/ world today news/ At the meeting of the Commission for Agriculture and Development of Rural Regions, Momchil Nekov appealed for investments in a closed cycle of production in the mountainous regions, for a more flexible regulatory framework for the creation of producer organizations in them, as well as for more clarity around the label “mountain product” during a debate on the EU’s mountain region cohesion policy.
Momchil Nekov called during yesterday’s meeting of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Parliament to facilitate the rules for registration of an organization of producers from mountainous regions. “These areas often have limited conditions and creating such organizations in them is difficult. A more flexible approach would serve as an incentive for unification, with which the producers from the mountainous regions would be less exposed to unfair trade practices,” said the young MEP, who is the rapporteur of the Socialists on the matter in the relevant committee of the European Parliament.
Agriculture is a key economic sector for the mountain regions of the EU. However, the economic opportunities of these regions are often limited due to factors such as distance from economic centers of the countries, lack of good infrastructure and harsher climatic conditions compared to other regions. For this reason, Momchil Nekov believes that in the European and national strategies for the development of these regions, priority should be given to investments in productions that have the potential to close the production cycle – for example, meat and milk production. At the EU level, animal husbandry provides about 54% of the commercial turnover in mountain farms, with nearly half of this – 28% of the entire turnover provided by the dairy sector, 16% by the meat processing sector, followed by beekeeping. Through the cohesion funds, but also from the national budgets of the member states themselves, investments should be directed to these industries, the Bulgarian MEP believes.
During the discussion, Momchil Nekov also drew attention to the voluntary label “mountain product”. It is part of the schemes for the quality of agricultural products and food, and unlike other labels, such as those for Geographical Indications, it does not enjoy the same level of legal protection. In 2014, the Commission proposed a delegated act which added the conditions under which a product of plant or animal origin, including honey, can be labeled as mountain. A month ago, Momchil Nekov sent a written question to Commissioner Hogan regarding the legislation for this voluntary designation. Nekov asked the Commissioner for Agriculture whether the Member States can themselves determine the rules by which the control of the products labeled “mountain product” is carried out based on what is already laid down in the delegated regulation, since such provisions are missing in the current form of the text.
The agricultural committee is expected to vote its opinion on the subject at the end of February.
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