DBV: The economic mood in agriculture remains very depressed

There is no sign of an improvement among German farmers either in the current mood or in their assessment of the future. This is the result of the current agricultural economic barometer from December 2003. The agricultural economic barometer newly presented by the German Farmers' Association (DBV) shows a very low value of only 2000 in December 100 in relation to the reference year 2003 (corresponds to 51). In the future, the agricultural economic barometer will provide information in a condensed form on the economic mood in agriculture and will be updated quarterly. It consists of an assessment of the current situation and future expectations of the farmers. Economic situation

Farmers rated the current economic situation at 3,50, which is almost unchanged compared to the previous survey of September 2003, which was 3,52 (grading scale from 1= very good to 5= very unfavourable). Farmers in north-west Germany assess their situation less favorably. There are also significant differences between the farm types: 14 percent of farms with a focus on arable farming give a good or very good rating, 9 percent of dairy cattle or cattle farmers and only 4 percent of processing farms. Conversely, 64 percent of the processing companies and 43 percent of the specialized arable farmers, dairy cattle and cattle farmers rate their situation as unfavorable or very unfavorable. The contractors assess their economic situation consistently more favourably.

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Minister Backhaus: Center for fish processing in Sassnitz pays off for fishermen

The fishermen in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have successfully started the herring season. The very good quality of the spring herring with numbers of 4 to 7 herring per kilogram and daily catches of 15 to 50 tons of herring make the fishermen look to the 2004 season with optimism. "The quota allocation of 15.800 tons of herring for the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania fishery forms a solid basis for the 2004 fishing season," says Dr. Till Backhaus (SPD), Minister for Food, Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries.

With the start of production at the new fish processing center in Sassnitz-Mukran, fishermen can market their fish directly on site this year. The herring fishery is also supported by funding measures from the state and the European Union as part of the "Herring fishery" pilot project. Last year, the state and the EU invested a total of 1,3 million euros, which is made available directly to the individual fishermen, fisheries cooperatives and producer organizations for the implementation of specific measures.

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Society, politics and the food industry have to deal with the health policy problem of the increasing prevalence of obesity in the population. As early as 1998, figures published by the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin showed that 67% of adult men and 52% of adult women are overweight and even pathologically overweight, namely 18% of men and 21% of women. The World Health Authority (WHO) estimates that by 2040 around half of the population in the western industrialized countries will be morbidly overweight.

So it is not surprising that an overweight society also has a high proportion of overweight children. Already in the 5-7 year old children approx. 23% are overweight, in the 9-11 year old even 40%. Obese children and adolescents often suffer from adult diseases (e.g. spinal disc disease, increased insulin and blood lipid levels, high blood pressure, diabetes). In addition, there are psychosomatic problems such as dissatisfaction with one's own body, social rejection, teasing at school, low self-esteem, etc.

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Japan bans imports of poultry from Southeast Asia

Japan's government today, Thursday, imposed a ban on poultry imports from Thailand after three patients were screened for possible avian flu, reports BBC-Online http://news.bbc.co.uk. In the meantime, at least five people in Vietnam are said to have died of the disease.

Thailand's government first tried to downplay the risk of avian flu, but has since enacted general rules to prevent the infection. Japan is the main importer of chicken meat from Thailand. According to the Japanese government, there is still no case of infection on the island, but the BBC reports that one cannot be ruled out.

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Action plan against price cuts through trade and EU agricultural reform

The existence of dairy farmers in the European Union is threatened. In addition to the drastic price cuts for dairy products as part of the reform of European agricultural policy, the aggressive price war among discounters is increasing the price pressure on milk and dairy products. In this difficult environment, it is increasingly difficult for dairies to achieve fair product prices that cover the costs of milk production, states the German Farmers' Association (DBV). This means that milk prices run the risk of falling to such a low level that a significant increase in structural change among milk producers would be a bitter consequence.

In order to counteract this negative development for the entire dairy industry and the grassland regions, the French Dairy Farmers Association (FNPL), the Belgian Farmers Association (Boerenbond), the Dutch Farmers Association (LTO) and the German Farmers Association (DBV) are involved in the Green Week in Berlin Action plan to stabilize milk prices has been adopted. The focus of this action plan is the formation of fair prices at all levels of the food chain. The implementation and expansion to other European countries are currently being discussed intensively. The dairies should be involved in this decision-making process, as only a strong dairy industry can provide an appropriate counterbalance to the discounters and food retailers.

