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EFSA carries out stakeholder satisfaction survey
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is calling on applicants, member states and all stakeholders to share their views on its services in the area of regulated products, which includes health claims, genetically modified organisms, food..
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Council nominates Juncker for Commission President
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
EU leaders meeting at a European Council on 27 June have nominated Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker to be the next European Commission President.The European Parliament now votes on the nomination on 1 July, but is certain to approve..
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KEMI maps out phthalate use in Sweden, including packaging
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The Swedish Chemicals Agency (KEMI) has published a survey of phthalates in articles in Sweden comprising uses and available alternatives.Phthalates are mainly used as plasticisers in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics, with 93 per cent of all..
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Swedish chemicals agency calls for REACH revamp
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
“The EU chemicals legislation REACH needs to be developed and applied more effectively in order to contribute to the environmental quality objective A Non-Toxic Environment,” according to the Swedish Chemicals Agency (KEMI).KEMI has..
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Commission set to present circular economy package
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The waiting is over. One day after we went to press, the European Commission was set to present its long awaited proposals on the circular economy, expected to feature recycling targets of 70 per cent for municipal waste and 80 per cent for..
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Germany: Landbell becomes ERP shareholder
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
The Landbell Group, one of Germany’s leading compliance and packaging and waste disposal specialists, and the European Recycling Platform SAS (ERP) announced last Friday that the Landbell Group will become a shareholder of ERP. ERP offers..
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US: FDA finalises nanotechnology guidance
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has finalised guidance outlining its regulatory approach for nanotechnology products along with guidance for how it believes companies should address the potential safety issues related to the use of..
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Paper recycling tops 71 per cent in Europe
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European paper industry recycled 71.7 per cent of its paper in 2013, the European Recovered Paper Council (ERPC) said this week, a slight increase over the 71 per cent recycled in 2012 – and nearly 32 per cent more than the 1991 rate..
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Green groups keep up pressure on Commission to “get serious” on energy
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Heads of state discussed climate and energy at the European Council in Brussels last week, but their efforts to reduce dependence on energy imports are being blocked by the European Commission, according to green organisations.The majority of EU..
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Norway: Yoplait vs Skyr: Battle launched over packaging shape
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Dairy group Q-Meieriene has taken Tine-owned Fjordland to court for allegedly copying a unique container for the Icelandic cultured milk product Skyr. Fjordland has used a similar shape for one of its yoghurt products. Q-Meieriene..
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End tax on drink cans and bottles, Norway told
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Norway’s tax on drink cans and plastic bottles serves no environmental purpose, weakens Norwegian industry competitiveness, and lures Norwegians into Swedish stores, business group Enterprise Federation Norway has said. The group has called..
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France to ban non-biodegradable plastic bags from 2016
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
France has joined Italy in banning all single-use plastic bags that are not biodegradable and compostable, the country’s Minister for Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy, Ségolène Royal announced last week – adding..
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ECHA shows firms how to define an intermediate
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has issued practical guidance for firms on intermediates – substances used in processes to make another chemical but not present in the final product – including crucially how to define one..
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Potočnik hails success of first ever UN Environment Assembly
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
EU Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik has welcomed the successful outcome of the first ever UN Environment Assembly (UNEA), hosted by the Nairobi-based United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).Potočnik said in a 30 June..
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Call for EU to gear EDC policy to environmental and health protection
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) Europe is calling on the European Commission to ensure that environmental and health protection is at the centre of EU policy on endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and not economic considerations.HCWH spoke out..
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Jeremy Irons backs International Plastic Bag Free Day
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
International Plastic Bag Free Day, a day of action around the world to raise awareness about the alternatives that exist to single-use plastic bags and the dangers plastic bags present to marine and land ecosystems, kicks off on Thursday..
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EU free to go ahead with more GMO import approvals
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European Commission is free to go ahead with granting EU import approvals for five more genetically modified (GM) crop lines, after member states once again failed to reach agreement for or against the authorisations, our sister publication..
