Newsletter on food safety, health and consumer policy from the European Commission’s Health and Consumer Protection DG December 2004 New name, new look ! 2004 has been a year of change. We have seen the biggest ever enlargement of the EU, the signing of a Constitution for the EU, the election of a new European Parliament and the approval of a new European Commission. It is apt, therefore, to end the year with a few small changes of our own. As you can see, our newsletter has a new layout and a new title. Our new name, Health & Consumer Voice, reflects our aspiration to put health centre-stage in EU politics - alongside the protection of consumers’ interests. The new design aims to make the newsletter more attractive and readable. We hope you like the changes. With best wishes for 2005 from the Editorial team ! IN THIS EDITION • Commissioner Kyprianou sets out his priorities for the coming 5 years __ 1-2 The newly appointed Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner wants to fight obesity, crack down on smoking, protect young people from alcohol abuse and empower consumers to shop with confidence in the EU’s Internal Market • EU sets stricter rules for animal transport ___________________ 2-3 EU agricultural ministers agree to improve animal welfare during long-distance transport • EU protects consumers against rogue traders ______________________ 3 EU ministers reach a common position to ban unfair commercial practices such as pressure-selling and misleading marketing_ • Young Europeans face an increased HIV/ AIDS risk _____________________ 4 With HIV infection rates rising amongst young people across the EU, urgent action is needed to avert a public health disaster, says Commissioner Kyprianou Commissioner Kyprianou sets out his priorities for the coming five years The newly appointed Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner wants to fight obesity, crack down on smoking, protect young people from alcohol abuse and empower consumers to shop with confidence in the EU’s Internal Market. Speaking to the European Parliament at his confirmation hearing, Mr Markos Kyprianou said he hoped that by the end of his mandate in 2009, all EU Member States would have banned smoking in the workplace and other public places. He urged governments to follow the example of Ireland, which successfully introduced such a ban earlier this year, and vowed to combat glorification of cigarettes on television and cinema. “I would like to work with the cinema industry to achieve this. The same applies to television – films glorifying cigarettes should not be shown at times when young people can see them,” he said. Mr Kyprianou also identified the drastic increase in obesity, particularly among children, and alcohol abuse by young people as priorities for action. “I intend to promote policies that will lead to a healthier way of life based on an improved nutritional regime and more physical exercise,” he said. Referring to his consumer protection portfolio, Mr Kyprianou said he will work to further empower European citizens to know where opportunities or dangers lie within the Internal Market, stating that: “Consumers must feel confident that the European I find it both an honour and a challenge to be taking on the role of Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection. EU policies on public health, food safety and consumer policy have a direct connection with the way we live our everyday lives – from the food we eat, to the goods and services we buy and the health of our families and communities. Over the next five years, in partnership with our many stakeholders – European and national parliamentarians, government ministers and officials, business groups and civil society - I look forward to making a positive contribution to citizens’ well-being. My first few weeks in the job have shown me the breadth of policy issues we cover: from rules to crack down on rogue traders through to the fight against HIV/AIDS in Europe. One of the uniting factors, which is at the heart of all our work, is the importance of building trust and managing risks effectively. Over the next five years I want the EU to help make Europeans healthier, safer and more confident. ISSN 1725-549X Markos Kyprianou 1 “I would like to see the creation of a feeling of trust in the Internal Market. I want all European citizens, whether in northern Finland or in Crete, to know and appreciate that the EU has put in place a legislative framework that allows them, with a high level of protection, to purchase goods and services, consume foodstuffs and avoid threats to their health.” Markos Kyprianou at his Hearing in the European Parliament EU scientists say diet can help combat ageing diseases A healthy diet can help reduce diseases such as Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis and colon cancer among the elderly, say specialists on the impact of nutrition on ageing, who met in Brussels on 29 November. The proportion of elderly people in Europe is predicted to increase dramatically. It is estimated that the number of people over 80 years will grow from 21.4 million in 2000 to 35 million in 2025. market does not present them with faulty goods. I will make sure that their rights are respected not just in word, but in deed”. In his introductory statement at the hearing, Mr Kyprianou emphasised his commitment to continuing dialogue with the European Parliament and with its relevant committees. Priorities of Mr Kyprianou over the coming months : • To ensure that the interests of consumers and the protection of public health are properly taken into account in all areas of EU policy and actions. • To ensure better health and health outcomes and a strengthening of Europe’s defences against infectious disease. Key objectives include combating obesity, tobacco use and alcohol-related harm, particularly among young people; countering the resurgence of HIV/AIDS in Europe; and proper preparedness planning against contingencies such as an influenza pandemic. Work on nutrition, mental health and the development of a new EU Health Strategy will also be priorities during the coming period. • To empower consumers to feel more confident in the enlarged EU single market by strengthening consumer © Eureka Slide EU researchers at the Commission-organised workshop on ‘Research on Nutrition and Ageing’, presented three major projects showing how diet can improve the health of the elderly. They have found that proper nutrition could lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and that certain dietary fats could prevent this most common form of dementia. Another project suggested that adding vitamin D (which plays an important role in the incorporation of calcium in bones) to bread would help reduce osteoporosis. 