Draft Press Release
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT The Secretariat Mission report EP Agriculture Committee mission to Savoy and Upper Savoy (French Alps) 21-23 July 2015 A delegation of Members of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Parliament visited the French departments of Savoie (Savoy) and Haute Savoie (upper Savoy) from 21 to 23 July 2015. The aim of the visit was to better understand the specific conditions of agricultural production in high mountain regions, and in particular in the French Alps, especially in the wine, cheese and horticulture sectors. Savoie and Haute- Savoie, situated in the Rhône-Alpes region, have developed close economic ties and implement a 'common policy' in the agriculture sector. The delegation was organised by Michel Dantin (EPP, FR) and included: Daniel Buda (EPP, RO), Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, IT), Ulrike Müller (ALDE, DE), Martin Häusling (Greens, DE), James Nicholson (ECR, UK), Lidia Senra Rodriguez (GUE, ES) and Marco Zullo (EFD, IT). Françoise Grossetête (EPP, FR) also joined the delegation as an accompanying Member on 22 July. The delegation programme included mainly field visits to vineyards, milk farms, milk cooperatives and cheese processing units. During these visits, the delegation also had meetings with representatives of local farm trade union associations (FDSEA) as well as representatives from professional organisations and cooperatives in the wine and dairy sectors. Highlights: Tuesday 21 July 2015 - Vineyards of La Combe de Savoie Wednesday 22 July - Cheese cooperatives - Beaufortin and Tarentaise areas Thursday 23 July - Farm-produced cheese - Aravis massif (Upper Savoy) Members found the programme and presentations made extremely interesting and useful to understand the specificities of the farming sector in both departments, and in mountain regions in general.
[Show full text]