Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Florin-Ionuț BARBU, participated in the Agriculture and Fisheries Council held in Brussels.

The agenda of the meeting included important topics for our country's agricultural sector, such as fishing possibilities for 2024, conclusions regarding the long-term vision for EU rural areas until 2040, the current situation of the proposal for a regulation on new genomic techniques (NGT), and forestry.

The Council conducted an exchange of views based on the Commission's presentation of its proposals for setting fishing opportunities in the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the Mediterranean, and the Black Sea.

During a public session, agriculture ministers attempted to approve conclusions on the long-term vision for EU rural areas.

The Spanish Presidency provided information on the ongoing work regarding the proposal for a regulation on plants obtained by certain new genomic techniques and products intended for human or animal consumption.

At this point, the Croatian delegation also provided information on this topic.

In a public session, the Commission informed ministers about the implementation of the EU Forest Strategy for 2030, the Austrian delegation provided information on the "For the Forest" group, and the German delegation communicated measures to support partner countries regarding deforestation.

Additionally, in the public session, the Italian delegation conveyed information to the Council regarding the role of farmers in ensuring the sustainability of rural areas, and the French delegation presented information on the partial application of GAEC 8 for 2024.