FEFAC Annual Meeting: How to boost EU feed autonomy and strengthen circularity of the EU feed

The European Feed Manufacturers’ Federation (FEFAC) held its 68th Annual Public Annual Meeting in Brussels (ACE Events) on May 31 and hosted 121 participants. The main theme of this year’s Public Annual Meeting was How to boost EU feed autonomy and strengthen circularity of the EU feed and livestock sector specifically in the context of the new EU Strategic Agenda 2024-2029. The program featured keynote contributions from Pierre Bascou, DG AGRI acting deputy director general and Patrick Pagani, Copa-Cogeca deputy secretary general, as well as two panel sessions focusing on the EU feed protein autonomy and reductions of carbon emissions in the livestock sector.

Bascou referred to the continued commitments of the European Commission to boost the transparency of the feed protein import dependency (updated EU Feed Protein Balance Sheet published on May 24, 2024) as well as the potential for feeding strategy solutions (study published on May 24, 2024) as part of the review of its EU protein policy (updated EU Protein Strategy Report foreseen for summer 2024).

Pagani welcomed the more constructive political environment for discussions with farmers on how to tackle sustainability issues. He called on support from the feed sector by providing innovative solutions to the EU livestock sector that can boost circularity and help achieve climate neutrality by 2050.

For the first session, focusing on the announced EU Protein Report as part of the EU Open Strategic Autonomy objectives for the EU agri-food chain, the scene was set by André Negreiros, Central & Eastern Europe business Leader, CORTEVA Agriscience, who emphasized the urgent need for the EU to accelerate support for the development of protein crops suited to its environment to enhance EU self-sufficiency. He called for a swift movement towards adopting new technologies, including New Genomic Techniques (NGTs), while also underscoring the importance of setting realistic self-sufficiency goals and acknowledging the necessity of trade-offs, such as potentially reducing other cereal cultivation when focusing on protein crops.

During the discussion portion, Patricia De Clercq, Belgian EU Council Presidency, pointed to recent discussions at the EU Agricultural Ministers informal council, where ministers exchanged views on the necessity of integrating various elements of the protein plan at the EU level. Birthe Steenberg, AVEC secretary general, welcomed discussions on increased sustainability in EU poultry production, pointing to the four key commitments of the AVEC sustainability charter. She emphasized the need also to maintain cost-effective poultry production, as consumers’ willingness to pay more for sustainability and animal welfare is very limited.

Erik Wibholm, senior managing director of Oilseeds, Cargill emphasized the economic and environmental benefits of importing 30 million tons of soy into the EU, given the region’s limited production capacity, including for alternative protein sources. Bascou highlighted the essential role of the EU livestock industry in the food system and its positive externalities, stressing the need for innovative practices. Pedro Cordero, FEFAC president, underscored the feed industry’s commitment to advancing circular economy principles through the effective utilization of co-products.

From right to left: Anton van den Brink FEFAC Deputy Secretary General, Christian Holzleitner Head of Unit, DG CLIMA, Severine Deschandelliers FEFANA President, Alexander Romme EFFPA President, Annick Pleysier BAYER, Ruud Tijssen IFIF Chair

During the second session, dedicated to key market and regulatory drivers to increase circularity and reduce carbon emissions, Christian Holzleitner, head of Unit, DG CLIMA, highlighted the need for the agriculture sector to make further efforts in carbon emissions reductions and removals. He stressed the European Commission’s objective to integrate the livestock sector into the carbon certification framework by 2025 while exploring the possibilities for emissions trading in the agricultural sector, as part of the effort to stimulate the uptake of innovative business solutions.

Annick Pleysier, head of EMEA Public Affairs, Science & Sustainability, Crop Science Division, BAYER, and Severine Deschandelliers, FEFANA president, pointed to necessary improvements in the regulatory framework that would remove hurdles to increase investments in innovative farmers “toolbox” solutions (seeds, plant protection products and feed additives).

Alexander Romme, EFFPA president, raised awareness of the solutions former foodstuffs can deliver to both increased circularity and reduced carbon emissions in livestock farming, calling for consistency across EU sectoral policies to ensure nutritional feed resources are not diverted to biomethane production.

Cordero said that “it is clear that the feed sector has a crucial role to play in supporting a vibrant European livestock sector that can improve its performance on elements such as reduced strategic import dependencies, reduced carbon emissions and increased circularity. FEFAC, therefore, presented its 12 key recommendations for the EU Strategic Agenda 2024-2029 regarding the livestock sector to the Belgian EU Council Presidency.”