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Current results of the agricultural statistics presented by DESTATIS President Johann Hahlen
In May 2003, within the framework of the EC agricultural structure surveys, four years after the 1999 agricultural census, we again carried out a large-scale census of all agricultural and forestry holdings in Germany. Over 420 companies took part in the survey. The farm owners or managers provided information about the production structures and capacities of their farms as well as their economic and social circumstances. Today we will inform you in particular about the structure and profitability of the farms, the ongoing concentration processes in agriculture and the development of organic farming. The results have been prepared in advance and are therefore preliminary. 000. Fewer farms
In the last four years since the 1999 agricultural census, structural change in agricultural holdings has continued unabated. The adjustment process in German agriculture led to a further significant decrease in the number of farms from 472 in 000 to 1999 in 421. The number of farms fell by 400% in these four years.
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Protect the term “Münchner Weißwurst” exclusively for products manufactured in the city or in the district
The town hall SPD requests that the state capital enter the protection community Munich white sausage. The aim is to have the term “Münchner Weißwurst” protected by the German Patent and Trademark Office exclusively for products that have been produced in the city and district of Munich. At the same time, this is linked to the goal of ensuring the quality of the Munich white sausage, explains SPD parliamentary group leader and Wiesn city councilor Helmut Schmid. The protection association Münchner Weißwurst is turning against the Bavarian Butchers' Association, which has also submitted an application to the Patent and Trademark Office. According to this, the name “Münchner Weißwurst” should be used for products made in all of Old Bavaria.
Helmut Schmid: “Weißwurst belongs to Munich like no other food. That is why we see it as our duty to take care of the outstanding quality of the 'Münchner Weißwurst' and to protect the term from any misuse. The line is clear and simple: whoever orders 'Münchner Weißwurst' has to get exactly that on the plate. "
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Bundesbank study on the (T) euro
Hardly any economic and political event moved the population in Germany and the European Union as a whole as much as the introduction of euro cash on January 1, 2002. In practically all countries in the euro area, consumers believed they were seeing a sharp surge in inflation, and it was increasing press reports about excessive price increases. ## | n ##
Official statistics also showed that prices had risen in the vicinity of the introduction of euro cash, but by far not to the extent that the public perceived it. A large part of the price increases was not related to the introduction of the euro, but was caused by other factors such as particularly cold winter weather and higher taxes on energy, tobacco products and insurance. However, there were particularly noticeable price movements for some services. In addition, the price picture changed and the variety of prices increased.
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Hygiene tips for everything to do with fish
Fresh fish does not smell of fish but of sea water. The eyes are clear, transparent and plump, and the gills are bright red. The skin is shiny with a clear layer of mucus and the scales are tight. The fish meat is firm and with light pressure there is no depression. In addition, the fish in the counter should be sufficiently covered with ice and cooled. If the fish smells intensely of fish, this indicates that it has been stored for too long. The aid infodienst, Bonn, gives tips on how to handle and prepare fish at home so that the fish is freshly served at home. ## | n ##
Fish spoils relatively quickly. Bacteria can multiply quickly because the fish contains a lot of water and has loose connective tissue. It is best to eat the fish on the day of shopping. If this is not possible, you can keep fresh fish in the refrigerator for a maximum of one day. To do this, place it in a glass or porcelain bowl and cover it with cling film. It's coldest near the evaporator or on the glass plate. When preparing the fish, first wash the fish under running water and then dab it with kitchen paper. Today souring with vinegar or lemon is only a matter of taste. It used to be recommended to cover up an intense fishy smell. You should only add salt to the fish immediately before preparing it. Once cooked, you can keep fish in the refrigerator for a maximum of 3 days. Incidentally, smoked fish also belongs in the refrigerator and can be kept there for around two to four days. You should only freeze fish that are really fresh. Depending on the fat content, they can be kept in the freezer for two to eight months. Oily fish spoil faster than lean fish.
