European Investment Bank Backs French Dairy Cooperative Sodiaal’s €70 Mln Investment

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved a €70 million loan to Sodiaal, France’s largest dairy cooperative. The loan, guaranteed by the InvestEU programme, will go to research and development, the EIB said.

“The French and European agri-food industry is facing strong international competition – an issue that can be addressed by accelerating research and innovation,” EIB vice-president Ambroise Fayolle said.

Sodiaal represents around 14,500 member farmers, and owns the Yoplait, Candia and Entremont brands.

“The agricultural industry and the dairy...

Dave's Hot Chicken Accelerates International Expansion with Exclusive European Agreement

Dave's Hot Chicken, the fastest-growing Nashville-style hot chicken sensation from Los Angeles, has finalized a landmark agreement with UK-based Azzurri Group, granting the hospitality powerhouse exclusive development rights across Europe. Under the new agreement, Azzurri Group will develop 180 Dave's Hot Chicken restaurants across 10 European countries, leveraging a joint venture partnership model to team up with experienced local operators in each market. These countries are France, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Italy, and Turkey...

Statement on Recent Lumpy Skin Disease Outbreaks in Europe

The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) acknowledges the rapid official notifications of two outbreaks of Lumpy skin disease (LSD) in Italy and France, as well as the details provided through their follow up reports. This marks the first-ever occurrence of the disease in these countries, highlighting the urgent need for heightened surveillance and coordinated response. Both countries have reported that they are already implementing measures to contain the disease in line with international standards...

From 2016 to 2024, WOAH with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the European Union, supported the coordination of a standing group of expert for LSD...

Poland, France Push Back Against at Mercosur Deal

Annie Genevard, France’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty and Czesław Siekierski, the Polish Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, met in Paris on Wednesday. After the meeting, both showed a united front against the EU-Mercosur deal.

France and Poland have been two of the most vocal opponents to the deal signed in December, after around two decades of negotiations. They argue that the deal will not be beneficial for EU agriculture, despite its possible positive effects in other sectors.

“To put it plainly: we cannot sacrifice agriculture...

Diageo Agrees to Sale of Italian Facility to NewPrinces

Formerly known as Newlat Food, an Italian food and drink company now called NewPrinces bought 100% of the share capital for Diageo Operations Italy, according to a Diageo press release which specified the inclusion of the Santa Vittoria production facility.

The site produces a range of alcoholic beverages, ready-to-drink products, and low and no alcohol products, according to a Diageo spokesperson. 

The NewPrinces Group is already a leading player in the soft drinks market in the UK, with revenues of approximately €350 million in this category alone...

Austria And Hungary Join France in Concerns over Mercosur Deal

Representatives from Austria and Hungary met with the French Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty, Annie Genevard. During the meeting, they “reiterated their strong concerns regarding the proposed free trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur countries,” the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty said.

"Significant quantities of imported products produced under lower standards could lead to the exclusion of European agricultural products,” István Nagy, the Hungarian Minister of Agriculture said. This could, the minister added, weigh on prices and on the profitability of EU...

Signing the EU-Mercosur Agreement by December Is Possible, Says European Council President

The EU and Mercosur countries expect to sign the agreement in a December ceremony. “It is a short timeframe, but we are going to try to make it happen,” Antonio Costa, President of the European Council, said during a visit to Brazil on Thursday.

Costa added that the European Commission is in the process of translating the agreement into the 24 EU official languages and plans to finish it by July.

While farming sectors in some EU countries such as France or Spain have expressed concern...

Tariff Talks 2025: Expana's Weekly Rundown #10

Expana’s global team of specialist reporters has been tracking every twist and turn in the fluid tariff situation.

Click to read "Tariff Talks 2025: Expana's Weekly Rundown #10."

This report allows the Expana community to see where key commodity markets stand as of this past week... Click the above PDF report, or keep scrolling to read in plain text...

APHIS Eases Trade Limits on Unvaccinated Poultry and Ducks from France and EPTR

The USDA's APHIS is easing trade restrictions imposed on October 1, 2023, regarding imports of unvaccinated live poultry from France and unvaccinated live ducks from the European Poultry Trade Region (EPTR), including Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

APHIS determined that the following live animal commodities are unlikely to receive vaccinations, and the HPAI vaccination campaign has not greatly impacted the risk of HPAI virus entering the U.S. through their importation:

• Non-duck poultry and hatching eggs from France
• Hatching eggs from France derived from unvaccinated...