News and briefings

As members may be aware, the AIC sits on one of the Government’s Trade Advisory Groups (TAG) and also provides regular feedback to Government on Trade Policy. One flaw with the current model is that because AIC (represented by Robert Sheasby) has had to sign confidentiality agreements with DIT, we have not been able to share information with members or take advice from members through our work on the TAG.

Following on from Member Briefing G21-065 issued on the 28 April, AIC would like to clarify the following: | From the 01 May AIC and AIC Services will not have a physical office address.

The European Commission has today published the results of its study on the legal status of ‘New Genomic Techniques’ (NGTs). Due to the 2018 European Court judgement these are all currently classed as genetic modification in EU law, however the study finds existing legislation is not fit for purpose for some NGTs and their products, and the process needs to be adapted to scientific and technological principles.

Members will be aware that all active substances due to expire in the 3-year period from 1 January 2021 have been extended in Great Britain by 3 years. This was a blanket extension applied where the expiry dates fell into the above category.

The Institute of Occupational Medicine and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine are conducting a Covid-19 at work study and as part of the study have prepared a 10 minute survey and is inviting individual food sector companies to complete the online survey.

A reminder for members that AIC will be hosting a webinar on Friday on the future of agricultural support payments in England, including Environmental Land Management (ELM) and Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) schemes.

Announcements made today confirm UK Government commitment to interim targets to achieving net zero by 2050 and indicate that aviation and shipping could be brought into the delivering the targets indicated by the carbon budgets and projections set by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC). The CCC holds government administrations to account over the lifetime of the Climate Change Act (as amended in June 2019).

Defra has announced that it is delaying the anticipated response to its consultation on reducing emissions from urea fertilisers, which closed on 26 th January. Officials analysing the responses had been expected to report at the end of this month.

With the introduction of the UFAS 2020 Standard came a change in the Scheme Rules requiring UFAS participants to have an additional Short Notice Audit (SNA) once in a three year cycle, with the cost of this spread across the annual renewal fees.