Bellanova: “Positive confrontation with Minister Vuckovic. Ready to share the best practice in the field of fruit and vegetables. Points in common on labeling "

“It was a fruitful dialogue. Common, important Mediterranean sensitivities emerged, for example on the enhancement of the quality of our agri-food products ”: this is how Minister Teresa Bellanova during the intergovernmental committee Italy Croatia, returning the bilateral agreement with her counterpart Marija Vuckovic of recent days.

"I confirm the availability of the Ministry of Agricultural Policies, and also that of CREA, our Council for Research in Agriculture and Analysis of the Agricultural Economy, to assist the Croatian friends in replicating the good practice, in the light of their interest and appreciation of the Italian system of organization of producers, recognized as a European reference point, and to receive their delegation in Italy as soon as possible ”, continued Bellanova. “The PO system can actually be very effective, especially in the fruit and vegetable sector, if it has clear internal rules on production and marketing, as well as on the methods of production, placing on the market and control”.

Harmony also on the issue of origin labeling of products and raw materials, useful "to improve transparency towards the consumer and enhance local production in the face of imports from third countries, not always in line with our quality standards".

And harmony also on nutritional labeling. In particular on the preference for schemes that evaluate individual nutritional elements, as well as on the need for a scientific approach to nutritional labeling. "We will continue to discuss, both in Brussels and bilaterally, for the development of a harmonized EU scheme in view of future Commission proposals", concluded the Minister.

MIPAAF, Italy-Croatia Intergovernmental Committee

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