The review aims to harmonise rules across the EU for marketing fertilising products on the EU market like mineral, organic and controlled release fertilizers marked EU.
But Copa and Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen argues that “There are currently no profitable technologies on a commercial scale that could process phosphate rock to reduce its cadmium content. Cadmium removal techniques, which for now only exist at laboratory level, only concern phosphoric acid. Phosphate fertilisers with nitrophosphates, supertriplephosphates and phosphate rock as their base represent roughly 30% of the market. Technically speaking, cadmium cannot be removed from these fertilisers. Parliaments approach is consequently unrealistic and will badly impact European farmers”.
“Greater instability in the supply of phosphate fertilizers would also weaken Europe's industries, in particular those that do not have phosphate mines, and could lead to more concentration in the sector. This could consequently push up the price of phosphate fertilisers such as MAP and DAP. And since farmers often do not receive sufficient returns for their products, the increase in input costs will be detrimental to their economic viability and to the sustainability of farms. It will have a negative impact on farmers profitability and the competitiveness of European agriculture which plays a key role in a global economy. It will also put at risk healthy grains and soils on European farm land and put an end to EU food quality and security”, he warned.
Moreover, such an approach is once again not backed up by scientific studies supported by the European Commission. Copa and Cogeca conseqeuntly call on the Council to adopt a balanced approach taking into account the interest of consumers in health and environment and the economic interest of farmers
