Food security and the role of European agriculture and food in sustainable global food production were the main topics of informal meeting of EU Agriculture Ministers in Prague.
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Ministers agreed that the EU must now act in a coordinated way to maximize sustainable increases in agricultural production and accelerate the use of modern techniques in agriculture.
The meeting was chaired by Czech Agriculture Minister Zdeněk Nekula and attended by Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski, representatives of NGOs, the European Parliament, academics, and the Ministers of Agriculture of Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova.
Science, innovation, and modern plant breeding methods in agriculture were among the main topics of the meeting.
It included contributions by Czech experts Professor Miroslav Trnka and Roman Hobza, PhD.
Both said that new trends can help the EU in reducing the use of pesticides and fertilizers, in water management, or in breeding new varieties that are more resistant to extreme weather fluctuations and new plant pests and diseases.
The Ministers agreed that the EU must react as quickly as possible to the development of modern trends and not hinder innovation.
It is, therefore, important to change the outdated legislative framework by which the EU regulates the use of modern plant breeding methods
This framework not only restricts European farmers but also leads to an outflow of top experts to countries outside the European Union, so the damage is extraordinary.
"According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, nearly 40% of Africa's total wheat imports come from Russia and Ukraine. The World Food Programme, which feeds some 125 million people, buys 50% of its grain from Ukraine. The solidarity corridors do make sense, and we will address the possibilities of expanding and strengthening them as a separate topic at the Council in Brussels on 26 September," said Minister Nekula. ■
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