The European Commission has announced the postponement of the entry into force of the new ecological regulation (Reg. (EU) 848/2018). Although this is only a proposal which has to be approved by the Council and Parliament, the new date marked is January 2022.

The Commission has also stated that the European Union’s Ecological Action Plan will be opened for public consultation until 27 November. This news has been very well received by the Spanish Society of Organic/Agroecological Agriculture (SEAE), which is part of IFOAM Organics Europe.

This new regulation will include very interesting measures for the renewal of the sector, such as the adoption of new production standards, group certificates or steps to follow in the control system. There is still a lot of work on the part of the Member States which will leave only a few weeks for ecological operators to adapt to the new rules and for eco-friendly certificates to be accredited in accordance with these new rules.

From the European ecological movement they point out that technical requirements must be discussed in depth, in order to analyse secondary legislation to ensure quality and also to implement future rules. IFOAM Organics Europe President Jan Plagge says this action plan will make Europe a much greener territory, reaching up to “25% of ecological land in Europe by 2030”.

The importance of this regulation leads the sector to prepare to meet all points appropriately and with guarantees. In addition, associations with great weight in organic production, such as Ecovalia, express their satisfaction at the delay in entry into force, in order to be able to define more clearly normative elements that are not yet agreed.

In Spain, organic production is an increasingly powerful reality. It currently has 10% of the agricultural surface useful which puts it on track to achieve the goal. In addition, the President of Ecovalia Alvaro Barrera highlights the great progress in our country, for the implementation of the Farm to Fork strategy, i.e. “continue to work, not only for the provisions of the European Commission, but also for Ecovalia’s 2030 target, which is no other than 30% of the Useful Agricultural Area in Spain to be 30% by 2030 and for consumption to account for 20%“. An effort they will continue to make from the sector to make organic farming a more clear reality.