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EFSA shows how to seek data when no studies published
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) last week mapped out how it would seek expert knowledge when a literature search reveals no published studies in a given area.EFSA said on 23 June that it has published guidance to help it gather expert..
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EU sets strict BPA limit in toys from December 2015
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Bisphenol A (BPA) is to be strictly limited in toys from 21 December 2015, under a European Commission regulation adopted on 23 June.“In its continuous strive to improve the safety of toys the European Commission has decided today to set a..
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Ecuador praised for role in EU cocoa deal on cadmium levels
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
As a fast-growing Latin American cocoa producer, Ecuador has been praised by the International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) for its leading role in bringing about a consensual outcome to the EU Regulation on cadmium content in cocoa, Agra Informa..
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EU co-existence checks hampered by lack of GM crops
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
An attempt by the European Coexistence Bureau (ECoB) to monitor the efficiency of co-existence measures for genetically modified (GM) and non-GM maize in the EU has been thwarted by the low levels of commercial crops, our sister publication Agrow..
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Commission announces €239 million available for green projects
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
The European Commission will give €238.86 million in 2014 to develop and implement new ways to respond to environmental challenges across Europe, focusing on nature and biodiversity conservation, resource efficiency and..
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Spider venom pesticide will not harm bees
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
A novel bio-pesticide created using spider venom and a plant protein has been found to be safe for honeybees, despite being highly toxic to a number of key insect pests, our sister publication Animal Pharm reports.New research in the UK..
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Climate change – take action now, says Joint Research Centre
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
European governments must take urgent action on climate change or risk a costly future, according to a new study by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) released last week.“Acting now means sparing Europe from paying..
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Europeans urge their country to waste less
Online Published Date : 02 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 393 - 30 June 2014
Most European citizens think their own country is generating too much waste, according to a survey published this week carried out for the European Commission.The survey on the “Attitudes of Europeans towards Waste Management and Resource..
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EU to change way to gauge packaging target compliance
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
The EU is to change the method for calculating compliance with targets in the packaging and packaging waste directive (94/62/EC) under the proposal to amend waste legislation in the circular economy package.Under the 2 July proposal, the new method..
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EIB loan to modernise Polish container glass industry
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending €16.5 million to BA Glass Group for the upgrading and expansion of two container glass production facilities in Western Poland, the first tranche of the total approved financing of up to..
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Cautious welcome for new waste targets
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
MEPs, industry groups, farmers and environmentalists all gave a cautious ‘welcome’ to the European Commission’s circular economy package, especially the beefed up targets. Within the package is a proposal for a directive to..
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Political groups grill Juncker
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
The Council nominee for European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was appearing before the European Parliament’s seven political groups for hearings this week ahead of the 15 July plenary vote on his candidacy.The hearings are a..
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Socialists clinch three out of four ENVI vice chairs
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
Socialist and Democrat MEPs will take on three of the four vice chair positions in the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee with a single Green filling in, breaking with convention to share out the..
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Food banks can cut food waste
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
Food donation is an important lever for reducing food waste and food poverty across Europe. This was the key message delivered by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) during its 7 July conference "Food donation. Fighting food..
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EU Court ruling could bring access to TTIP documents
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
A transparency ruling in the EU Court of Justice last week could mean the Council and European Commission being forced to release secret documents on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations.In a case over the..
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Commission proposes tough recycling targets, landfill ban
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 394 - 16 July 2014
The EU could get tougher recycling targets, including 80 per cent for packaging, as well as a landfill ban for recyclable materials under proposals that the European Commission unveiled on 2 July.The proposals, part of a so-called..
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“Huge differences” in national waste management practices in EU
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
The European Commission has highlighted huge differences in the way EU member states handle waste and especially in the amount going to landfill or recycling in a question and answer paper published alongside the circular economy package on..
