Plant proteins: culture on set-aside land of oilseeds, protein crops and fodder following the BSE crisis

The European Parliament adopted its resolution based on the report by Struan Stevenson (EPP-ED, United Kingdom). Parliament felt that the best way to ensure a high degree of food safety is by controlling production from source to finished product within the EU. It recommended the development of EU plant protein production to reduce reliance on imports. Other species of grain legumes need to be introduced, such as yellow lupins, and chickling-vetch. The cycle of pathogens can be broken by introducing plant protein-producing crops in cereal crop rotation, and thereby decreasing the use of pesticides and increasing resilience to disease. The Commission is asked to explore how the Blair house agreements might be terminated to enable EU-based protein production to be increased. It is also asked to produce either a safety net or an income-insurance scheme to benefit producers of oilseed and protein crops.