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☆ 'Many may die' warns UN after end of Black Sea grain deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Russia quit the Black Sea grain deal on Monday, saying that demands to improve its own food and fertilizer exports had not been met, and that not enough Ukrainian grain had reached the poorest countries. The Black Sea grain deal was brokered a year ago by the United Nations and Turkey to combat a global food crisis worsened by Russia's invasion. The impact of the grain deal in terms of provisions of Ukrainian grain to global markets is "essentially not very significant," he said. Before Russia withdrew from the Black Sea deal on Monday, the U.N. had "brokered a concrete proposal" with the European Commission to connect a Rosselkhozbank subsidiary to SWIFT. "We remain open to explore solutions with the U.N. that would contribute to the resumption of the grain deal," EU envoy to the U.N. Olof Skoog told the council.

Persons: Martin Griffiths, Mikhail Khan, Sergei Vershinin, Rosemary DiCarlo, Tayyip Erdogan, Vladimir Putin, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, Thomas, Dmitry Polyanskiy, Olof Skoog, Michelle Nichols, Sybille de La, Doina Chiacu, Conor Humphries Organizations: UNITED NATIONS, United Nations, Security, United, Security Council, U.S, Russia's Agricultural Bank, SWIFT, European Union, Russia, European Commission, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, U.S, Chicago, United Nations, Turkey, Afghanistan, Djibouti Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Moscow, Crimea, Russia's, Paris

☆ Party is over for Champagne as sales drop after two record years
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sales are expected to reach around 314 million bottles in 2023, French industry group Comite Champagne (Champagne Committee) said in a statement. Exports stood at 77.7 million bottles, down 3.7%, while France recorded a drop of 6.3% with 48.1 million bottles. "The fall in shipments, for France, is attributed to inflation," a Comite Champagne spokesperson told Reuters. Champagne producers expect sales to remain around the same level in the next three years, at an average 315 million bottles, she said. The Comite Champagne set a maximum yield of grapes that can be harvested on the total 33,700 hectares (83,275 acres) devoted to Champagne wine at 11,400 kg per hectare, down from 12,000 kg/ha in 2022.

Persons: Champagne, Sybille de La, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Comite, Exports, Comite Champagne, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Champagne, France, Comite

[1/2] A sign reading "Low prices for you" is seen on a shopping trolley in a supermarket in Nice, France, March 1, 2023. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard/File PhotoLONDON/PARIS, June 23 (Reuters) - Danone (DANO.PA) and Kellogg (K.N) are among 75 consumer goods companies that French authorities have asked to cut prices, according to a list seen by Reuters that sources say the government is using for the initiative. The French government is using the list seen by Reuters, produced by a research group, as a reference for the project, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter. Some consumer goods makers have said recently that costs are starting to ease, leading lawmakers and regulators to accuse companies of keeping prices high unnecessarily. Investors have in recent months warned that consumer goods companies should start easing price increases as supply chain costs decline, worried that further hikes could hit market share and margin growth.

Persons: Eric Gaillard, Bruno Le Maire, Knorr, Avril, Pernod Ricard, Kellogg, Richa Naidu, Matt Scuffham, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Danone, Kellogg, Finance, Reuters, Unilever, Nestle, ABI, Thomson Locations: Nice, France, PARIS, Ukraine

☆ Animal health body urges bird flu vaccination to avoid pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The severity of the current outbreak of avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, and the economic and personal damage it has caused, has led governments to reconsider vaccinating poultry. A WOAH survey showed only 25% of its member states would accept imports of products from poultry vaccinated against HPAI. The European Union's 27 member states agreed last year to implement a bird flu vaccine strategy. The risk to humans from bird flu remains low but countries must prepare for any change in the status quo, the World Health Organization has said. Eloit said vaccination should focus on free-range poultry, mainly ducks, since bird flu is transmitted by infected migrating wild birds.