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European Handball Championship in Slovenia
Last year, the men's national handball team was awarded vice world championship laurels. It remains to be seen whether she will win the title again this year at the upcoming European Handball Championship (EM) from January 22nd to February 01st in Slovenia. The team around national coach Heiner Brand is definitely one of the favorites. Of course, QS - your certification mark for foodstuffs - will be at the start again. Because both in handball and in the QS scheme, team spirit and responsibility have top priority. The CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH has been the main sponsor of the German national handball team since January 2003 and has made the QS certification mark known to an audience of millions since then.
The German men already have to fight off tough competition in the preliminary round: The teams from Serbia & Montenegro, Poland and France are waiting here.
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CMA and ZMP show positive development for 2003
The market researchers from ZMP and CMA recorded a predominantly positive development in the purchasing volume of private German households in 2003. Not only meat, sausage and meat products are on a growth path, milk, sugar, fruit, vegetables and edible oil have also increased. These and other results are provided by the new brochure "Demand of Private Households for Food 2003 - Trends and Structures at a Glance", published by the CMA and ZMP at the International Green Week in Berlin. The calculations are based on data from GfK's household panels. The values for November and December are not yet available. Therefore, they are estimated taking seasonal influences into account and integrated into the extrapolation of the annual result. Growth course in shopping behavior
After the BSE shock and the uncertainty about the euro, the purchasing volume for meat at + 3% and sausage and meat products at + 2% is back on a growth path. Most dairy products also grew. The hot summer paid off with a double-digit increase, especially for milk beverages, but yoghurt is also growing by five percent. Fruit and vegetables - whether fresh or canned - are also 2% up on the previous year. Edible oil recorded 3% volume growth, and sugar even grew by 4%.
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Nüssel calls for new alliances of the agricultural economy in Europe of the 25th
"The tactic often prevailing in Germany of almost daily changing of marketing partners is only successful under the current structural deficits in slaughtering and cutting. explained Manfred Nüssel, President of the German Raiffeisen Association, at the DLG winter conference on the subject of "The New Europe - Perspectives for the Agricultural Industry".
In the European Union, the structures in the processing and marketing of meat in particular are fundamentally changing. Groups with a European focus are increasingly setting the tone in supraregional meat marketing. "If the German meat industry wants to survive in competition, it has to adapt quickly to the requirements of the market and the strategies of its foreign competitors," explained the Raiffeisen President. For example, B. the entire Danish pig industry on an integrated sector concept. This industry-wide concept includes costly investments in rationalization and expansion in animal husbandry as well as in the slaughterhouse and processing sector. This also includes joint investments and cooperations between companies in the sector in research and development, advice and information, as well as in sales and export.
"In Germany, the way we deal with the division of labor has so far been mainly determined by competition and less by partnership," criticized Nüssel. Corporate responsibility usually ends at the interface to the next processing stage. All actors have the same thing Addressees: the consumer! These similarities have so far hardly been reflected in day-to-day activities. There is an urgent need for a partnership in the "food value chain". All sectors of agricultural production and all stages of production, processing and marketing must be networked. "The food trade should also be integrated into this association in the sense of a value-added partnership - as has already been done in the QS scheme," emphasized the Raiffeisen President. EU expansion to the east: growth spurt for the agricultural markets
The enlargement of the EU on May 1, 2004 will result in far-reaching shifts in competition. The market for agricultural products and nutritional goods will experience a significant growth spurt as a result of the eastward expansion. This changed competitive situation and the resulting opportunities, in particular, should make consistent use of the German agricultural industry in view of its geographical location, said Nüssel.
The Europeanization of the marketing structures is already well advanced in the sales markets that are important for German agriculture. "This is the logical consequence of Europeanization in the food retail sector. Different standards in competition policy at national and EU level are therefore no longer up-to-date and no longer acceptable," demanded Nüssel. Many German companies - this does not only apply to agriculture and agriculture - are aware of Europeanization. The willingness to implement corresponding entrepreneurial orientations must continue to grow. German companies are not fundamentally at a disadvantage in this process. However, important competitors such as Denmark and the Netherlands are in a better starting position because the structures there were consolidated early on and largely without any influence from antitrust law.
