Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament. Healthier animals and plants and a safer agri-food chain. A modernised legal framework for a more competitive EU

Ensuring a high level of health for humans, animals, and plants is a Treaty objective of the EU. Over time, the EU has built up a comprehensive body of law designed to prevent and manage risks to animal and plant health and the safety of the food chain at EU and national level. The law in these policy areas is enforced by means of a common set of rules on official controls to be carried out by the competent authorities in the EU Member States.

The legal framework which the EU has developed so far has proven, overall, to be effective in preventing and countering risks. However, the modern global market increasingly exposes the EU to new risks and constantly calls for innovation and competitiveness. This and the experience gained with EU law in this area, points to the need to simplify and update available instruments and to further integrate the approach across the different areas.

The Commission therefore conducted a revision of the current legal framework for animal health, plant health, plant reproductive material and official controls aimed mainly at increasing effectiveness, consistency and legal clarity in those areas. In doing so, it was seeking to foster the productivity, smooth functioning and accessibility of the internal market and to reinforce the EU’s competitiveness on a global scale. Thus, the review is ultimately contributing to delivering smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in line with the EU 2020 goals.

This Communication presents the resulting four legislative proposals in the four areas of animal health, plant health, plant reproductive material and official controls (the ‘review package’) and explains, for each of them, the current context, the rationale behind the package and the main improvements introduced.

EUR-Lex: COM(2013)264: Follow the progress of this communication through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2013:264:FIN

ESO: Background information: Smarter rules for safer food: Commission proposes landmark package to modernise, simplify and strengthen the agri-food chain in Europe http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-smarter-rules-for-safer-food-commission-proposes-landmark-package-to-modernise-simplify-and-strengthen-the-agri-food-chain-in-europe/

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