European Commission Plans Research Articles

Look-smell-taste labels on food date marking: Assessing their effectiveness for reducing food waste at a consumer level as part of the European Green Deal

The frequent misinterpretation of “best before” labels among consumers is linked to substantial amounts of food waste generated in the US and the EU. To counteract this problem, the European Commission plans to revise current regulations of date marking. Among other initiatives, it is considered to use “Look-Smell-Taste” (LST) labels on food packaging, which depict visual cues motivating consumers to engage in sensory food assessments. Against this background, this paper aims to investigate the LST labels’ effectiveness in reducing consumers’ food waste behavior using an online- and a food lab experiment. The studies examine selected date marking options varying in their wording and presence of the LST label with regard to their potential (1) to increase the overdate acceptance and actual product use, as well as (2) to motivate the sensory assessment of dairy products that passed the “best before” date. Findings show that LST labels did not significantly increase the overdate acceptance, the actual use of expired products, or consumers’ engagement in sensory assessment. Participants did however indicate their preference for date marking options with LST labels over text-only options. The paper provides insights into current and future attempts to reduce food waste related to date marking and recommendations for respective revisions as part of the European Green Deal.

Harnessing EU legal concepts for the energy transition on islands

Abstract The European Commission plans to achieve the decarbonization of dozens of European Union (EU) islands by 2030. This would reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower the dependency of islands on imported fuels, and potentially reduce local energy prices. At the same time, it may accelerate the mainland’s own energy transition through the import of surplus energy from renewable sources, the provision of aggregated flexibility services, and the testing of both technologies and policies on islands for replication and adaptation on the continent. Although islands are not even a legal category per se in EU energy law, the existing legal framework already allows to harness various concepts to foster the energy transition of EU islands. This article reviews available legal qualifications and regimes such as small systems’ exemptions, energy communities, positive energy districts, and local flexibility markets in the context of the decarbonization of EU islands. Potentially, they could open many different ways to tailor local energy transitions, channelling local actions to accelerate the whole process.

Know your customer: Unravelling the challenges

Regulated financial institutions must conduct regular know-your-customer (KYC) reviews on corporate clients to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism. However, national add-on requirements and regulatory discrepancies challenge the vision of a unified Europe, hindering the creation of an efficient, digital and hence scalable pan-European anti-money laundering (AML) process for all stakeholders who are active beyond their national borders. The current inability of banks to introduce efficient but robust pan- European KYC processes delays customers’ access to finance and other banking products, and indirectly impedes the free movement of goods, services and capital. The European Commission plans to introduce the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR) to harmonise and strengthen the EU AML framework. This could reduce national divergences, allowing for a level playing field across the internal market and consistent application of provisions throughout the EU. Unfortunately, harmonised regulation alone does not solve the current issues faced by financial institutions. While a harmonised rulebook provides certainty related to ‘what’ needs to be done, significant pan-European discrepancies remain related to ‘how’ the requirements can be fulfilled. For example, the EU has directed all member states to establish commercial and beneficial ownership registers, but left the design of such registers under the authority of the member state. Consequently, banks active on a pan-European level have to adjust their processes based on the type and content of the national register. Also, the definition of what constitutes a politically exposed person (PEP) varies significantly across the EU, as do the enhanced due diligence requirements which are triggered upon the identification of such a PEP. This paper provides suggestions on how EU member states can help the financial industry in a joint effort to prevent money laundering and combat the financing of terrorism more effectively. The objective of this discussion is to create a streamlined and unified approach to KYC processes across Europe.