2 advice networks, raising awareness among consumers of their rights and making sure Member States correctly enforce EU consumer laws. In 2005, a new consumer advice and information network will be created operating in all 25 EU countries. It will bring together the European Consumer Centres Network and the EEJ NET “Clearing Houses”, thus giving a new impetus to consumer information and dispute resolution. Furthermore, work will begin on a network to link Member States’ consumer protection enforcement authorities. • To maintain high levels of food safety at manageable cost, by ensuring effective implementation of legislation within the EU and helping to raise food safety standards and practices in the EU’s trading partners. The issue of animal welfare, as well as protecting the EU from animal diseases such as avian influenza, is high on the Commissioner’s agenda. In this context, priority will be given in 2005 to the welfare of chickens kept for meat production, the health rules for aquaculture animals, the implementation of hygiene rules and control systems, and better training for food safety professionals. In parallel, legislation on substances added to food and on the approval of pesticide active substances will be revised. EU sets stricter rules for animal transport EU agriculture ministers agreed to improve animal welfare during longdistance transport. The new law restricts the transport of young and pregnant animals, upgrades vehicle standards with better ventilation and watering facilities for the animals, introduces satellite trac- ing of lorries, compulsory training for drivers and clearly identifies who is responsible for what throughout the animals’ journey. The Regulation, adopted on 22 November, recognises that most of the stress sustained by animals occurs during loading and unloading and Health & Consumer Voice therefore introduces rules to deal with situations before and after transport, for example at slaughterhouses or at harbours. Travelling time limits and space allowances for animals on tracks will remain unchanged. Cattle, sheep and goats can be tracked for up to 29 hours under current rules, whilst pigs and horses can be tracked for up to 24 hours. “My ambition would have been to reduce travelling times and stocking densities further, but Member States remain deeply split on this,” said Markos Kyprianou, Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection. “My main aims are to minimise the stress that animals go through and to ensure that they arrive at their destination as fast as possible.” The Regulation will enter into force by 2007. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/animal/ welfare/transport/index_en.htm EU protects consumers against rogue traders On 16 November, EU ministers reached a common position to ban unfair commercial practices such as pressure-selling and misleading marketing. The new law, which was proposed by the European Commission in June last year, will clarify consumers’ rights and facilitate cross-border trade by establishing common, EU-wide rules against aggressive or misleading business-to-consumer marketing. Claiming to be signatory to a code of conduct when a trader is clearly not, will be outlawed, as will demanding payment for products supplied by the trader but not requested by the consumer, or describing a product as “gratis” if the consumer has to pay anything other than unavoidable delivery or collection costs. The directive also bans traders from paying personal visits to consumers’ homes and ignoring their request to leave or not return. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/consumers/ cons_int/safe_shop/fair_bus_pract/ index_en.htm EU files complaint with WTO against US and Canada over hormones in beef The EU has requested the World Trade Organisation to confirm that it is illegal for the US and Canada to continue to impose sanctions on EU exports over its ban on beef fed with hormones. The move comes after the EU adopted new rules, based on independent scientific evidence, which maintains the ban on the use of hormones for growth promotion. The US and Canada imposed trade sanctions after the WTO ruled in 1998 that the EU ban of US and Canadian beef containing such hormones was not based on proper scientific evidence. In retaliation, the US and Canada imposed sanctions worth 116.8 and 11.3 million dollars a year, respectively. The EU has now requested a formal consultation with Canada and the US within the dispute settlement system of the WTO. They have 60 days for such consultations before the case can be taken to a panel in order to obtain a binding ruling. © Eureka Slide EU lifts ban on Portuguese beef exports As of 21 November, the European Commission has lifted the ban on Portuguese exports of cows, beef and related animal products. The move, agreed by Member States in September, puts an end to the ban that had been in place since November 1998 after an outbreak of BSE in Portugal. Since then, Portugal has taken firm risk management action and the incidence of BSE has consistently decreased. Commission restricts imports of Romanian horses as it pushes