☆ Most groundwater still low in France despite spring rainfall
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A view shows a bridge with sandbanks of the Loire River in Ingrandes-le-Fresne-sur-Loire, France, May 4, 2023. Risks of a drought by the end of the summer 2023 were now "extremely likely" in southeastern France and around Paris, the environment ministry said in a separate report. Restrictions on water usage have already been implemented in some regions in southern France in recent months as authorities anticipated a summer drought. "The situation remains unsatisfactory over a large part of the country: 68% of groundwater levels remain below monthly norms in April (compared to 75% in March 2023) with many sectors showing low to very low levels," BRGM said in its monthly bulletin. However, some concerns remained in southwest and northeast of Paris and the situation in the south, including the Mediterranean coast, was unsatisfactory to worrying, BRGM said.

☆ France's Ynsect to refocus bug business after capital increase
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Ynsect's Chairman and CEO Antoine Hubert displays mealworms at the laboratory of the insect farm Ynsect, which harvests mealworms for bug-based animal food and fertilizer, in Dole, France, October 22, 2020. Farmed bugs, such as mealworms, are ground down to produce proteins for aquaculture, livestock, pet food, fertilisers and human nutrition. Ynsect will close its Dutch production plant, acquired through the takeover of Protifarm in 2021, which rears a different type of bug, while keeping research activities. In addition the company will cut 38 jobs in France, out of a total of about 360 people, Hubert said. In its latest round of fund raising in 2020 Ynsect brought in more than 315 million euros, of which about 175 million euros was capital and the rest in debt and subsidies.

☆ France says pesticide ban will not hit grain exports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

He said that EU countries including Germany and Bulgaria were also using the pesticide on grain exports to Algeria. The questions in Parliament followed a weekend report by l'Opinion newspaper that said French grain exports would come to a halt from April 25. With the deadline looming, French grain producers had called for a swift response from the government. "We are depriving ourselves of a quarter of the outlets for French cereals," Eric Thirouin, head of French grain growers group AGPB, told Reuters. Exports put at risk by the ANSES decision amount to about 4 billion euros ($4.37 billion) in trade surplus, compared with a total grain trade surplus of about 11 billion euros last year, he said.

☆ Senegal reports outbreak of H5N1 bird flu on farm, WOAH says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, March 31 (Reuters) - Senegal has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu on a poultry farm in the northwestern part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Friday. The outbreak occurred on March 18 on a farm located in the village of Potou near the town of Louga, not far from the Langue de Barbarie National Park where an H5N1 outbreak was diagnosed on March 12, the Paris-based WOAH said, citing Senegalese authorities. The outbreak killed 500 birds in the 11,400-strong flock, with the remaining animals culled, the WOAH said. Avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has been spreading around the world in the past year, killing more than 200 million birds, sending egg prices rocketing and raising concern among governments about human transmission. Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Hugh Lawson, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ France's Macron announces water saving plan, says protests will not stop reforms
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to members of the media as he visits Savines-Le-Lac, South Eastern France, March 30, 2023. With the water plan, Macron and his government are looking to move to other topics. "There are protests, but it does not mean everything must stop," Macron said. Before his speech, Macron told reporters that protests would not stop him from adopting new policies. In some towns, half the water is lost to water leaks, with a nationwide average of 20%.

Most international grain traders have stopped new investment in Russia since last year following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine but continued exporting Russian wheat. "As grain export-related challenges continue to mount, Cargill will stop elevating Russian grain for export in July 2023 after the completion of the 2022-2023 season," the company said in an emailed statement. "The cessation of its export activities on the Russian market will not affect the volume of domestic grain shipments abroad. The company's grain export assets will continue to operate regardless of who manages them," the agriculture ministry told Reuters. According to RBC business daily, Cargill will export 2.2 million tonnes of Russian grain in the 2022-23 exporting season, or around 4% of Russia's total grain exports.

☆ Viterra plans to exit Russian grain trade - Bloomberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PARIS, March 29 (Reuters) - Global grain trader Viterra is planning to stop grain trading in Russia, the world's largest wheat exporter, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. This comes after Russia said U.S. trading giant Cargill had told the agriculture ministry it would stop exporting Russian grain from the start of the next exporting season, which begins on July 1. Most international grain traders have been scaling back their activities in Russia since last year following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Viterra, part-owned by Switzerland-based mining and trading giant Glencore (GLEN.L), is one of the largest exporters of Russian wheat. Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Vaccine makers prep bird flu shot for humans 'just in case'; rich nations lock in supplies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Jennifer Rigby | Thomson Reuters | Jen Reports On Health Issues Affecting People Around The World | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

There has also been a push among companies to develop a bird flu vaccine for poultry, a market potentially far larger than that for humans. Many countries' pandemic plans say flu shots should go first to the most vulnerable while supply is limited. The agreements include six of the largest seasonal flu manufacturers, such as GSK, Sanofi and CSL Seqirus, the WHO said. NEW APPROACHESIn a pandemic, vaccine manufacturers would shift production of seasonal flu vaccines and instead make shots tailored to the new outbreak when needed. The results will be closely watched, as the data on Moderna’s seasonal flu candidate was mixed.

