Ministers of Agriculture, Forestry, Food Related Issues and Fisheries of the Nordic and Baltic States

Meeting 7-8 November 2003

4-12-2003

Tallinn, Estonia

Approved minutes

1. Opening of the meeting and approval of the agenda

Mr. Tiit Tammsaar, Estonian Minister of Agriculture, opened the meeting in his capacity of host. In his words of welcoming he expressed his pleasure to greet his neighbours. He underlined the “Nordicness” of us all as the basis of Nordic-Baltic cooperation. He informed that a Russian Minister would unfortunately not be able to attend the meeting but expressed his hope that Russia would be able to participate in the future. He stressed the importance of cooperation in order to achieve synergetic effects of limited resources and hoped that the result of the cooperation would be improved sustainability of agriculture and fisheries, increased food safety and improved environment and interaction between the countries.

Mr. Tammsaar handed over chairmanship to Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist, Swedish Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, who chaired the substantial parts of the meeting. Ms Nykvist thanked the Estonian host for all the arrangements made in preparation of this meeting, underlined the double chairmanship, according to which Estonia and Sweden share chairmanship in 2003, and thanked for being allowed to chair the meeting. The list of participants is enclosed in annex 1/1.

Ms Nykvist drew attention to the Copenhagen Declaration, adopted at the Nordic-Baltic meeting for ministers responsible for agriculture and forestry in December 2000, which has formed the basis for the cooperation between the Nordic- and Baltic states over the past three years, where the Ministers declared their willingness to convene again on the basis of recommendations from the Consultation Committee.

The Ministers adopted the agenda of the meeting, annex 1/2.

2. The future cooperation – declaration

Mr. Morten Kvistgaard, Kvistgaard Consult, briefly presented the conclusions of the evaluation of the cooperation since the Copenhagen Ministerial meeting. Looking back on the cooperation so far, he inter alia pointed out, that it has taken time to build up the cooperation within the Consultation Committee, that the interest of the participating countries has not been clear, that the results have been dialogue and coordination, that the effects have an internal character, that the perceived value added is on networking, dialogue and coordination, that new working procedures have been introduced and that the efficiency has improved in preparation of the Ministerial meeting. In his recommendations he stressed the need for future continuity, high level representation, strategic anchoring nationally as well as on a Nordic/Baltic level, a clearly defined focus and a future commitment to the cooperation.

Mr. Andres Oopkaup, Estonian Chairman of the Consultation Committee, presented the proposal by the Consultation Committee, including the proposed Declaration on Enhanced Co-operation between the Nordic and Baltic States in the Areas of Agriculture, Forestry, Food Issues and Fisheries. In his presentation Mr Oopkaup underlined that through the enlargement of the European Union to include the Baltic states many areas will be handled within the context of the EU, but that there will also be a need for increased coordination in North-eastern Europe. He explained how two draft declarations on enhanced cooperation had been prepared, to also cover a situation where Russia would wish to join the cooperation, and stressed the importance of involving Russia in practical technical cooperation. He pointed out that the follow-up of the cooperation will be transferred to the Nordic Council of Ministers with participation from the Baltic states, and that the Consultation Committee would continue for a transitional period to monitor the cooperation, initiate preparations for the next Ministerial meeting and adapt the Baltic states to the transfer of the cooperation into the Nordic system.

Mr. Per Unckel, the Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers, made a presentation on the proposed cooperation from the perspective of the Nordic Council of Ministers. He outlined the structure of the Nordic Council of Ministers, which works in separate Councils of Ministers, covering 17 different sector areas. The joint Council of Ministers on Agriculture, Forestry, Food and Fisheries meets once per year.

Its meetings are prepared by a newly established High Level Coordination Group. Three committees of senior officials in the relevant fields serve the Council, and expert groups and institutions have been set up to implement the technical work. He informed about how the first Nordic institution, the Nordic Investment Bank, now has been opened for participation by the Baltic states, and described how other sectors within the Nordic Council of Ministers successfully cooperate with the Baltic states through a structure like the one new to be introduced in this field of agriculture, forestry, food and fisheries. He predicted that the system could function well as a platform for the future cooperation in the fields of agriculture, forestry, food and fisheries, where Ministerial meetings may, like in other sector areas, with time be held with shorter intervals than what is now foreseen. Mr. Unckel distributed a document “The International Nordic Region”.

