Conference "The EU dairy sector: developing beyond 2015"

Conference "The EU dairy sector: developing beyond 2015"

Brussels, 24 September 2013

This conference, which is taking place at the initiative of Dacian Cioloş, European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, will explore future trends in the EU milk sector post 2015.

The abolition of the milk quota system in 2015 will create a new context for economic operators, who have been dealing with milk quotas for some 30 years.

To prepare the sector for this new operating environment, a series of new instruments has been developed in the context of the 'Milk Package'.

Moreover, the milk sector has been the subject of intense discussions during the CAP reform process and the agreement reached on 26 June reinforces instruments to tackle difficulties in the milk sector; amendments have been introduced to the single Common Market Organisation (CMO) rules to improve the market orientation of EU agriculture in the light of increased competition on world markets, while providing an effective safety net for farmers in the context of external uncertainties (together with direct payments and options for risk management under rural development).

The outcome of the conference will serve as a basis to assess whether additional actions are necessary in the context of the Commission report regarding the development of the market situation in the milk sector together with any appropriate proposals foreseen by 30 June 2014 by the 'Milk Package' regulation.

Some four hundred stakeholders representing governmental and non-governmental organisations, the EU institutions, and expert research and economic bodies will be invited to examine the issues.

Admission to this conference is by invitation only, but it will be possible to follow the work of the conference via webstreaming.

European Commission, 2013

http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/events/dairy-conference-2013_en.htm