☆ Switzerland detects case of atypical mad cow disease
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Brain stem material tested positive for the disease and the case was classified as "atypical", the Paris-based WOAH said. BSE, commonly called mad cow disease, is a fatal disease of the nervous system of cattle. Atypical cases can occur spontaneously in cattle while the classical type is usually caused by the ingestion of contaminated feed. Widespread cases of mad cow disease hit cattle herds in Britain and other European countries in the 1990s. Atypical cases have occasionally been detected and can lead to temporary trade restrictions.

☆ Estonia reported bird flu outbreak on poultry farm, WOAH says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, March 3 (Reuters) - Estonia has reported an outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus on a farm in the northern part of the country, the Paris-based World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Friday. The poultry farm, located in the village of Urge in the Rapla County, had 161 birds, including laying hens, ducks, geese, pigeons and peacocks, WOAH said, citing Estonian authorities. On Feb. 15, one laying hen suddenly died and was sent to the laboratory. The World Health Organization described the situation as "worrying" after two confirmed human cases of H5N1 bird flu were found among one family in Cambodia. Argentina this week suspended its poultry exports after a first industrial case of bird flu was confirmed.

☆ Bird flu alarm drives world towards once-shunned vaccines
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

"That's why every country in the world is worried about bird flu," French agriculture minister Marc Fesneau said. But the fear of trade restrictions remains centre stage for countries reluctant to vaccinate poultry against bird flu. Bird flu can also mutate rapidly and reduce the efficacy of vaccines while programmes are costly and time consuming, as shots often need to be administered individually. Ceva said it was using the mRNA technology used in some COVID shots for the first time in poultry vaccines. The global market for bird flu vaccines would be about 800 million to 1 billion doses per year, excluding China, said Sylvain Comte, corporate marketing director for poultry at Ceva.

☆ Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop 'war' on poultry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Argentina found the virus in wild birds, while dead swans in Uruguay tested positive. The United States, Britain, France and Japan are among countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless. Poultry in the Northern Hemisphere were previously considered to be most at risk when wild birds are active during spring migration. Some experts suspect climate change may be contributing to the global spread by altering wild birds' habitats and migratory paths. Farmers are trying unusual tactics to protect poultry, with some using machines that make loud noises to scare off wild birds, experts said.

☆ Explainer: What are the bird flu risks to people and animals?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE BIRD FLU? Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop "war" on poultryWHAT BIRDS CAN BE INFECTED? Mammals including bears, seals, foxes and skunks have been infected with H5N1 avian flu, authorities said. If one bird in a flock has avian flu, farmers usually cull all their birds to prevent the spread of the highly contagious virus. Additionally, avian flu is not transmissible by eating properly cooked poultry and eggs, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

☆ French agency orders halt in some uses of Syngenta weedkiller
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS (Reuters) -French health and safety agency ANSES on Wednesday ordered a halt to some uses of one of the most widely used weedkillers in France, S-metolachlor, which is produced by Swiss chemicals company Syngenta, after finding excessive levels in groundwater. FILE PHOTO: Corn grows on a field in front of a plant of Swiss agrochemicals maker Syngenta in the northern Swiss town of Stein July 23, 2015. “This will reduce environmental contamination by this substance and thus help gradually restore the quality of groundwater,” it added. Farm office FranceAgriMer said it was too early to estimate the potential impact of the decision on crop production. Anti-pesticide group Generations Futures welcomed ANSES’ decision despite the withdrawal not being total, saying it anticipated a likely European ban on the substance.

