A European Alliance for the Rice Sector: Between Innovation and International Trade, Room for Science and Reciprocity

“European rice urgently needs innovation to develop varieties that are increasingly resistant to climate change, as well as automatic safeguard instruments capable of protecting EU production from the massive inflow of products from countries that apply inadequate environmental and social standards.”

This was the message delivered by Farm Europe and Eat Europe at an event held in the European Parliament by MEP Carlo Fidanza (ECR), attended by the Italian Minister of Agriculture, Francesco Lollobrigida, and numerous Members of the European Parliament – including the rapporteurs of the GSP and NGT dossiers, Gabriel Mato, Daniele Polato, and Pietro Fiocchi – on the priorities of the European rice sector regarding innovation and international trade.

The events of the last five years have profoundly affected the rice market in the European Union. Producers have faced a sharp increase in costs, a consequence of the Russia–Ukraine conflict, as well as extreme weather conditions – from drought to excessive rainfall – which have reduced yields and cultivated areas. At the same time, competition from non-EU countries, especially in Asia, continues to grow: the failure to comply with labour standards and the use of plant-protection products banned in Europe allow them to export processed rice at prices that, converted to paddy rice, are more than 50% lower than European production costs.

Recent developments and the increasing number of alert notifications on the RASFF portal confirm the importance of strengthening and protecting European rice production, reducing dependence on imports and ensuring citizens have access to safe products, both in terms of availability and quality.

In this context, the need to introduce into Regulation 978/2012 on the Generalised Scheme of Preferences an automatic safeguard mechanism emerges strongly—one that is truly effective in protecting European production and avoids quantitative thresholds that would render the system ineffective. As Farm Europe and Eat Europe emphasise, automaticity is essential: the system must become a preventive crisis-management tool supporting European rice growers. The EBA regime represents an important instrument of support for developing countries, but it is necessary to verify who actually benefits from tariff concessions and under what conditions those goods are produced (child labour, use of pesticides banned in the EU). Added to this is the framework of bilateral agreements, which risk further increasing rice imports under unfair competition conditions—consider, for example, the 60,000-tonne, zero-duty quota provided for by the Mercosur agreement, which lacks adequate safeguards.

The roundtable was also an important opportunity to examine the role of innovation in the future of the sector and, in particular, the New Genomic Techniques (NGTs). The trilogue of 13 November was expected to close the chapter on sustainability, but the absence of an agreement has postponed discussions to the technical level.

As the Council and the European Parliament continue negotiations, Farm Europe and Eat Europe urge both institutions to move forward swiftly and constructively towards a final agreement.

“Further delays would undermine the EU’s ability to fully harness the most advanced innovations in plant breeding, which are essential to ensuring global food security and achieving environmental objectives,” concluded Luigi Scordamaglia, President of Eat Europe. The rice sector, in particular, represents a key area for the development and application of these innovative production technologies.

We encourage negotiators to conclude the agreement without further delay, enabling European farmers to benefit from the full potential of NGTs, rejecting unnecessary labelling requirements for NGT1 categories, and adopting a sensible approach to patents and sustainability that does not hinder research.