Make the CAP Healthy

On 16 June 2009, the European Commission expressed its ’extreme’ disappointment that details of all beneficiaries of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) have not been fully published in Germany. Under EU law, the deadline for publishing details of all recipients of EU funding was 30 April 2009.
The German Federal Government finally published its data on 16 June, but the state of Bavaria has decided not to publish. In these circumstances, the European Commission has no choice but to start (...)

French EU Presidency’s Conclusion EU’s agricultural future
On 20 November 2008, the Council met in order to discuss the reform of the CAP. After the meeting, the status of the document was understood as the Conclusions from the EU Agriculture Ministers. But, the decision by Latvia, Sweden and the UK not to back the document meant that the document was adopted not as conclusions of the EU’s Council of Ministers but as conclusions of the EU presidency, which carry significantly less clout. (...)

The European Commission, DG Agriculture, proposes a new School Fruit Scheme worth €90 million per year as the latest part of the ’Strategy for Europe on Nutrition, Overweight and Obesity and health related issues’.
European Commission (DG Agri) invites submission of posters for forthcoming conference on School Fruit Scheme
On 8 July 2008, the European Commission presented its proposal for the introduction of an EU-wide School Fruit Scheme (SFS).
In order to kick-start the linked (...)

On 8 July 2008, the European Commission adopted the new EU School Milk Scheme proposal, applying from August 2008. The Commission stated that this new EU School Milk Scheme will benefit a larger number of children and has increased attention with regards to a healthier diet and eating habits for children.
Background
On 26 September 2007, the Council adopted a package of measures that introduced a flat-rate subsidy for the European School Milk Scheme. This meant that for the first time, (...)

24 June 2008, the European Parliament Agriculture and Rural Development committee met to discuss the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) health check. Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, spoke to the committee and received questions.
Commissioner Boel opened by saying that in light of the current food crisis, CAP reform was very urgent. On the issue of food security, she said it must be viewed from a broader perspective. She stressed that the package on (...)

European Commission further modernises and streamlines the Common Agricultural Policy in response to increasing food prices. Reforms remove restrictions and standardise payments. Rural Development to play a larger part in European agriculture.
Mariann Fischer Boel (the EU agriculture commissioner) presented a reform package on the 20th of May, in a bid to not only reform the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) but also to slow down the soaring food prices.
The ’Health Check’ is aimed at (...)

Parliament wants more flexibility on CAP reform
A Parliament own-initiative report on Commission proposals to reform the EU’s common agricultural policy (CAP) says Member States need more flexibility to promote local sectors and to decide upon direct aid to provide a safety net in the event of a major crisis.
The report, adopted by an overwhelming majority (510 votes to 88, with 80 abstentions) insists on upholding the concept of a "sustainable, competitive and multifunctional agriculture". (...)

Under the umbrella of the STACS project, FP6-2005-Science-and-Society-19-044597, EPHA is organising a capacity building session on Nutrition and Health : Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) and its impact on health.
For more information on the STACS project, please visit STACS website
The Capacity Building Session on Nutrition and Health is an occasion for different stakeholders to deepen their understanding of the domain and to strengthen their capacities.
Chair of the session is Ms. Monika (...)

The Faculty of Public Health published in march 2007 a report on the impact of the EU common agricultural Policy on public health, titled “A CAP on health ?”.
The current obesity epidemic has put in the limelight the importance of diet on our health. The most significant determinant of food choice are price and availability. These two factors are partly regulated by the EU Common Agricultural Policy.
A new report issued by the Faculty of Public Health shows the consequences (...)

The public health community has kicked off work ahead of the Common Agriculture Policy reform in 2008-2009, in order to ensure that the health check is taken into account in the future CAP schemes : The North West of England Health Brussels Office (NWHBO) is searching for partners interested in working on Agriculture and Health, while the UK Faculty of Public Health has released a report entitled A CAP on Health ?
North West of England search for EU Partners - Achieving a healthy reform of (...)