☆ Bird flu spreads to new countries, threatens non-stop "war" on poultry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The United States, Britain, France and Japan are among countries that have suffered record losses of poultry over the past year, leaving some farmers feeling helpless. Poultry in the Northern Hemisphere were previously considered to be most at risk when wild birds are active during spring migration. Some experts suspect climate change may be contributing to the global spread by altering wild birds' habitats and migratory paths. Farmers are trying unusual tactics to protect poultry, with some using machines that make loud noises to scare off wild birds, experts said. Berkowitz said he is bracing for March and April when migration season will pose an even greater risk to poultry.

☆ Explainer: Bird flu: what are the risks to people and animals?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tom Polansek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE BIRD FLU? Wild birds including waterfowl like ducks can carry bird flu viruses without appearing sick and easily spread them to domesticated poultry like chickens and turkeys, experts said. Mammals including bears, seals, foxes and skunks have been infected with H5N1 avian flu, authorities said. If one bird in a flock has avian flu, farmers usually cull all their birds to prevent the spread of the highly contagious virus. Additionally, avian flu is not transmissible by eating properly cooked poultry and eggs, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

☆ Hundreds of tractors enter Paris in protest against pesticide bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] French farmers drive their tractors near the Invalides during a protest over pesticide restrictions and other environmental regulations they say are threatening agricultural production, in Paris, France, February 8, 2023. REUTERS/Sarah MeyssonnierPARIS, Feb 8 (Reuters) - French farmers drove hundreds of tractors into Paris early on Wednesday to protest against pesticide restrictions and other environmental regulations they say are threatening farm production in the European Union's largest agricultural power. They warned imports of crops not subject to similar pesticide restrictions would threaten French jobs. Environmental activists say pesticide residues cause damage to the soil and wildlife. Unions were expecting 500 tractors and 2,000 farmers from around Paris to join the protest.

The government had been preparing a third and final annual dispensation to cover the 2023 sugar beet crop. Sugar beet growers group CGB condemned the "brutality of the decision" a few weeks before spring planting. That could further discourage sugar beet growers who faced drought-related yield losses last year and put a question mark over sugar production capacity. "When sugar manufacturers don't have enough sugar beet they have to close. The EU court's ruling followed a challenge to a similar exemption for neonicotinoid use on sugar beet in Belgium.

PARIS, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Senalia, operator of France's largest grain export terminal, aims to load 4.6 million tonnes of cereals in the 2022/23 season to June 30, up nearly 14% from 2021/22, supported by Chinese demand and war disruption to Black Sea trade, it said on Friday. France is the European Union's biggest grain supplier and its brisk wheat shipments have contributed to higher overall EU wheat exports so far this season. Flows from Russia and Ukraine have since recovered, though, helped by the creation of a wartime grain corridor from Ukrainian ports. Senalia loaded 4.05 million tonnes of cereals in the previous 2021/22 season, it said. Tonnage was more than halved in 2021/22 after Saint Louis Sucre, a unit of Germany's Suedzucker (SZUG.DE), ended a partnership.

☆ World food prices hit record high in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food price index, which tracks international prices of the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 143.7 points in 2022, up 14.3% from 2021, and the highest since records started in 1990, the agency said on Friday. Food prices surged after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February last year on fears of disruptions to Black Sea trade. "Calmer food commodity prices are welcome after two very volatile years," FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said. Still over the whole of 2022, four of the FAO's five food sub-indexes - cereals, meat, dairy and vegetable oils - had reached record highs, while the fifth one, sugar, was at a 10-year high. The FAO Cereal Price Index index rose 17.9% in 2022 due to factors including significant market disruptions, higher energy and input costs, adverse weather and continued strong global food demand, the FAO said.

☆ France's InVivo to buy one of the world's oldest malthouses in Belgium
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Malteries Soufflet, a branch of French agribusiness group InVivo, said on Monday it had signed an agreement to take over Belgian malthouse Castle Malting, one of the oldest producers of the beer ingredient in the world. Castle Malting, called "La Malterie du Château" in French, is located near the castle of Beloeil in southern Belgium. Established in 1868, it is the oldest malting plant in the country and one of the oldest in the world. Belgium is famous for its beers offering a large variety of flavours, colours and alcohol strengths. Castle Malting would give Malteries Soufflet the opportunity to develop its activity in the higher value-added craft beer market where it is not very present, InVivo said.

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