This Friday 1st March, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture, David Clarinval, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Labour, Pierre-Yves Dermagne, and the Secretary of State for Consumer Protection, Alexia Bertrand, met for the second plenary session of the agri-food taskforce to agree on a list of short-term measures to support Belgian farmers.
As a reminder, following the taskforce's first meeting on 9 February, it was decided to work in working groups on three themes:
- The legal aspect concerning existing mechanisms for contractualising trade relations between the links in the chain;
- The economic aspect, objectifying price and margin trends in the agri-food chain, following the Price Observatory study;
- Awareness of local products and labelling.
These working groups met and constructive discussions were held in each of them. During the taskforce meeting, the conclusions of the various working groups were presented by the FPS Economy. The two ministers and the Secretary of State then proposed an action plan, certain measures of which will still need to be approved by the government.
A first measure concerns the development of indicators for fair and transparent relations in the agri-food chain. Existing indicators will be refined and expanded, and new indicators will be established. Thresholds will also be set per sector, based on a “tunnel” model. When the Price Observatory detects that a set threshold has been exceeded, it will trigger an alert mechanism. The chain consultation body and/or members of the sector agreements will then be required to meet quickly to provide appropriate responses.
The development of indicators calls for other measures:
- the organisation of sector bodies, with support from the FPS Economy, which will play a facilitating role. This is a self-regulatory approach, supported by the chain links, based on the Belpotato model already implemented during this legislature. To ensure their sector functions properly, the parties will thus be able to agree on a Code of Conduct, a guide to good practice and standard clauses for their contracts. This sector-by-sector work is essential to take account of the specific features of each one.
- strengthening the Price Observatory is important, given the tasks assigned to it.
- cooperation with the Regions and agricultural representatives for data collection will be arranged.
- Also in this drive for transparency, the Price Observatory's studies on price and margin transmission will be refined.
Another measure concerns the strengthening of the ban on selling at a loss. Farmers are asking to sell at a price that reflects the fair value of their products. A specific clause on selling at a loss will be added for producers on the UTP (unfair trade practices) grey list. This addition means selling at a loss will not be banned where the parties agree, since in some cases it may be economically preferable to sell at a loss rather than destroy the production. This applies, for example, to perishable goods or agricultural products whose price can fluctuate, such as cereals.
It was proposed to move forward on another package of measures that can be adopted quickly by royal decree, but which still require consultation with all links in the chain, including consumers. This involves banning further unfair trading practices, to better balance the negotiating power with farmers:
- the ban on abusive delisting, to prevent supermarkets from using this as a means of threatening to remove suppliers' products from their shelves in order to impose excessive demands on them;
- the ban on imposing compensation and fines automatically and without justification, to prevent an operator from having to pay automatic penalties without being able to justify or defend itself;
- the ban on refusing to renegotiate a contract when the seller is affected by unforeseeable circumstances. This measure will provide better protection for farmers affected by unforeseen events such as natural disasters.
In addition, the Economic Inspectorate has committed to strengthening Economic Inspectorate checks on the labelling of foodstuffs and compliance with mandatory origin labelling. Furthermore, in the coming weeks the Inspectorate will make it easier to file anonymous complaints, which has been identified as a very significant obstacle to the reports that guide investigators' work.
In addition to the legislative initiatives and economic analysis of the figures, the Taskforce has also decided to better promote our Belgian products through support for the promotion and marketing of Belgian food products. This ambition goes hand in hand with a proper definition of the “Belgian product” and with an obligation to comply with correct labelling to properly inform consumers.
A series of measures at every level
At European, federal and regional level alike, tax and administrative simplification measures have been taken to address farmers' demands, and significant progress has already been made.
As a reminder, at the initiative of David Clarinval, the Minister of Finance is proposing to abolish the obligation to register rental payments (farm leases) paid as business expenses by farmers. At the end of December, the Chamber had adopted a law containing various tax provisions. One of the articles provided for additional obligations for people wishing to deduct rent as a business expense for tax purposes. This represented a heavy additional administrative burden for our farmers, who would now have had to provide detailed information on owners, plots and the location of rented properties. The government has found a strong solution for farmers, which consists of not requiring them to file additional declarations.
Work continues to provide short, medium and long-term responses.
David Clarinval, Federal Minister of Agriculture: “After the European level on Monday and the measures adopted at regional level, today it was up to the federal level to respond to the demands of the farming movement. Our farmers have important and legitimate demands. They want a decent income from their activities. I took the initiative to relaunch this taskforce with the aim of guaranteeing concrete and swift results to meet this demand. In three weeks, considerable work has been done, and it will continue. We have provided a first set of responses to the concerns expressed by the farming world, which guarantee the smooth functioning of the agri-food chain as a whole. I would like to thank the FPS Economy staff and the members of this taskforce for their involvement in this work.”