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Newcomer Giovanni La Via to chair ENVI
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
A newcomer to the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee (ENVI) although not to the assembly itself, Italian Christian Democrat MEP Giovanni La Via, is to be its new chair.In the last term La Via,..
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Study shows agri-food industry biggest lobbyist on TTIP
Online Published Date : 10 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 693 - 09 July 2014
No sector has lobbied the European Commission more during the preparation phase for the negotiations on the proposed EU-US trade deal, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) than the agribusiness sector, according to data..
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MEPs elect Juncker Commission President
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The 15 July election by secret ballot saw former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker win by 422 votes in favour to 250 against, with 47 abstentions. The total number of votes cast was 729,10 of which were non valid. The..
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New EPR study reveals lack of transparency and availability of packaging data
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Comparing and contrasting the different extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes for packaging and other materials such as waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) are handicapped by the lack of transparency and availability..
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Spain: Ecoembes launches ‘Music in Recycling’ project in Spain
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Spanish green dot scheme Ecoembes is launching the Music of Recycling project – a pioneering initiative in Spain in which children in socially disadvantaged backgrounds will be trained to create an orchestra of recycled instruments. The..
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ITALY: CONAI elects new President and Vice-President
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Italian packaging recovery consortium CONAI has elected Roberto De Santis as President for the years 2014-2016. De Santis, a professor in chemical engineering at the University La Sapienza of Rome, has held various leading positions in the..
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USDA drops GMO rule over confidentiality concerns
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has pulled the plug on a rule that would have made it easier for the agency to share confidential business information about genetically..
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Germany: Bundesrat demands 50 per cent plastics recycling target
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
Germany’s upper house of Parliament, the Bundesrat, has called for Germany to set a 50 per cent plastics recycling target, saying that the current 22.5 per cent plastics packaging recycling target under the EU packaging and packaging..
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MEPs clear four replacement Commissioners
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The European Parliament has given the green light to four candidate EU Commissioners, nominated to replace those who left to become MEPs, for the rest of the Commission’s current term, which expires on 31 October.The plenary voted en bloc..
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Parliament gets to work on emissions trading
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
The newly-composed European Parliament (EP) will immediately tackle a number of legislative proposals that were started in the previous term, its biggest political group, the European People’s Party (EPP), announced last week.An..
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MEPs to grill Galletti on environment
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
In this week’s inaugural meeting of the new European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, MEPs will grill Italian Environment Minister Gian Luca Galletti on the Council Presidency programme until the..
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Processed foods could also be subjected to pesticide limits
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The EU is considering introducing maximum residue limits (MRL) for pesticides on processed foods and has created a new entry in a key annex to European legislation to allow for the possibility.The new entry ‘processed food products’..
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Giant ‘ECI’ petition against TTIP lodged with Commission
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
A pan-European petition, known as the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI), calling for the EU to stop negotiations for transatlantic trade talks both with the US and Canada, was lodged with the Commission on 15 July to coincide with the..
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Barroso tells EU Court Dalli resigned not sacked
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Former Commission President Manuel José Barroso has told the EU’s General Court of Justice that former EU Health Commissioner John Dalli resigned of his own free will in October 2012 over a cash-for-access lobbying scandal and..
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EIB loan to modernise Polish container glass industry
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 394 - 16 July 2014
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending €16.5 million to BA Glass Group for the upgrading and expansion of two container glass production facilities in Western Poland, the first tranche of the total approved financing of up to €50..
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EFSA consults on plans to open up its work
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is asking for comments on its plans to open up its scientific work in an online consultation that runs until 15 September.A discussion paper that EFSA published at the end of last week to launch..
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Belgium: Fost Plus keeps up pressure on consumers to sort waste outside their home
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Belgian green dot scheme Fost Plus has launched a further campaign to get the Belgian public to sort their waste everywhere they go – not just at home.The new communication drive consists of a TV commercial, several radio announcements..
