The EPP chief signed changes to allow flexibility for outdoor grazing, a demand from Bavarian producers
The Parliament’s agriculture committee amended a Commission proposal to ensure the continuity of organic trade, backing a German-led push to relax grazing obligations for cows.
On Tuesday, agriculture MEPs voted on the reopening of the EU’s 2018 organic regulation, sending their position to a plenary vote after the summer break. The Commission mostly proposed targeted changes to prevent organic trade deals from expiring on 31 December 2026, as set out in the regulation, because negotiations with third countries are still ongoing.
But the committee report, drafted by MEP Camilla Laureti (S&D, Italy), squeezed other demands into the text – notably on organic livestock.
A group of German MEPs pushed to loosen mandatory grazing rules in organic farming and allow farmers to resort to “innovative livestock housing systems” when conditions do not permit herbivores to graze on pasture.
