Agrifood news from around Europe

CROATIA
More than 50 million bees have been found poisoned in the northern county of Međimurje, which borders Hungary. As a result, County Prefect Matija Posavec declared a natural disaster for a part of Međimurje county on Monday (15 June). Veterinary inspectors and forensic scientists are looking into what caused all these deaths. EURACTIV Croatia’s Karla Junicic has the full story. (Karla Junicic | EURACTIV.hr).

UK
Farming organisations from across the EU have joined the UK National Farmers Union (NFU) in its call for an urgent breakthrough in trade talks in order to establish a UK/EU free trade agreement. Read more here. (Natasha Foote | EURACTIV.com)

GERMANY
The German Ethics Council has criticised Agriculture Minister Julia Klöckner over animal welfare. In early June, Klöckner attempted to pass a draft bill that would have allowed farmers to continue keeping pigs in small metal cages for the foreseeable future, despite rulings that mandate improving animal treatment in agriculture and slaughterhouses. However, the bill did not pass, after states with Greens in their government refused to agree to the compromise. (Sarah Lawton | EURACTIV.de)

AUSTRIA 
The recently announced stimulus plan includes significant relief for Austrian farmers. “With €400 million in tax relief for agriculture and investments in sustainable and climate-friendly forestry, we are launching one of the largest packages of measures in recent years for this sector,” said Agriculture Minister Elisabeth Köstinger at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday (16 June). These measures will be implemented retroactively to begin as of 1 January 2020. (Sarah Lawton | EURACTIV.de)

FRANCE
The proposals of the French EESC, which has been working on the issue of generational renewal in the agricultural sector, have been the subject of debate within the agricultural unions, with opinions differing on how best to promote the farming profession. FNSEA and the Young Farmers question the idea of extending the “Young Farmers” allocation to 50 years of age, which they say would risk diluting the amount of aid for young farmers. But the Confédération Paysanne supports the idea of extending the help to include those that are older and want to enter the profession. (EURACTIV.fr)

IRELAND
The Irish Farmers’ Association’s grain chairperson, Mark Browne released a statement on Tuesday (June 16), describing the effect of drought on crops. Browne commented that recent rains have been too little too late for many crops and how many growers will have significant yield reductions while in other situations, entire crops are a write-off. He said that “the situation is particularly critical right up through the midlands and into the east and north-east where growers, in some cases, have practically closed the gates on crops which may not be worth harvesting.” (Natasha Foote | EURACTIV.com)

POLAND
Despite rainfall in recent days, agricultural drought in Poland continues in 9 out of 16 regions. This affects food prices, which in May were 6.5% higher than in the corresponding period of 2019 according to the Central Statistical Office data. Fruits are up to 27% more expensive. The Ministry of Agriculture plans to retain 30% of rainwater in the coming years, but currently, it only retains around 6%. (Mateusz Kucharczyk| EURACTIV.pl)

ITALY
Meat production slumped in Italy in the midst of the COVID-crisis, the latest data from the bloc’s statistic office Eurostat showed. In March, Italian slaughterhouses decreased their production volume by 41.5% for beef, by 24% for pork meat and by 10.9% for veal compared to the same period in the previous year (Gerardo Fortuna | EURACTIV.com)