Citizens’ opinions on (non-)essential uses of persistent chemicals: A survey in seven European countries

In accordance with the European Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability towards a Toxic-free Environment, the European Commission plans to phase out persistent chemicals, such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), except for uses classified essential for society. Until now, empirical research on what is considered an essential or non-essential chemical use has been lacking. Furthermore, as such criteria are bound to be subjective, different parties can have different views. In this study we explored which uses of persistent chemicals citizens from seven EU countries consider (non-)essential for society. As EU citizens are directly impacted by policy decisions based on (non-)essentiality criteria, we also investigated the influence of emphasis on the consequences of banning vs. allowing persistent chemicals, the association with demographics, and of having heard of persistent chemicals or PFAS prior to the study. We found substantial variation in essentiality ratings within and between use categories and between countries. Uses related to safety were frequently considered essential, whereas uses related to recreation, household, and personal care were frequently considered non-essential. Emphasis on different consequences did not influence essentiality ratings. Gender, age, education, and political orientation were to some extent associated with essentiality ratings. People who had not heard of persistent chemicals or PFAS prior to the study rated uses of persistent chemicals less frequently as non-essential or essential. Our findings offer insight into EU citizens’ opinions on (non-)essential uses of persistent chemicals, and provide empirical input to the scientific and public debate on framing the concept of essential use.

Anticipating lithium extraction in northern Portugal: A Sacrifice Zone in the making?

Despite increasing calls for the development of a circular economy, extractive industries are gaining renewed relevance in Europe. The European Commission's plan to expand domestic sourcing of lithium to scale up the production and use of electric vehicles has been met with social resistance from affected communities who mobilize to protect their livelihoods, and nature. The growing conflicts emerging around global battery supply chains highlight the importance of examining justice-related concerns around current decarbonization strategies. This article takes a political ecology approach that combines the concepts of place and anticipation to examine negotiations around a proposed lithium mine in the Barroso region in northern Portugal. Drawing on 27 qualitative semi-structured interviews and ethnographic research in August 2021, we explore how local residents engage in the politics of anticipation around the mine. The study has two main findings: (1) While local supporters hope to benefit from the project economically, opponents expect it to undermine agricultural traditions, counteract plans for expanding tourism services, and as known from mining areas in the past, drive displacement and rural injustices. (2) As opponents feel restricted in their ability to participate in decision-making around the project, they act upon the future through defensive resistance, connecting across multiple scales and drawing on place-based symbols to mark differences from dominant ideas on extractive development. The study suggests that local activists' experiences of being disregarded in their concerns and demands indicate that plans to expand resource extraction in the name of the green economy are giving rise to new sacrifice zones.

Exploring the Online Micro-targeting Practices of Small, Medium, and Large Businesses

Facebook and other advertising platforms exploit users' data for marketing purposes by allowing advertisers to select specific users and target them with well-crafted messages (the practice is being called micro-targeting). However, advertisers such as Cambridge Analytica have maliciously used these targeting features to manipulate users in the context of elections. The European Commission plans to restrict or even ban some targeting functionalities in the new European Democracy Action Plan act to protect users from such harms. The difficulty in finding appropriate restrictions is that we do not know the economic impact of these restrictions on regular advertisers. In this paper, to inform the debate, we take a first step by understanding who is advertising on Facebook and how they use the targeting functionalities of ad platforms. For this, we asked 890 U.S. users to install a monitoring tool on their browsers to collect the ads they receive on Facebook and information about how these ads were targeted. By matching advertisers on Facebook with their LinkedIn profiles, we could see that 71% of advertisers are small and medium-sized businesses with 200 employees or less, and they are responsible for 61% of ads and 57% of ad impressions. Regarding micro-targeting, we found that only 32% of small and medium-sized businesses and 30% of large-sized businesses in our dataset micro-target at least one of their ads. These results should not be interpreted as micro-targeting not being useful as a marketing strategy, but rather that advertisers prefer to outsource the micro-targeting task to ad platforms. Indeed, to deliver ads, Facebook is employing optimization algorithms that exploit user data to decide which users should see what ads; which basically means ad platforms are performing an algorithmic-driven micro-targeting. Hence, when setting restrictions on micro-targeting, legislators should take into account both the traditional advertiser-driven micro-targeting as well as algorithmic-driven micro-targeting performed by ad platforms.