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From dog chips to carcass disposal

The Federal Veterinary Office (FVO) has completely revised the Ordinance on the Disposal of Animal Waste (VETA) and brought it into line with EU law. This is to guarantee a smooth trade in animals and animal products with EU partners. The hearing on the revised ordinance begins today. In the same package, the Federal Department of Economic Affairs is also putting changes to the Animal Diseases Ordinance (TSV), the Ordinance on the Import, Transit and Export of Animals and Animal Products (EDAV) and the Meat Inspection Ordinance (FUV) for discussion. The hearing lasts until March 1, 2004. 
 
In line with EU law, animal by-products are now divided into three categories. Category 1 products must be incinerated, category 2 products can be used as fertilizer or for biogas production and category 3 products, the lowest risk products, can be fed to pets, among other things. In principle, this should enable further use of animal by-products, for example for energy generation, without loosening the restrictions imposed on account of BSE.

The draft of the Animal Disease Ordinance provides for the identification of dogs by means of a microchip implanted under the skin or a tattoo. By the end of 2004, all dogs in Switzerland should be marked and registered in a database. In order to facilitate controls, a dog ID card with data on vaccinations, diseases and the origin of the animal is also issued. The marking will make it easier to clarify after biting accidents, epidemic outbreaks or the search for escaping dogs.

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Müller: "The consumer has a right to know where and how a food was produced and processed"

The Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv) has called for new approaches in food labeling. "The old-style food labeling is in a dead end", says vzbv board member Prof. Dr. Edda Mueller. "We need a realignment with the goals: expressiveness, comprehensibility, reliability and credibility of the labeling", said Edda Müller at the consumer policy forum of the vzbv on the occasion of the Green Week. In order for consumers to make their contribution to the agricultural turnaround through conscious purchasing decisions and thus to be able to meet their responsibility, they need comprehensive and understandable information.

"The consumer has the right to know how high the proportion of individual food components is, whether they contain allergenic substances or where and how a food was produced and processed." A study commissioned by the vzbv confirmed that consumers actually demand this additional information. Clear, honest labeling is a prerequisite for high product quality to be worthwhile for both producers and consumers.

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Commission approves aid for agricultural marketing organization CMA (Germany)

The European Commission has authorized Germany to pay the Centralen Marketing-Gesellschaft der deutschen Agrarwirtschaft (CMA) a total of EUR 100 million a year in aid. The CMA is a state-controlled company that is entrusted with the sales promotion and marketing of German agricultural products. The approved measure also includes aid for the Central Market and Price Reporting Unit (ZMP). The latter receives EUR 9 million annually for its activities in the field of market research and market observation. The duration of the aid scheme is five years.

The activities of the CMA and the ZMP primarily serve companies in the agro-food industry who benefit from joint advertising measures, collective marketing and market reports as well as market research measures and can take part in training measures, competitions, trade fairs and exhibitions.

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Visitors "taste" the CMA country hall!

At the halfway point of the 69th Green Week in Berlin, visitor interest in regional specialties from the federal states continued. The joint show of the federal states under the motto "Marketplace for connoisseurs - taste the diversity of the regions" is again a magnet for the public under the radio tower this year. Most of the trade fair visitors came to Hall 20 on the first five days of the fair and enjoyed the numerous regional specialties and delicacies on offer.

Brochures with product information and recipes are particularly in demand: after five days at the trade fair, the CMA reports more than 100.000 brochures with cooking recipes and product information that have been issued free of charge. Information about milk, cheese, meat and fruit is particularly in demand. Brochures for children with information about agricultural products are also well received.

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Experts discussed opportunities and benefits in Berlin

 "We want to know what potential the technology of an electronic animal file has for traceability and process documentation and can therefore be used for communication," said Martin Albers, Development Marketing Department, explaining the commitment of the CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH at the presentation the first results of the project. Electronic animal files are standardized files that contain all the information about the animal, its life and its owners and are therefore intended to ensure traceability.

The CMA hopes that the position of the producers can be strengthened by electronic animal files: "With this technology, sales can be secured, producer groups can position themselves and thus achieve a unique position." Together with the participants in the value chain, it should be checked what can be implemented in practice. The Development Marketing department draws on a wealth of experience, as numerous industry solutions have already been developed in current and past projects. One example of this is the project: "Information and management systems in the German meat industry".

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Acquittal for the sausage: So far there are no conclusive findings that nitrite curing salt, which is used in the preparation of cooked sausages and many other meat products, increases the risk of cancer in humans. Carcinogenic nitrosamines can be formed from nitrite and amines under certain conditions. The amounts of nitrite absorbed by cured meat products are so small compared to nitrite from other sources that they only play a subordinate role in our current consumption habits.

This is the assessment made by scientists from the Federal Institute for Meat Research (now: Federal Research Institute for Nutrition and Food) in Kulmbach after evaluating the available specialist literature and especially after critically analyzing a recently published report that suggested such a connection.

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