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MEPs call for more transparency in EU-US trade talks
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The public in Europe must be better informed of the progress of EU-US talks on the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), MEPs from all political groups argued in debating the issue with EU Trade Commissioner Karel De..
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Germany: Parliament backs changes to packaging law to strengthen dual system
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
The German Bundesrat (upper house of Parliament) supported two crucial changes to Germany’s packaging ordinance earlier this month.On 11 July, the Bundesrat, representing the federal states, backed the 7 Amendment to Germany’s..
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Legislation on renewables and energy efficiency is essential, says new ENVI head
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
More legal certainty is needed to encourage member states to embrace renewable energy, the new head of the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee (ENVI), Italian Christian Democrat MEP Giovanni La Via..
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Ministers debate green growth
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 394 - 16 July 2014
Environment ministers meet this week at the first main environmental meeting under the Italian Presidency – the 16-17 July Informal Environment Council – to debate the hot topic of green growth, an issue central to the highly..
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“You’ve got 15 days to approve GMOs,” Commission told
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Europe’s food and feed importers have told the European Commission that it has 15 days to approve eight genetically modified (GM) products or it will face supply chain disruption and price hikes.Eight products deemed safe by the European..
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Coal addiction spoiling EU’s climate efforts, new report reveals
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
Carbon emissions from coal power plants in the EU are undermining the EU’s attempts to meet climate obligations, according to the “Europe’s Dirty 30” report released this week by five major environmental organisations..
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US state Oregon unable to regulate GM crops
Online Published Date : 23 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 395 - 22 July 2014
US state Oregon’s Department of Agriculture (ODA) lacks the authority to regulate genetically modified (GM) crops or to collect data needed to map where GM and non-GM crops are grown, Agency director Katy Coba wrote in a letter sent this..
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TTIP talks should exclude chemical rules, say 111 groups
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The US and EU should exclude chemical regulations from the trade agreement being negotiated by the governments, some 111 chemical safety, health, environmental, trades union, consumer and other groups said in a letter sent earlier this month..
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Plea to Juncker to scrap Chief Scientific Advisor
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
A group of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have written to European Commission President elect Jean-Claude Juncker urging him to drop the post of Chief Scientific Advisor (CSA) when he takes up office on 1 November.The NGOs are unhappy..
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France: New head for Adelphe
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
François Demeure Dit Latte has been appointed managing director of France’s packaging recovery scheme for glass Adelphe, its parent company packaging green dot scheme Eco-Emballages announced earlier this month.Demeure Dit Latte,..
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UK: Truss takes over from Paterson as environment head
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Elizabeth Truss will be the new Secretary of State for the UK Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), following Prime Minister David Cameron’s latest Cabinet reshuffle on 15 July.Truss replaces the much-maligned Owen..
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Lobbyists are stopping safety rules for shale gas, FoEE says
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Oil companies and lobby groups “in their pay” have taken part in an “underground offensive” in Brussels to prevent stricter safety regulations for shale gas, according to a new report released yesterday.The report,..
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Luxembourg slams power that GMO law gives business
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Luxembourg has warned that the proposal to allow member states to opt out of cultivating EU-approved genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on their territories would give too much power to business.In a statement to be added to the minutes..
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US: Oregon next in line for GM labelling battle
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
It’s official – the GMO (genetically modified organisms) labelling debate is under way in Oregon, reports our sister publication Food Chemical News.Oregon Secretary of State on 23 July officially put the GM labelling initiative on..
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Council adopts first reading position on GMO cultivation
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The General Affairs Council on 23 July formally adopted a first reading position on a proposal to allow individual member states to ban cultivation of EU-approved genetically modified organisms (GMOs).The decision taken last week merely rubber..
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EP Greens accuse Commission of manipulating energy policy
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Findings on which the long awaited European Commission communication on energy efficiency were based have been manipulated, leading to the Commission ignoring its own impact assessment and downgrading the energy saving target to 27 per cent,..
