Call for new purity law
Call for new purity law
GERMAN farm minister, the radical Green politician, Renate Kunast, has called for a new "beef purity law", to ensure that cattle are raised only on water, grain and grass.
Addressing the Berlin government, she said similar conditions to those applying to German beer should also apply to German beef, with the emphasis on natural methods.
Ms Kunast also advocated a new "class, not mass" policy, suggesting that production subsidies should be redirected to environmental payments and organic farming.
While accepting that German agriculture should be made up mainly of conventional farms, she wants to see the organic sector grow from 2.5% to 20% by 2010.
She also called for more national funding in EU agriculture, so individual governments can decide how best to spend the money. Over half the DM27bn (£8.8bn) going to German farmers each year comes from the Federal budget.
Working with the Italian farm minister, the Green Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, Ms Kunast is expected to hold considerable sway in reshaping the CAP within the EU farm council. *