Is incoming EU agri-food Commissioner all ‘farm’ and no ‘fork’?

Hopes are high that Commissioner-designate Cristophe Hansen will navigate the increasingly polarised food policy debate—but his written replies to questions posed by MEPs have left a bitter taste in many, citing an overemphasis on agriculture and insufficient focus on food-related issues.

Answering European lawmakers earlier this week, Hansen reiterated his commitment to presenting a comprehensive vision for agriculture and food within the first 100 days of his mandate. This roadmap will ideally replace the Farm to Fork strategy, the failing EU’s food policy proposed in the previous mandate.

However, despite European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen adding “food” to Hansen’s job title, his initial responses have disappointed some stakeholders who thought broader aspects of the food chain were being sidelined.

“The written answers from the agriculture and food commissioner candidate left us wanting more on the food side of his portfolio,” Camille Perrin, head of food policy at the European consumer organisation BEUC, told Euronews.

She pointed out that Hansen’s initial vision lacks attention to food consumption—a key element of food policy.

“With food prices still significantly higher than a few years ago, we hoped food affordability would be a stronger focus in his work plans,” she added, claiming that a fair food supply chain must support both farmers and consumers.

Food manufacturers suffer too

In a comment on social media, Dirk Jacobs, director general of EU food manufacturers organisation FoodDrinkEurope, noted that Hansen’s responses offered little indication of support for the competitiveness and resilience of the EU’s food and drink industry.

Contacted by Euronews, he explained that this emphasis on farming might be induced by the questions being asked by the European Parliament’s agriculture committee, which typically prioritises agricultural issues.

“Nevertheless, given his dual title of Agriculture and Food Commissioner, we would’ve expected more attention to the food sector while his replies seem to be very much farmer-centric—which is a missed opportunity,” he said, hoping that a little bit more on this will come up in Hansen’s approval hearing scheduled for next month.

This agriculture-heavy focus may also reflect recent political trends. During European election campaigns, farmers’ protests spotlighted agricultural issues, and von der Leyen’s European People’s Party (EPP)—to which Hansen belongs—positioned itself as a champion of farmers.

Within Hansen’s 12-page response to MEPs, the food industry was mentioned just once—and only to underscore its obligation to support farmers’ incomes.

“But it is fair to say that many challenges affecting farmers today are also real for the food and drink industry, largely made up of SMEs and micro-enterprises,” Jacobs said, calling for support measures for these businesses, especially concerning investment, financing, and regulatory simplification to ease energy and operational costs.

Balancing farmers and retailers

A key issue for Hansen is the livelihood of farmers, which he noted is impacted by “weaker negotiating power and a lack of market transparency.”

In this regard, Hansen has committed to strengthening farmers’ bargaining power to minimise the risk of them being forced to sell below production costs.

This includes potentially reviewing the Unfair Trade Practices (UTP) directive, adopted five years ago but still widely unimplemented, to address power imbalances in the food supply chain.

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In response to Hansen’s comments, the retailers’ lobby Eurocommerce warned against re-polarising the food policy debate, calling instead for a balanced representation of the entire value chain and a fact-based understanding of its functioning.

“We need a broader perspective on the drivers of farmers’ incomes, as it cannot be just UTP legislation,” Eurocommerce director-general Christel Delberghe told Euronews.

The legislative process leading to the adoption of the first Unfair Trade Practices (UTP) directive was lengthy and contentious, and its upcoming revision promises to be just as challenging, with Hansen already appearing to side firmly with farmers.

However, Eurocommerce’s Delberghe, highlighted the crucial role that retail and wholesale sectors play in maintaining a competitive, resilient Europe and advancing the sustainability transition.

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Food sustainable law still missing

Stakeholders have also voiced disappointment over the lack of commitment to a sustainable food systems framework—a major goal of the previous Farm to Fork strategy that remains unfinished.

“Dropping the sustainable food systems law would be misguided, especially as the strategic dialogue has called for coherence, consistency, and predictability in the agri-food sector,” BEUC’s Perrin stated.

Eurocommerce similarly underscored the importance of this framework, stressing that it would provide legal clarity, balance obligations across the supply chain, and establish science-based standards to support sustainability.