Mr. Árni Matthíesen, Minister of Fisheries of Iceland, made an introductory intervention on the subject. He thanked Kvistgaard Consult for the good work, but underlined that Iceland is more positive than the consultants regarding the work done during the last 3 years, inter alia by contributing to a strengthening of the understanding between the countries and building up of networks. He underlined that as a non-member of the EU Iceland has a particular interest in the continuation of the cooperation. He informed that Iceland as chair country of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2004 will lead the process to integrate the Baltic states into the cooperation, in close cooperation with the secretariat of the Nordic Council of Ministers, and welcomed the transitional period for continued cooperation in the Consultation Committee inter alia to initiate follow-up of the Ministerial meeting without loss of momentum and to familiarize the Baltic countries with the Nordic system.

Mr. Jeronimas Kraujelis, Minister of Agriculture of Lithuania, found enhanced Nordic-Baltic cooperation a good example of how regional issues can be handled. He pointed out that assistance from the Nordic countries had supported the accession of the Baltic states to the European Union. He expressed his support for the proposed declaration on enhanced cooperation.

The Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries of Denmark, Ms Mariann Fischer Boel, thanked the Consultation Committee for its work under the efficient chairmanship of Sweden and Estonia. She expressed her support for the model for cooperation in the proposed declaration, stressing the importance of avoiding new and bureaucratic structures and the need to in a time of limited budgets keep the cooperation at a realistic level. She called for a clear signal regarding the political commitment to enhance the cooperation.

Mr. Lars Sponheim, Minister of Agriculture of Norway, pointed out that the past three years since the Copenhagen meeting have been characterized by the negotiations by the Baltic states for membership of the EU and that the structure within the Consultation Committee was new to both the Nordic and the Baltic states. He underlined the need to strengthen the platform within the Nordic Council of Ministers in the future to adjust it to the participation of the Baltic states. Mr. Juha Korkeaoja, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland, stressed the importance of the cooperation. He called for practical and informal structures for the future cooperation and informed that Finland, although sceptical, is ready to accept a continuation of the Consultation Committee for one year. He proposed that the Consultation Committee should arrange a seminar or workshop on Nordic-Baltic cooperation, inter alia to inform about the cooperation within the Nordic Council of Ministers.

Mr. Mārtiņš Roze, Minister of Agriculture of Latvia, pointed out that the Nordic and Baltic states also have different opinions and underlined that cooperation should focus on issues of common interest. He was of the opinion that such cooperation should be strengthened and show that the countries involved are serious.

The Ministers adopted the Tallinn Ministerial Declaration on Enhanced Co-operation between the Nordic and Baltic States in the Areas of Agriculture, Forestry, Food Issues and Fisheries, annex 2/1.

The Ministers decided that a list of the Ministers participating in the decision should be attached as an annex to the declaration, and that the adoption of the declaration should be reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

3. Food safety – declaration

Mr. Juha Korkeaoja presented the agenda item. He stressed that today’s consumers expect their food to be of high and verifiable quality, based on expertise. He informed about the 1997 Finnish food quality strategy, created for the food sector to ensure high quality in the long term, with the aim to build an unbroken quality chain from farm to fork. Finland has also prepared a national zoonoses strategy to be published at the end of the year. Furthermore, the Finnish food control system is being reorganized at central and local levels. Finally, the Minister introduced the Tallinn Declaration on Food Safety to be adopted by the Ministers, based on the four priority areas traceability, zoonoses, dioxin and efficient control systems.