Accounting for climatic effects in measuring U.S. field crop farm productivity

AbstractThe European Commission plans to reduce pesticides and fertilizer use in agriculture substantially under its Green Deal's Farm to Fork strategy. Policy alternatives are needed to overcome these input reductions, for instance by allocating R&D towards commodities most affected by climage change and improving the precision of input use. Since climate change is likely to impact agriculture negatively, productivity measures that account for all inputs and climate change impacts can help to weigh such policy responses. We adopt U.S. farm‐level data and a multi‐output and multi‐input production technology to estimate relative farm productivity performances with climatic effects. Exploiting long‐term weather patterns, we find comparative advantages among some crop farms and ample productivity improvement potential across all of them.

Prospects of green hydrogen in Poland: A techno-economic analysis using a Monte Carlo approach

The European Commission's plan to decarbonize the economy using innovative energy carriers has brought into question whether the national targets for developing electrolysis technologies are sufficiently ambitious to establish a local hydrogen production industry. While several research works have explored the economic viability of individual green hydrogen production and storage facilities in the Western European Member States, only a few studies have examined the prospects of large-scale green hydrogen production units in Poland. In this study, a Monte Carlo-based model is proposed and developed to investigate the underlying economic and technical factors that may impact the success of the Polish green hydrogen strategy. Moreover, it analyzes the economics of renewable hydrogen at different stages of technological development and market adoption. This is achieved by characterizing the local meteorological conditions of Polish NUTS-2 regions and comparing the levelized cost of hydrogen in such regions in 2020, 2030, and 2050. The results show the geographical locations where the deployment of large-scale hydrogen production units will be most cost effective.

Introducing climate impact accounting for investment portfolios. A comparative study on the existing methodologies

This study provides an overarching state-of-the-art review of climate change-related accounting practices for investment portfolios. With the adoption of the Paris Agreement and European Commission plan on sustainable finance, the question regarding the compatibility of financial flows with decarbonisation objectives has gained cardinal importance among capital market participants. The application of a viable climate-alignment framework has become inevitable for legislators, regulators, investors, issuers, and rating agencies. Carbon footprinting and intensity measurement associated with portfolio investments and its climate impact are central issues for climate performance and risk assessment, management, reporting and GHG emissions reduction target setting. This study evidences the absence of a consensual method and a notable variation in the results attained for the same portfolio across different approaches. This study focused on practices related to listed assets, namely on the attribution of climate impact generated by issuers to portfolios and investors. The findings offer a comparative study of the existing methodologies and introduce portfolio climate impact accounting concept and structure.

Secondary cancer prevention among the youth: research status and policy recommendations for the EU

Abstract Background In early 2021, Europe's Beating Cancer Plan was announced on World Cancer Day. While the European Commission's plan does not include a focus on secondary cancers prevention, the secondary cancers are the sixth most common group of malignanciesThe review aims to 1) synthesize the existing approaches and interventions for cancer prevention in young cancer patients and survivors, 2) deliver evidence-based recommendations for how to best adapt the existing cancer prevention guidelines for young cancer survivors including children, adolescents or young adults (AYA). Methods Four major databases (PubMed, Web of Science and PsycINFO, PsycNET) were screened for relevant literature on cancer prevention in childhood and AYA cancer patients and survivors using a combination of terms. Results The search yielded 2,712 unique articles from which 32 met the inclusion criteria. Few existing studies focus on AYA or directly address cancer prevention in young survivors. More emphasis is needed on other preventative measures beyond healthy diet and physical exercise. Conclusions This review revealed a gap in the translational research in cancer prevention for young people with cancer. The findings emphasize that childhood and AYA cancer patients and survivors need not be overlooked. A pan-European research framework for prevention of second primary cancer among young people is recommended to gain knowledge on how to best adapt the measures against second primary cancers in youth. Key messages Developing targeted cancer prevention measures in young cancer survivors may lower the burden of second primary cancers as well as attenuate the fear of recurrence, one of the most prevalent worries. A pan-European research framework for prevention of second primary cancer among young people is recommended to gain knowledge on how to best adapt the measures against second primary cancers in youth.

