotation of the EU Presidency, CIAApublishes a summary of its positions onmajor EU legislative proposals and issuesduring the Presidency, and puts forward thechallenges facing the F&D industry. In 2008,CIAA issued its Memorandum to theSlovenian Presidency, as well as its newslim-line brochure outlining its main fourmain priorities to the French Presidency.

Electronic media

CIAAhttp://www.ciaa.eu

CIAA's website is the gateway to informationon the European food and drink industry.Broken down into a number of different areas,the portal covers a broad spectrum of issues,and seeks to provide users with relevant andup-to-date information, both quickly and easily.The site gives access to the latest food anddrink industry statistics, positions, pressreleases, highlights previous and upcomingevents, summarises important issues affectingthe EU F&D sector, and also acts as a portal toCIAA's other websites.

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 39

CIAA Secretariat

39

Economic Affairs Environmental Affairs CommunicationsConsumer Information,Diet & Health issues

Food Policy, Science and R&D

DirectorR. Feller

DirectorC. Tamandl

DirectorL. McCooey

DirectorS. Döring

DirectorB. Kettlitz

ManagerC. Thompson

ManagerM. Prieto Arranz

Manager & ETP SecretariatR. Mancia

Secretary / AssistantS. Margetis

ManagerE. Cogalniceanu

Junior ManagerM. Xipsiti

Secretary / AssistantM. Crooijmans

Senior ManagerE. Dollet

ManagerE. De Bleeker

Secretary / AssistantC. Stadion

EP ManagerK. Carson

Junior ManagerA. O'Connor

Junior ManagerK. Malinowska

Secretary / AssistantF. Haeyaert

Secretary / AssistantD. Nickel

Office ManagerR. Mynsberghe

Assistant Office ManagerJ. Maréchal

Director GeneralM. Frewen

As of March 2009

CIAA_RA_2008 UK 17/03/09 13:58 Page 40

CIAA AISBLAvenue des Arts 431040 BrusselsBelgium

Phone: +32.2.514 11 11Fax: +32.2.511 29 05E-mail: ciaa@ciaa.euwww.ciaa.eu

This report is printed on Novatech coated paper,

a paper produced from well-managed forests and

certified by the FSC, with vegetable based inks.

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