However, according to Nüssel, these deficits in antitrust law must not distract from the need for action and implementation problems that exist in agriculture. Efforts to improve the international competitiveness of the food industry in Germany must therefore aim at increasing efficiency in the entire food value chain. The focus on promising market segments and the pursuit of cost leadership is only a guarantee of success and survival if the structures in processing and marketing enable trading on an equal footing with the food trade. "This balancing act can only be achieved by further bundling of forces. The alliances that are currently developing are going exactly in this direction. At the European level, many - according to previous ideas, unconventional - promising cooperations and alliances are emerging", explained the DRV -President at the DLG winter conference in Berlin.
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The organic food company Alnatura is recalling baby jars of the “carrots with potatoes and beef” variety. This only applies to jars with the best before dates 20.08.2005/22.08.2005/03.09.2005, 18/20/XNUMX and XNUMX/XNUMX/XNUMX. The meat weights of the jars are XNUMX and XNUMX grams respectively.
The reason for the recall: In these three jar batches, organic beef was processed from two animals that were slaughtered in North Rhine-Westphalia when they were just over 30 months old. Their meat had been approved by the Herford Veterinary Office, but had not been tested for BSE. This was the result of a comparison carried out by the authorities of the cattle herd register, slaughter data, meat release at slaughterhouses and BSE tests. As a precaution, Alnatura has taken the jars off the market.
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Cattle processed without a BSE test - meat was approved by the authorities
During the subsequent review of BSE tests in North Rhine-Westphalia, two organic cattle were also discovered for which no BSE tests had been carried out due to the failure of the veterinary authorities.
The 29 and 30 month old animals were released for consumption by the authorities and processed by Sunval Nahrungsmittel GmbH in August and September 2003.
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Sonnleitner criticizes the marginalization of quality products
The chairman of the Federal Association of the German Food Industry, Dr. Peter Traumann, and the President of the German Farmers' Association (DBV), Gerd Sonnleitner, agreed at the opening press conference of the International Green Week 2004 in Berlin that the "greed is cool culture" could not be a solution for a country that one of the richest in the world. Declaring greed as a social virtue and looking for economic prospects in it is the wrong way to take advantage of the opportunities of an emerging economic upswing. Rather, the aim of industry, trade and agriculture should be to move away from cheap stealth and towards a quality and service offensive.
This offensive should make it clear that the agriculture and food industry offers quality products that make an important contribution to a good attitude to life and thus have a task beyond mere nutrition. Discount and price battles offer no prospects, neither for trade and industry, nor for consumers, stressed Traumann. By discount battles, consumers would be unsettled and would just wait for the upcoming even cheaper offer and leave the goods on the shelf for the time being. The discounters are a successful sales type that has its place in the market, stressed Traumann. But there should also be alternatives for consumers, on which industry and trade would have to work intensively.
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Joint statement by the working group
The representatives of the QS working group “Fresh Fruit and Vegetables” have spoken out in favor of continuing the integration of the fruit and vegetables product area into QS Qualität und Sicherheit GmbH. This is the result of the deliberations of representatives of the Federal Committee for Fruit and Vegetables, the Federal Association of Producer Organizations for Fruit and Vegetables, the food retail trade and the CMA on January 12, 2004 in Hamburg. The QS management has agreed to continue to support the work of the fruit and vegetable sector.
In contrast, the representatives of the German Fruit Trade Association and the Federal Association of German Fruit Trade Companies decided in December not to pursue the work on the QS scheme “Fresh Fruit and Vegetables” for the time being. The members of the working group regret this decision, especially since the previous joint development of the QS system for this product area was constructive and future-oriented. The working group will continue to inform the two associations about the progress of the work and is open to continuation of the successful cooperation at any time.
