Search Results for: France

BY ALAN OSBORN

THE EUROPEAN Commission has told just-drinks.com that it will power ahead with its proposed wine reforms, despite an overwhelmingly negative reaction at the European Union (EU) Council of Ministers. Brussels was “not in the least discouraged” by the criticism at yesterday’s council meeting, Commission wine spokesman Johan Reyniers said.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

CHINESE honey is part of a groundbreaking cooperation deal on protecting traditionally-made food products in overseas markets. China and European Union (EU) officials have applied to register 10 food products within each other’s geographical indications systems. Protected products would include China’s Guanxi honey pomelo, Shaan’xi apple and Pinggu big peach, plus France’s Agen prunes.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Commission’s formally proposed wine market liberalisation reforms face a stormy passage as approval is sought from the European Union (EU) Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. EU agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel announced early July (4-7) proposals to abolish all EU aid programmes for crisis distillation, support for by-product distillation, private storage aid, export refunds.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE STEREOTYPE of Europeans favouring public transport over private cars is deeply flawed according to a new European Commission-funded opinion poll that interviewed 25,767 people. Pollsters Gallup not only confirmed that private motor transport is the most widespread means of making journeys in the EU (53% of those polled drove rather than cycled, walked or took public transport), 22% of these motorists would not drive less, even with dramatic improvements to rail, bus, air and boat transport.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Parliament has given the European Commission some much needed political cover as it prepares to propose further liberalisation of gas and electricity markets later this year. Brussels is facing tough opposition from some European Union (EU) member states over unbundling, notably France, and fears lacking sufficient votes in the Council of Ministers to push through robust proposals.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

THE EUROPEAN Union (EU) has struck an important deal with Algeria, ensuring it supplies gas to European markets competitively, scrapping restrictive profit sharing contracts. Algeria is a key gas exporter in the EU’s fight to secure energy security without relying on Russia, and Algiers has now agreed with the European Commission that pipeline gas can be sold-on within Europe, without a cut going to Algerian gas producer Sonatrach.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

DIFFERENT parts of the world have devised a wide range of regulations to promote biofuels as an answer to traditional fuels posed by supply and environmental concerns. Japan began promoting alternative fuels in the mid-70s following the oil crisis, replacing oil-powered electric generators with units driven by alternative fuels, as well as natural gas, coal and nuclear power.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL

A DRAFT standard being developed by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) could harmonise traditional sizing practices within the European clothing industry, enabling clothing retailers to sell clothing across Europe without changing designs or labels.
The proposals have created something of an uproar amongst right-wing nationalist tabloids in the UK, because the proposals would being to an end Britain’s comparatively rigid size 4 to 32 dress sizing system, based on fixed hip and bust sizes.…

BY ALAN OSBORN

SWITZERLAND has asked the European Commission to register the name of the well-known Swiss cheese Gruyère under regulations providing it with protected designation of origin under European Union (EU) law. The request was made on July 6, less than two weeks after France made a similar request in respect of cheese of the same name.…

BY SAEED AKHTAR BALOCH, in Lahore

WITH a long established food manufacturing sector and strong commodity production, the Pakistan food industry, one of the largest industries in the country, has grown with an average pace of 10% over the last three years.…