The European Commission and the EU’s consumers, health, agriculture and food executive agency (CHAFEA) have approved 81 campaigns to promote EU agri-food products in and outside the EU for the next three years. The selected campaigns will benefit from an overall funding of €200 million from the EU agricultural budget.
Agriculture and rural development Commissioner Phil Hogan said: "European agri-food products are renowned across the globe for their quality and authenticity. I could witness this myself while visiting several countries around the world, like China, Japan, Indonesia, Mexico, or Colombia accompanied by EU agri-food producers. The European Commission supports their hard work by spreading the word and maintaining a good reputation at a global level".
The promotion programmes aim at helping producers communicate about the quality of their products, to promote them within the EU and beyond, and open new markets. They focus on a number of priorities such as highlighting the quality of European food with geographical indications, or organic production methods.
Out of the 81 campaigns approved, 55 target countries outside of the EU, such as Brazil, Canada, China, Mexico and India. The selected campaigns will cover a wide range of products such as dairy, olives, and fruit and vegetables. For example, the fruit and vegetable sector will have 16 dedicated programmes, while cheese and dairy products will have eight. This year, the selected programmes come from applicants from 19 Member States.