Interview article: water movements’ defense of the right to water. From the European arena to the Dutch exception

ABSTRACT In 2012 public service trade unions and water activists started a European Citizens’ Initiative to get the human right to water implemented in European law. It became the start of the “Right2Water” movement that successfully defended drinking water supply in the European Union against European Commission plans for liberalisation, marketisation and the subsequent threat of privatisation. In countries with a good functioning public water system, resistance against privatisation of water was high, especially in Germany, Austria and Belgium, but surprisingly this level of resistance was absent in the Netherlands, which has a similarly good and well-known public water supply system. In this article we interview two persons that have both experience in European as well as in the Netherlands’ water policies and legislation, and in water services provision. We investigate how the right to water is defined, legally decreed and socially interpreted and defended at different levels. We also investigate the apparent paradox with regards to water in the Netherlands, where people seemed very committed to and proud of their public water management, but did not stand up against a privatisation threat, whereas around the globe water privatisation plans are met with great resistance.

Infrastructure and international cooperation in research and knowledge transfer: supporting access to key infrastructures and pan-European research − lessons learned

Access to research infrastructures has been supported by the European Commission under different financial schemes. During the 6th EURATOM Framework Programme the instrument introduced by the European Commission were the Integrated Infrastructure Initiatives (I-3). Moreover, funding schemes to support Education and Training for students and professional developments were defined also. The main difference between these two funding schemes is that I-3 are topic-driven projects with access to infrastructure components, while the Education and Training related projects have a mobility component that is applied for the different research topics. The outcome of projects as TALISMAN (I-3), EFNUDAT/NUDAME (I-3), GENTLE (mobility), ENEN-plus (mobility), NUGENIA-plus (mobility within TA of NUGENIA) and ESNII-plus (I-3 similar) will be shortly presented as well as the future European Commission plans in the field of access to research infrastructure.

Накопичена енергія в мортмасі березових насаджень Чернігівщини

Rapid industrial development, the growth of the population on the planet and the reduction of fossil energy resources over the past century have led to an unstable supply of energy resources in most countries of the world. Under these conditions, the European Commission plans to increase the share of renewable energy to 30 % over the next half century. Today in Ukraine there are several sources of obtaining energy wood raw materials. First of all, it is fuel wood, chipped residue and wood that has not been removed from the forest. There are two main areas of bioenergy: the energy of the ecosystem and the energy that is concentrated in wood and can be used as fuel. In our research, the forest litter of the bedding refers to the direction of "energy of the ecosystem", and the mortmass snags , logs , and branches to the components that can be used by man as an additional source of energy. Establishing the amount of energy accumulated in the forest ecosystem is possible, first of all, due to the estimation of phytomass and mortmass plantings. It is known that the first attempts of such studies were performed by simple extrapolation of phytomass estimation data on selected test areas to significant forest regions with significant overestimation of results. The most tested at the present stage of the study of the features of the accumulation of living organic matter in forest systems are the methods associated with the evaluation of relevant indicators through the regression modeling of the components of fractions in absolute values or using transfer coefficients. The purpose of the study is to establish quantitative indices of accumulated energy in mortmass of birch forestry. Material and methods of research. In order to determine the components of the above ground mortmass, 30 temporary trial areas were laid in modal birches of in Chernihiv region. On each test area, an estimation of the classical inventory indices of the planting, also the established reserves, the structure of phytomass and mortmass. To calculate the components of mortmass, data from a solid list of trunks on the temporary trial areas and biometric parameters of model trees using the PERTA software were used. To determine the area of birch forestry in the Chernihiv region, data from the production association «Ukrderzhlisproekt» (2011) database was used. Conclusions According to the results of the research, the energy content of the dry mortmass snags of birch trees, which varies from 3,9 GJ·ha -1 to 108 GJ·ha -1 , in dry branches from 17,6 GJ·ha -1 to 12,5 GJ·ha -1 . The energy content of the mortmass logs can vary from 1,1 GJ·ha -1 to 103 GJ·ha -1 , in the mortmass of rough branches it changes from 0,5 GJ·ha -1 in young to 26 GJ·ha -1 in ripe birch forestry. Thus, the obtained results will contribute to the practical implementation of the development of bioenergy in Ukraine as one of the most promising directions for solving energy problems, and the developed reference materials can be used during scientific, ecological, forestry substantiation of the expanded use of forest energy resources of birch laying in Chernihiv region. Key words: snags , logs , branches, forest litter, average diameter, average height, basic density, classes of destruction

