Isabel García Tejerina expresses need for proper regulations on organic farming to meet consumer needs

On Tuesday, Isabel García Tejerina attended the Informal Council of EU Agriculture and Fisheries Ministers in Riga (Latvia), where discussions took place on the sustainability and growth of organic farming as a preliminary step towards reaching an agreement on the regulations for this type of farming.

In her speech, Isabel García Tejerina stressed that Spain has the largest area given over to organic farming in the European Union, at over 1.5 million hectares. She also stressed that Spain is especially strict in terms of demands and controls on unauthorised substances.

In this regard, the Spanish minister expressed the need to convey a message that guarantees legal certainty to producers and consumers. With this in mind, she added, Spain is willing to continue working constructively to try and reach an agreement at the Council meeting due to be held in June.

Development of organic farming

Furthermore, Isabel García Tejerina highlighted how the existence of common regulations has been the main instrument for creating a single market, an essential factor in the development of organic farming.

At the same time, the incorporation of specific subsidies for the promotion of organic farming into the eligible measures for rural development has been one of the main tools for the growth of this industry.

The Spanish minister also said that the existence of a common European logo and the implementation of promotion campaigns have helped encourage consumers to discover the qualities of these products and identify them easily.

At an international level, Isabel García Tejerina says it will be essential to guarantee an import regime based on reciprocal agreements governing the production conditions demanded from European producers.

Given the importance of the single market having common regulations, the Spanish minister believes it is essential to draft new regulations capable of resolving harmonisation discrepancies in key areas, such as the action taken following the detection of unauthorised substances or improvements to the control system.

Finally, the Spanish minister understands that maintaining the subsidies for organic farming will help encourage organic farming throughout Europe and therefore lower dependency on imports. She also believes other tools are necessary in this regard, such as promotion campaigns and support for R&D+i programmes.