Mr. Jeronimas Kraujelis underlined that organic production is an area of growing importance for Lithuania. He expressed his full support to the proposed declaration and gave the floor to Darius Remeika, deputy director of State Food and Veterinary Service. Mr. Remeika underlined the interest of Lithuania as well as of all of Europe to ensure that only safe foodstuffs are supplied to the consumer. He pointed to the need to win the confidence of the consumers and informed about how Lithuania during the last year before accession to the EU is completing the adoption of EU legislation on food safety. He found the identified 4 priority areas very important for improving food safety and of great concern for the whole region and expressed his conviction that adoption of the declaration would not only improve the co-operation but would also have political implications by increasing the influence of Baltic and Nordic countries in international organizations and in the world.

Mr. Árni Matthíesen stressed the importance of food safety as a basis for driving the food industries in a safe manner, in particular the complex issues of traceability and in-house control systems. He welcomed a future cooperation on the issues outlined in the declaration.

Ms Mariann Fischer Boel found the initiative particularly important because of its political weight. She informed about efforts in Denmark to protect the consumers, but saw Europe as a major player in the field. She saw a need for changes in the coming years, and stressed the common interest in close cooperation in the food safety area.

Mr. Lars Sponheim referred to the common goals of the Nordic and Baltic countries concerning food safety. He supported that the region should be a driving force for food safety in international negotiations and processes. He saw the confidence of the consumers as a prerequisite for keeping the agriculture and food industries as important future businesses and high standards of food safety and quality as a key to accessing new future markets. He thought that the cooperation should cover a broad aspect of subject areas.

Mr. Tiit Tammsaar found a future cooperation on food safety important. He informed about the existing well functioning cooperation between the supervision authorities within the NordBalt Food Control Group, and welcomed the proposed broadening of the cooperation. He saw a future  cooperation between the institutions responsible for food safety in the form of exchange of information and experience as a possibility, as well as a future common utilization of laboratory resources. He found dioxin in Baltic Sea fish an example where common solutions could save resources for the Nordic and Baltic countries.

Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist found the four priority areas for cooperation important also for Sweden. She informed about how Sweden has paid much attention to zoonoses and salmonella, and how the positions now have to be defended in relation to the EU. She called for a restoration of the confidence of the consumers and found that the proposed Nordic-Baltic cooperation could be of great benefit.

The Ministers adopted the Tallinn Declaration on Increased Food Safety in the Nordic- Baltic Region, annex 3/1.

The Ministers decided that a list of the Ministers participating in the decision should be attached as an annex to the declaration, and that the adoption of the declaration should be reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

Later in the afternoon a first meeting of Nordic and Baltic senior officials on food issues was arranged.

4. Organic production – declaration

Mr. Lars Sponheim presented the agenda item. He called organic production a spear point in making agricultural production more sustainable and found that organic farming increases the diversity of the food market. He described how environmental concerns and increased consumer awareness has contributed to the growth in organic farming over the last years and predicted that organic farming will be an increasingly important part of the international food-market in the years to come. He described how the development of organic farming has reached different levels in the individual Nordic and Baltic countries, while many of the challenges facing the Nordic and Baltic countries are common. He predicted that closer cooperation between the Nordic and Baltic countries in the area of organic production can lead to more effective use of competence, knowledge and economic resources and expressed his hope that all countries could support the proposed declaration on cooperation on development of organic food and agricultural production.

Mr. Mārtiņš Roze made an introductory intervention. He characterized organic farming as the most rapidly growing sector of agriculture, which has become an essential element of the national economy in the Nordic and Baltic States. He described the development of organic farming in Latvia, and informed about the 10th meeting of institutions controlling organic farming of the Nordic and Baltic States with a view to discuss the most topical issues, held in Copenhagen this year. He found a coordination of collaboration, exchange of information and sharing of experience an effective use of competence, knowledge and economic resources and invited the Nordic and Baltic States to support the declaration on organic food and agriculture production.

Ms Mariann Fischer Boel welcomed enhanced cooperation between the Nordic and Baltic States and supported the proposed declaration. She underlined the potential for growth of the organic sector, which should be driven by consumer demands, stressed the importance of the organic market within the region and found the promotion of the EU logo one way to improve the trade conditions and to increase international trade with organic products. She thought that development of the organic market requires common efforts and cooperation across the borders and welcomed interest in a project to develop a joint action plan for development of the organic market within the region, initiated by Denmark.