Towards entire male pigs in Europe: A perspective from the Spanish supply chain

In pig production, surgical castration is primarily performed to avoid boar taint and for management purposes. The European Commission plans to end surgical piglet castration voluntarily by 2018. The aim of this study was to assess the opinions and attitudes of Spanish stakeholders from the entire pork chain regarding this plan. Two methodologies were used: focus groups with 26 participants (qualitative method) were conducted with representatives of farmers, the meat industry, government institutions, retailers (including butchers), HORECA and consumers, and 127 face-to-face surveys at butchers (quantitative method) were carried out. These include an analytical hierarchical process to assess the determining factors when purchasing fresh pig meat. The results showed that a potential end of pig castration in Europe is not anticipated to affect conventional pig production in Spain. However, butchers are worried of negative effects on high quality meat and meat products, where surgical castration of pigs plays an important role.

Data Retention: Directive invalid – Limits imposed by the Principle of Proportionality exceeded

The European Court of Justice has held that the Data Retention Directive entails a wideranging and particularly serious interference with Art 7 and 8 CFREU, without that interference being limited to what is strictly necessary to achieve the objectives of the Directive. While the incoming European Commission plans to explore options for future rules on the retention of electronic communications data at EU level, questions arise as to the judgment’s legal consequences for the Member States.

How Good are PIA Reports – And Where are They?

Privacy impact assessments (PIAs) may soon be standardised. The European Commission plans to make PIAs mandatory if Article 33 of its proposed Data Protection Regulation is adopted without any serious depredations by lobbyists. Concurrently, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is considering a standard for PIAs. The approaches currently being pursued by the Commission and the ISO have their antecedents in the PIA methodologies used in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the UK and the US. However, almost no attention has been paid to actual PIA reports to see how well or poorly they have been prepared and how closely they follow the PIA guidance documents in their countries. This paper argues that it is worth doing - to review actual PIA reports to see what can be learned from how they are implemented and whether their implementation offers any signposts for the policymaking process. However, finding actual PIA reports is something of a challenge. Following a search for UK PIA reports, this paper provides the results of analysis of some of those in terms of how well they followed the ICO PIA Handbook guidance, and what we can learn from an analysis of actual PIA reports. Along the way, this paper argues that organisations in the UK should create a registry of publicly available PIA reports.

Why are nanomaterials different and how can they be appropriately regulated under REACH?