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More POPs to get EU limits for concentration in waste
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
The EU is about to add to the list of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) subject to concentration limits in waste that is set out in two annexes to a 2004 regulation (850/2004).The additions come in a draft European Commission regulation..
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Green groups condemn Commission’s energy package
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The European Commission’s energy efficiency proposals, released on 23 July, got short shrift from environmental groups screaming for a 40 per cent target, but welcomed by some industry sectors.The Commission proudly announced that the..
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Winding down for summer
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
The European Parliament has already started its ‘summer holidays’ and the European Commission, which had its last Commission college meeting last Wednesday, commences its seasonal August break next week – with just a skeleton..
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Consumers keen to help Vermont defend GM labelling law
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Two pro-GMO labelling advocacy groups filed a motion in federal court last week asking to be allowed to help Vermont defend its law that would require labelling of certain foods made with genetically modified ingredients, reports our sister..
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ENVI chair says EU agencies must have funding
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The new chair of the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee (ENVI), the Italian Christian Democrat Giovanni La Via, has stressed the need for EU agencies to be properly funded in an opinion on..
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Italian Presidency to prioritise plastic bags
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The Italian Presidency that kicked off this month is to make the European Commission proposal to reduce the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags a “legislative priority,” Italian Environment Minister Gian Luca Galletti told..
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Testbiotech says EFSA playing down risks of GM rapeseed
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Munich-based research and campaign organisation Testbiotech has accused the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) of deliberately playing down the risks of an uncontrolled spread of genetically modified oilseed rape. In a 25 July statement..
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ECHA invites downstream users to road-test its templates
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is inviting downstream users of chemicals and registrants’ associations to test a new template for their Chemical safety report/Exposure scenario (CSR/ES) Roadmaps.ECHA said that the newly developed..
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PAN Europe calls for no waivers from ED pesticide ban
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Campaign group Pesticides Action Network (PAN) Europe is calling on EU Health Commissioner Tonio Borg to propose a full ban on the pesticide Amitrole without any exemptions. The organisation has written to Borg urging a full ban on the..
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ECHA reminds waste exporters to switch to ePIC in time
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Companies needing prior informed consent (PIC) to export hazardous waste must switch to the new ePIC system by 22 August or risk not being able to seek approval for cargoes, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) is warning.ECHA says that if..
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NGOs back ECHA over consumer rights video
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
A group of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) has given its full support to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) over a consumer information video that a British industry association has criticised.ECHA posted the video on social media..
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Warning weak bottle collection could hit recycling
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The weak collection rate of high density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP) plastic bottles in Europe could hit recycling, Plastics Recyclers Europe (PRE) is warning.The warning came in a statement issued after a meeting of the..
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Forthcoming Meetings
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
September 3-4European Parliament, Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, Brussels September 24-25European Parliament, Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, Brussels September 29-30European ..
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Fish benefits outweigh methylmercury risks, says EFSA
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The benefits of consuming seafood, especially during pregnancy, outweigh any risks from methylmercury, according to an analysis by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)’s Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA).The..
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Commission names Sadauskas as new head of ‘Green Economy’
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: -
Kęstutis Sadauskas has been appointed Director of ‘Green Economy’ in the European Commission’s Environment Directorate-General, it was announced this month.Currently head of Cabinet for Taxation Commissioner Algirdas..
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Finland: PYR welcomes long awaited packaging decree
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
Finland’s packaging recovery organisation, the Environmental Register of Packaging PYR Ltd, has applauded the final adoption of the long-awaited packaging decree this month – even though it will bring higher costs and tougher..
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UK: t2e welcomes latest reprocessing and exporting figures
Online Published Date : 30 July 2014 | Appeared in issue: Issue 396 - 28 July 2014
The UK’s Environment Exchange (t2e), the country’s major transparent trading platform where members can trade packaging recovery notes (PRNs) to show that they have recovered or recycled their packaging waste, has welcomed the..