Daily Archives: October 21, 2015

The text of the Agreement that will succeed the current 2005 International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives as of 1 January 2017 was adopted by consensus at the United Nations Conference for Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva where it was negotiated between 5 and 9 October.

The new Agreement is based on the text adopted by the IOC Council of Members in June of this year but incorporates some changes designed to make certain points clearer.

This new text takes into account developments in the world olive and olive oil industry. It reasserts the role of the IOC as a world centre for documentation and information dissemination about the olive and its products and as a forum for industry stakeholders. It also places emphasis on standardising national and international legislation on the physical, chemical and organoleptic characteristics of olive oils, olive pomace oils and table olives in order to prevent obstacles to trade.

Compared with preceding Agreements, the new Agreement is simpler, more rational and more condensed. It is aimed at facilitating the participation of importer countries and features a modified system for calculating the distribution of participation shares that is meant to encourage consumer countries to join.

The European Commission will invest almost €16 billion in research and innovation in the next two years under Horizon 2020, the EU’s research and innovation funding scheme, following a new Work Programme for 2016-17 adopted today. The new Work Programme will also build on successes in health research by investing €5 million to respond to the critical outbreak of the damaging olive-tree pest Xylella fastidiosa.

The new funding opportunities offered by the Work Programme are directly aligned with the policy priorities of the Commission of President Jean-Claude Juncker and will substantially contribute to the Jobs, Growth and Investment Package, the Digital Single Market, Energy Union and Climate change policy, Internal Market with stronger industry and making Europe a stronger global actor.

Carlos Moedas, Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation said: “Research and innovation are the engines of Europe’s progress and vital to addressing today’s new pressing challenges like immigration, climate change, clean energy and healthy societies. Over the next two years, €16 billion from Horizon 2020 will support Europe’s top scientific efforts, making the difference to citizens’ lives.”