(Brussels, 11 September 2017)

In a letter sent today to Commission President Juncker and Vice President Timmermans, ahead of President Juncker's State of the Union speech on 13 September and on the occasion of the discussions related to the ongoing "Future of Europe" debate, Hubert Weber, President of FoodDrinkEurope, underlined the food and drink sector's full support for the European project and reiterated the crucial importance of the Single Market.

Weber expressed the concerns of the food and drink industry regarding the increasing trend to re-nationalise policies, such as the country of origin labelling measures adopted by several individual Member States. He called on the Commission to address "a growing list of outstanding/unaddressed policy issues, which are stifling the competitiveness of the sector", adding that "In the absence of action at EU level, individual Member States have in several instances decided to go ahead on their own, creating fragmentation and problems for trade and business".  Finally, he added that Better Regulation, and particularly the mutual recognition principle, can be made more workable. 

FoodDrinkEurope supports an ambitious future for Europe and stands ready to cooperate with the European institutions in making a success of Future of Europe plans which take into consideration "the need for a strong and forward-looking Union, which puts its people and societies first and creates wealth and prosperity for all".

Note to the editors:
FoodDrinkEurope is the organisation of Europe’s food and drink industry, the largest manufacturing sector and leading employer in the EU and a key contributor to its economy (286 000 companies, 99% SMEs, 4.2 million employees).

Press contact:
Florence Ranson, Director of Communications
f.ranson@fooddrinkeurope.eu 

+3225081028