for improved health and welfare conditions On 29 November, the European Commission decided to restrict imports of horses from Romania after the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) repeatedly reported shortcomings regarding both health and welfare conditions of horses exported to the EU from Romania. The conditions in which the animals were exported did not meet EU requirements regarding animal health for the movement and import from third countries. Problems included insufficient testing for diseases, incomplete certificates and a lack of proper identification of animals. In addition, horses intended for export to the EU from Romania were being kept in unacceptable conditions including over-crowding and insufficient access to food and water. Poor welfare conditions are closely linked to health problems. The EU is specifically committed to pushing for improved animal welfare and expects these import restrictions to act as a spur to quickly improve the conditions for the affected horses. The import measures do not affect the temporary admission of registered horses for races and cultural events. In addition, horses for slaughter and for breeding can continue to be imported if they meet strict import conditions. 3 Young Europeans face an increased HIV/AIDS risk With HIV infection rates rising amongst young people across the EU, urgent action is needed to avert a public health disaster, says Commissioner Kyprianou. wide information effort to remedy this. A coordinated package of national information campaigns will be developed in 2005. Speaking on the eve of World AIDS Day on 1 December, Mr Kyprianou warned that young people were at an unprecedented risk of catching HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, because they are either unaware of – or choose to ignore – advice about safe sex. An important focus of EU action is addressing the challenges faced by vulnerable groups, such as migrants, sex workers, prisoners and, in particular, young people. During 2004, the Commission has focused on best practice in HIV/AIDS prevention and sex education. “Teenagers and people in their early twenties, are too young to remember the ‘safe sex campaigns’ of the 1980s and early 1990s,” he said. The number of newly reported HIV cases in the EU has nearly doubled since 1996, with the most drastic increase observed in the Baltic States. The situation in neighbouring countries is equally grave. In Russia, there are estimated to be nearly one million people infected with HIV, and 80 per cent of reported cases occur in people under the age of thirty. The EU and neighbouring countries have agreed the need for a continent- EU scientists say they need more data to evaluate BSE risk in a French goat Researchers from the EU laboratory on BSE have said they do not have enough evidence to give a definite answer as to whether the goat they examined was infected by BSE. The European Commission sent scientific data to the Community Reference Laboratory in Britain for further evaluation after French experts found a case of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) – a group of diseases that includes BSE in cattle and scrapie affecting goats and sheep - in a goat’s brain. Further scientific studies carried out on the suspect brain showed that the disease differed from the normal scrapie strains, leading to the suspicion it could be BSE. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/food/ biosafety/bse/goats_index_en.htm Calls for more research on flu vaccines In September this year, health ministers from across the EU and its neighbours meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, endorsed a strategy proposed by the Commission to fight the AIDS epidemic in Europe. The action includes measures to ensure people in poorer countries have access to affordable treatment, better coordination of national HIV/AIDS strategies and the development of new medicines and vaccines. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/health/ph_ threats/com/aids/ev_20041201_en.htm Developing vaccines to counter any future pandemic influenza is on a priority list, launched by the Dutch presidency, as part of a report recommending policies to boost research into new drugs to treat the most urgent diseases and health threats. The Dutch government was commissioned by the World Health Organisation to prepare the report on priority medicines, which it released at its Presidency conference in The Hague on 18 November. The document identifies 17 priority conditions to be urgently tackled, ranging from pandemic influenza, cardiovascular diseases, depression, paediatric HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s, cancer and tropical infectious diseases such as malaria. “Pandemic influenza is a stark example of a global threat that requires a vigorous and coordinated response. There is a need to find solutions on how to get influenza vaccines to people when they need them,” Bernard Merkel from the Commission’s Health and Consumer Protection Directorate told the Hague conference. At present, pharmaceutical research and development are based on a market-driven incentive system, relying primarily on patents and protected pricing as a prime financing mechanism. As a result, a number of health needs are left unaddressed. Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/health/ph_ threats/com/Influenza/influenza_en.htm © Eureka Slide 4 The views expressed in Health & Consumer Voice do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the European Commission. Reproduction of articles is authorised, except for commercial purposes, provided that the source is mentioned. Email: [email protected] Chief Editor: Marie-Paule Benassi. Editors: Iwona Pajak, Terese van Oel, Ben Duncan in cooperation with the EC Health and Consumer Protection DG. Layout: Deborah MacRate-Ockerman http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/health_consumer/index_en.htm