Mr. Juha Korkeaoja cautioned against overproduction and too low prices, which could spoil the market, and underlined the need to produce what the consumers want. He informed about organic farming as an integral part of agricultural production in Finland since 1990 and called for close cooperation between the Nordic and Baltic states as proposed in the declaration.

Mr. Tiit Tammsaar informed about the development of organic farming in Estonia. He said that the consumers start to understand that organic farming is in their own interest, and that the trend in Estonia is very positive. He supported the adoption of the declaration, which would help in the further development of organic farming.

Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist described how the Swedish consumers demand more ecological products and how prices of ecological products do not necessarily have to be higher than those of conventional products. She stressed the importance of the consumer’s perspective, inter alia regarding labelling, and welcomed a closer cooperation on ecological production.

The Ministers adopted the Tallinn Declaration on Organic Food and Agriculture Production in the Nordic-Baltic Region, annex 4/1.

The Ministers decided that a list of the Ministers participating in the decision should be attached as an annex to the declaration, and that the adoption of the declaration should be reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

5. Genetic resources

Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist in her capacity of chairperson of the meeting presented the agenda item. She found genetic resources an important question linked to sustainable development. She informed about an evaluation of the collaboration between the Nordic and Baltic countries and Russia on plant and animal genetic resources, carried out in the framework of the Nordic Genetic Resources Council, which has shown that the collaboration so far has been successful. She described the difficult situation for the Vavilov Institute in St. Petersburg and the importance and uniqueness of the collections of that institute. She pointed to the conclusions of the Nordic Genetic Resources Council, which stress the importance of future genetic resources cooperation betwee  the Nordic countries, the Baltic Countries and Russia; the invaluable world significance and uniqueness of the collections of the Vavilov Institute (VIR); the need for appropriate action to secure new facilities in view of the planned relocation of the Institute; the importance of the work of the International Consultative Group to assist VIR and the Russian Academy of Agricultural Sciences in securing long-term preservation and maintenance of the collections of the Institute; the need to continue to develop and hold strong collaborative links between the Nordic, Baltic and Russian gene banks.

Mr. Lars Sponheim found Nordic cooperation on genetic resources under the Nordic Council of Ministers a well functioning activity and that the cooperation between the Nordic and the Baltic countries has so far contributed to benefits for conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources. He thought that the future cooperation should cover both animal and forest tree genetic resources, and looked forward to continuing and extending the work with the Baltic countries. He expressed a will to work together with other partners to closely follow the further development of the Vavilov Institute and emphasized the importance of continuing the close and ongoing cooperation between the expertise of the Institute and the expertise of the Nordic countries, especially the Nordic Gene Bank.

Mr. Árni Matthíesen found the area of genetic resources important and an ideal project to cooperate on. He informed about genetic resources as part of Iceland’s chairmanship program for the Nordic Council of Ministers 2004. He thought that a strengthened involvement in the Vavilov Institute could be of particular interest for Russia, when considering joining the Nordic-Baltic cooperation in the future.

Mr. Mārtiņš Roze informed about how Latvia set up a gene bank in 1993, which is used for the conservation of plant genetic resources. He underlined the importance of the area of genetic resources and found that its role in relation to food production should not be undestimated. He informed about Latvia’s good relations to the Vavilov Institute and could see many possibilities to work together with the Institute. The Vavilov Institute holds a complete collection of the genetic material from Latvia and collaboration was needed to duplicate the Latvian genetic material held at the Vavilov Institute. He agreed with the conclusions of the situation at Vavilov Institute expressed in the document from the Nordic Genetic Resources Council. He had himself experienced the bad conditions at the Institute and found that urgent action was needed to safeguard the genetic material at the Institute. He thought that the material should be seen as a common heritage for all.

Mr. Juha Korkeaoja found genetic resources an important issue. He pointed to the long negotiations which led to the adoption of an FAO Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources and the particular role of the Nordic countries in the negotiations. He underlined the importance of speedy ratifications by the Nordic and Baltic countries, so that the treaty could enter into force, and informed that the ratification of Finland is expected to take place before the end of November this year. He informed that the Nordic Gene Bank will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2004, that it cooperates with the Baltic countries and Russia and that it has functioned as a model for regional gene banks in Southern Africa. He thanked Eva Thörn, the former director of the Nordic Gene Bank, for her 8 years of service.

