Coiste Eacnamaíoch agus Sóisialta na hEorpa
Ní fhéadfaimis maireachtáil gan bhia agus is cuid lárnach de chultúr na hEorpa é. Mar sin féin, tá tionchar mór ag an mbia a ithimid, na bealaí ina dtáirgtear é agus an méid a chuirtear amú ar shláinte an duine, ar acmhainní nádúrtha agus ar an tsochaí ina hiomláine:
Gairm chun gnímh agus chun athruithe a dhéanamh is ea géarchéim COVID-19. Léiríodh ón bpaindéim nach féidir talamh slán a dhéanamh de bhia a fháil ‘ón bhfeirm go dtí an forc’ agus léiríodh idirnascthacht na ngníomhaithe agus na ngníomhaíochtaí ar fud an chórais bhia. Tá slabhraí soláthair atá cothrom, tíosach ar acmhainní, cuimsitheach agus inbhuanaithe de dhíth níos mó ná riamh in earnáil iomlán na talmhaíochta agus an bhia chun go bhfreastalófar go cothrom ar leas na saoránach, na bhfeirmeoirí, na n-oibrithe agus na ngnólachtaí.
Tá CESE ar thús cadhnaíochta le blianta beaga anuas maidir le beartas bia inbhuanaithe agus cuimsitheach a iarraidh. Tá cur chuige comhtháite sistéamach den sórt sin bunriachtanach chun dul i ngleic leis na dúshláin iomadúla idirnasctha a mbíonn tionchar acu ar chórais bhia; chun inbhuanaitheacht eacnamaíoch, comhshaoil agus shoch-chultúrtha a bhaint amach; chun comhtháthú agus comhleanúnachas a áirithiú ar fud réimsí beartais (amhail talmhaíocht, comhshaol, sláinte, oideachas, trádáil, geilleagar, teicneolaíocht, etc.); agus chun comhar a chur chun cinn ar fud na leibhéal rialachais.
During its section meeting of 22 November 2023, the NAT section held a debate on food speculation as a follow up of its opinion on "Food price crisis: the role of speculation and concrete proposals for action in the aftermath of the Ukraine war".
Fair prices for both farmers and consumers and truthful and transparent information are essential if the primary sector and consumers are to play their key role in guaranteeing strategic autonomy in European food production. This sovereignty must be in line with the European Green Deal's Farm to Fork strategy, which requires an adjustment of current food policies.
Inaugural speech by Séamus Boland, President of the Civil Society Organisations' Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)
Conference on 'EU food sovereignty: the role of agriculture, fisheries and consumers', Santiago de Compostela, Spain, 26 September 2023
At the request of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU, in the opinion on Food security and sustainable food systems adopted at its plenary session on 19 January 2022, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) identified the key levers for sustainable and competitive EU food production and for reducing dependence on imports while increasing the EU's protein autonomy.
Strengthening local and regional food production and processing within the EU and guaranteeing decent working conditions for all workers in agriculture and the wider food sector are important objectives in seeking to improve the sustainability of the European food supply chain. Other aspects of key importance to sustainability are fair international trading practices, encouraging more women and young people into the farming sector, and structured stakeholder involvement and dialogue.
Extraordinary meeting of the Diversity Europe Group in the context of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU and the Conference on the Future of Europe on 29 November 2021
Recent events caused by COVID-19, extreme weather due to climate disruption, cyber-attacks and Brexit demonstrate the need to rethink priorities and improve the resilience and sustainability of EU food systems by reinforcing its autonomy. Food security is not a given for many EU citizens.
On World Sustainable Gastronomy Day, the EESC stresses the importance of setting the sustainability bar high on how the world should aspire to feed itself in the coming decades. It is critical to take into account where ingredients come from, how food is grown and how it gets from farms to our forks, and to carry out the urgent transformations needed to achieve more sustainable food systems. All citizens and stakeholders across all food chains, in the EU and elsewhere, should benefit from a just and inclusive transition, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic downturn.
A statement by Andreas Thurner, newly elected president of the Thematic Group on Sustainable Food Systems, on sustainable, healthy, inclusive and fair food systems and the specific priorities for his mandate.
In 2021, UN Secretary-General António Guterres will convene a Food Systems Summit as part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. The Summit will focus on the the fact that we all must work together to transform the way the world produces, consumes and thinks about food.