BackgroundFor nanomaterials, not only their chemical composition but also their morphological properties and surface properties determine their characteristics. These properties do not only differ in comparison to the corresponding bulk material but also between different nanoforms of the same substance. Changes in these physico-chemical characteristics can cause changes in chemical properties, reactivity, (photo-) catalytic activities and energetic properties and in turn alter their (eco-) toxicity, fate and behaviour in environmental media and toxico-kinetics. Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) deals with chemical substances in general and although there are no special provisions that explicitly refer to nanomaterials, they are principally covered by REACH. In October 2012, the European Commission published the Second Regulatory Review on Nanomaterials. In February 2013, the REACH Review from the European Commission was published. Both papers address questions about the regulation of nanomaterials in REACH. The Commission proposes to improve the future situation by adaptation of the REACH Regulation. However, the European Commission plans to revise the annexes only and not the main text of the regulation.Results and conclusionsIn this publication, the authors present their considerations and recommendations on how REACH can adequately be adapted to nanomaterials. In the author's view, the bulk form and nanoforms of the same chemical composition should be treated as the same substance in the context of REACH. However, the regulation of nanomaterials under REACH has to meet specific requirements. Taking into account the plurality of physico-chemical characteristics and resulting changes in the hazard profile, an approach must be found to adequately cover nanomaterials under REACH. Accordingly, the REACH information requirements have to be adapted. This includes lower tonnage thresholds for different REACH obligations (e.g. registration, chemical safety report) which are justified by highly dispersed use together with low mass application, linked with the uncertainties regarding (eco-) toxicity, environmental fate and exposure. If the physico-chemical characteristics of different nanoforms of the same substance differ in a relevant manner they have to be considered separately for further test performance and REACH requirements.

Verbesserte Beschäftigungsbedingungen für Seeleute. Richtlinienvorschlag der Kommission zur Änderung des Seearbeitsrechtes

SummaryDue to competition and international expansion, the level of protection for seafarers decreased continually, mostly in virtue of flagging out. On this account, the requirements for seafarer’s labour law need to be revised. In this context, the European Commission plans to extend social standards concerning the employment of seafarers on a European level by adopting a directive on the rights of seafarers. According to the scopes of existing directives, it is presently possible to exclude seafarers from certain rights to involvement. Thus, the Commission aims to widen the scopes of five directives primarily concerning the right to information, hearing and consultation finding that there was no reason for the exclusion. By increasing the rights of employed seafarers, more European people shall be encouraged to take a job in the maritime sector. Although the initiative is considered a good contribution on that way, there might be other factors that keep young Europeans from taking the job of a seafarer, such as spending months on sea or being exposed to dangers on the high seas. Moreover, the initiative allows excluding seafarers from substantive claims. It needs to be examined whether the characteristics of seafaring require such regulation. Yet, the proposed measures do state, together with the EU Blue Book, the challenges for competitive and future-compliant seafaring and set a starting point for their realization.

INMiND: getting to the bottom of neuroinflammation

INMiND: getting to the bottom of neuroinflammation

A multi‐criteria based review of models that predict environmental impacts of land use‐change for perennial energy crops on water, carbon and nitrogen cycling

AbstractReduction in energy sector greenhouse gas GHG emissions is a key aim of European Commission plans to expand cultivation of bioenergy crops. Since agriculture makes up 10–12% of anthropogenic GHG emissions, impacts of land‐use change must be considered, which requires detailed understanding of specific changes to agroecosystems. The greenhouse gas (GHG) balance of perennials may differ significantly from the previous ecosystem. Net change in GHG emissions with land‐use change for bioenergy may exceed avoided fossil fuel emissions, meaning that actual GHG mitigation benefits are variable. Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling are complex interlinked systems, and a change in land management may affect both differently at different sites, depending on other variables. Change in evapotranspiration with land‐use change may also have significant environmental or water resource impacts at some locations. This article derives a multi‐criteria based decision analysis approach to objectively identify the most appropriate assessment method of the environmental impacts of land‐use change for perennial energy crops. Based on a literature review and conceptual model in support of this approach, the potential impacts of land‐use change for perennial energy crops on GHG emissions and evapotranspiration were identified, as well as likely controlling variables. These findings were used to structure the decision problem and to outline model requirements. A process‐based model representing the complete agroecosystem was identified as the best predictive tool, where adequate data are available. Nineteen models were assessed according to suitability criteria, to identify current model capability, based on the conceptual model, and explicit representation of processes at appropriate resolution. FASSET, ECOSSE, ANIMO, DNDC, DayCent, Expert‐N, Ecosys, WNMM and CERES‐NOE were identified as appropriate models, with factors such as crop, location and data availability dictating the final decision for a given project. A database to inform such decisions is included.