The chairperson in her summary stressed the importance of genetic resources and the need for further cooperation in this field.

The Ministers decided that the discussions should be reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

6. International issues

Ms Mariann Fischer Boel presented the agenda item. She thought that Nordic-Baltic co-operation should be a dynamic process, to continually be adapted to international developments. She argued that the international activities should be based on systematic consultations at all relevant levels to determine common interests, with the aim to establish a platform for initiatives and concerted actions in cases where the countries wish to exert influence. At the same time, she called for caution not to be perceived as a bloc in the EU. She introduced the background materials on forestry, fisheries, WTO and OECD, and in particular pointed to the problem of illegal logging, which has put the promotion of forest law enforcement, combat of illegal logging and related trade high on the forest policy agenda in recent years.

Mr. Árni Matthíesen agreed that there is a need for sensitivity when dealing with international issues but found it natural to have similar attitudes on selected issues. He found the cod recovery plan of the IBSFC a good example of how the precautionary approach can be applied and an important precedent, but failed to see the problems caused by drift nets. He informed that dioxin and mercury levels are low in Icelandic products. In order not to cause damage where it is not necessary, he called for an adjustment of the remedies to the fact that the appearance of the substances go back to activities in the mid 20th century.

Mr. Mārtiņš Roze found illegal logging a crucial issue for Latvia, which is to 50% covered by forests. Nationally new legislation and a new accountancy system for round wood are under preparation, which will make international trade with certified products possible.

One way to make management of forests more sustainable was to introduce certification of timber. In Latvia 50% of the forests are FSC certified. He found that certification should be extended in such a way that international trade was only allowed with certified products. He expressed support for the program for restoration of the cod stocks in the Baltic Sea, but stressed the need to protect the Latvian fishing industry. He supported Iceland regarding the real danger of certain pollutants.

Mr. Lars Sponheim confirmed that Norway in the field of forestry is strongly committed to the work of the UNFF, believing that the regional processes can contribute to the global processes. He underlined the necessity to retain a strong political focus on high activity within the MCPFE process and inter alia stressed the need to increase the use of wood products and bio-energy from sustainable managed forest resources. He gave great importance to the multilateral rules making and reform process that is currently on-going within the WTO. He hoped that the ongoing consultations in Geneva would bring the process back on track as soon as possible. He explained that Norway is prepared to make significant concessions on agriculture, but stressed that small countries that are heavy importers of agricultural products should not pay the major part of the price. He finally described how Norway is engaged in projects related to dioxin in the Baltic Sea Region on methods for determination of dioxin in seafood, wishing to extend it to include other undesirable substances in seafood from the Baltic Sea Region and to generate more knowledge regarding the issues.

Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist reflected over the intense international cooperation in different areas. She expressed her concern about fishing and the level of cod stocks in the Baltic Sea. She found the WTO negotiations important for small countries and the EU, and pointed out that it had helpful for the negotiations that the EU had spoken with one voice in Cancun. She agreed that the Nordic and Baltic countries should not act as a block in the EU, but found it important that the Nordic and Baltic countries as neighbours could discuss strategies in relation to processes of common interest.

The Ministers decided that the discussions should be appropriately reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

7. Any other business

8. Closure of the meeting

Ms Ann-Christin Nykvist in her capacity of chairperson thanked for the active participation in the discussions, which had in her view made it a very interesting meeting. She informed about a press conference at 17.00. The Ministers noted the press release of the Nordic Council of Ministers, annex 8/1.

When closing the meeting, Mr. Tiit Tammsaar remarked that a number of declarations were the outcome of the meeting, which reflected the greater perspective of the future cooperation. He expressed his satisfaction with the results of the meeting, which called for follow-up by the civil servants. He informed about the study trip the following day with focus on the food chain. He thanked for the preparation of and participation in the meeting.