The charity Rainforest Foundation UK and the British magazine Ethical Consumer assigned more than 70 types of candy Easter eggs an “ethical score” from one to 20 based on whether their company used palm oil, makes substantial policy statements, and are a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

Acrylamide is a chemical compound that typically forms in starchy food products such as potato crisps, chips, bread, biscuits and coffee, during high-temperature processing (above 120°), including frying, baking and roasting.

"We can with a great probability say that there is a link between food products which contain acrylamide and cancer," Jørgen Schlundt, director of DTU's National Food Institute, told Danish TV.

The so-called ‘Dalligate’ investigation took an unexpected turn on Thursday (21 March) when the OLAF stood accused of using illegal means in its enquiry.

Dalli was forced to resign as EU health commissioner in October 2012 after an investigation connected him with an attempt to influence EU tobacco legislation.

>> Read: Dalli resignation row turns to war of words with Barroso

In its opinion, published on Wednesday (20 March), the EFSA's Scientific Committee underlined that not all endocrine active substances have a adverse effect on the hormone system and that a distinction needs to be made between those that do and those that don't.

The EU's new legislation on medical devices was debated in Parliament during a workshop hosted by the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group on Tuesday (19 March).

Dagmar Roth-Behrendt, a German MEP who is in charge of steering the legislation through Parliament, said she will propose a centralised approval system to make medical devices safer for patients.

Britta Reimers, a German liberal MEP, was among a number of lawmakers debating the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) who drew on the surpluses of the past to oppose the revival of quotas and, in the case of grape production, limits on how many vines can be cultivated.

“History has demonstrated that we have made mistakes and that we have seen things go wrong,” she told the Parliament on Tuesday (12 March).

Endocrine disruptors have been linked to increase in cases of impaired sperm quality, early onset of puberty, certain cancers and other disorders.

MEPs said current EU rules should be examined with a view to updating or proposing new legislation to regulate those substances by June 2015 at the latest.

The resolution was adopted yesterday (14 March) in Strasbourg by 489 votes to 102, with 19 abstentions. It is legally non-binding, meaning that it does not introduce new obligations on companies or EU member states.

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Anna Maria Corazza Bildt

Anna Maria Corazza Bildt

Wed, 2012-07-04 10:02

• health

Anna Maria Corazza Bildt is a Swedish Christian Democrat, MEP in the European Parliament’s European People's Party group and rapporteur on the EU's Services Directive. She spoke to EurActiv's Marc Hall. This interview was edited into a shorter form.

Tell us about the Services Directive…