Legislative Observatory
European Parliament
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Food distribution to the most deprived persons in the Community

2008/0183(COD)

In 2008 the Commission proposed a revision of the food distribution programmebased on the following elements:

  • two sources of supply: food would be sourced either from intervention stocks or from the market;
  • wider variety of foods to be distributed and clearer priorities;
  • long-term perspective: the Union food distribution  scheme would be established for three years;
  • co-financing:  Community co-financing rates would be 75% and 85% in Cohesion Member States for the 2010/2012 plan. Subsequently, from the 2013/2015 plan, the Community co-financing rates would be, respectively 50% and 75%;
  • reinforcing monitoring and reporting.

In its opinion, the European Parliament strongly advocated the maintenance of the full Union's funding for this scheme. National authorities of participating Member States and very numerous representatives from the civil society have recently expressed their wish for the scheme to remain fully funded out of the EU budget. Furthermore, the Commission is well aware of the increasing number of European citizens requiring food assistance. 

Against this background, the Commission has decided to replace amended proposal by this new amended proposal.

The amended proposal:

  • keeps its a double legal base (Articles 42 and 43(2) together with 175(3))), in the light of the contribution of food distribution programmes to the objectives of the Common Agriculture Policy as well as the strengthening of the Union's social cohesion;
  • retains for the future the current rate of 100% EU funding for the scheme but, in order to ensure its budgetary stability, the annual ceiling of EUR 500 million for the Union's financial contribution is maintained;
  • incorporates certain amendments made by Parliament, although the wording may have been changed by the Commission : (i) introduces the notion of the Union origin of the foods that in the present amended proposal is retained as a priority that may be decided by Member States when choosing the types of foods to be distributed; (ii) obliges distribution points to  clearly display the participation of the Union in the plan; (iii) purchase of food products should be made on the basis of competitive procedures as it is now explicitly indicated in the proposal; (iv) reimbursement of storage costs incurred by  charitable organisations;
  • retains annual plans: the Commission will soon adopt legal proposals pertaining to the new multi-annual financial framework including one on food distribution for the needy to be funded out of Heading 1. Against this background, the three-year plans envisaged in the previous proposal would no longer fit into this new temporary frame. Consequently, this new amended proposal retains the current system of annual plans;
  • keeps other elements included in the initial proposal, namely the two sources of supply, a wider variety of foods combined with a reinforced focus on nutritional aspects, together with clearer priorities and more robust monitoring and reporting mechanisms;
  • provides that the Commission adopts by means of delegated acts the method for calculating the overall allocation of resources including the distribution of intervention stocks and financial means, the definition of the accounting value of products released from intervention stocks as well as the method for the reallocations of resources following possible revisions of the plan.

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS: the new scheme will remain entirely financed by the Union.  This amended proposal maintains an annual financial ceiling of EU 500 millions for the EU financing of the scheme.