On the first day the meeting will kick-off with a preliminary exchange of views on the Commission proposal fixing the 2017 and 2018 fishing opportunities for deep-sea stocks.
It will then continue with a number of AoB points, including on animal welfare, African swine fever, lumpy skin disease, use of geographical indications on foods, endocrine disruptors and antimicrobial resistance.
Ministers will then resume discussions on fisheries with a Commission presentation of its proposal establishing a multi-annual plan for demersal stocks in the North Sea.
They will then be informed by the North West Waters regional group on the implementation of the landing obligation and the issue of fisheries choke, and by the Commission on the completion of action plans for EMFF specific ex-ante conditionalities.
At the end of the day, the Council is due to reach a political agreement on fishing opportunities for 2017-18 deep-sea stocks. have an exchange of views.
On the second day the Commission will present the final report of the Agricultural Markets Task Force and its study on the impact of the concessions made in Free Trade Agreements on agriculture. Both presentations will be followed by an exchange of views.
The morning session will be followed by a working lunch, during which ministers will talk about the future of the Common Agricultural Policy post 2020.
After lunch, the Council will discuss the role of research and innovation in agriculture. The meeting will be concluded with a Presidency update on the state of play in the organic regulation.
Press conferences: on 14 November at 19.50 with Commissioner Vella and on 15 November at 12.50 and 17.40 with Commissioner Hogan
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AGRICULTURE
Report of the Agricultural Markets Task Force
The Commission will be invited to present the results of the work of the agricultural markets task force and its final recommendations.
The establishment of the task force was decided as part of the comprehensive package of support measures decided by Council in September 2015. Its mandate was to discuss relevant issues, such as market transparency, access for farmers to financial instruments and futures markets to hedge price risks, options for arranging contractual relations within the chain and legal possibilities for organising farmers' collective actions. This is all intended to improve the position of farmers in the food chain.
The task force met seven times between January and October 2016 and its chairman, Mr Cees Veerman, briefed the Council on the task force's ongoing work and expected results in June 2016.
Study on the impact of concessions in Free Trade Agreement on agricultural products
The Commission is due to present the results of its economic study on the cumulative effects of trade concessions made in the context of Free Trade Agreement on the EU agricultural sector (14222/16).
The study was announced by Commissioner Hogan at the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 15 February 2016. The study covers the trade agreements recently concluded (such as with Canada or Vietnam); major agreements for which the precise final outcome is still unknown (e.g. the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with USA or the potential deal between the EU and Mercosur or with Japan); agreements for which negotiations that have not even been officially launched, but are likely to be started in the near future (e.g. Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines); and the modernisation of older agreements (e.g. Mexico or Turkey).
The AoB point on Mercosur will also be considered jointly with FTAs and agriculture (see below).
Full Background brief available via the link below.
Source: consilium.europa.eu
