This essay will examine the policy making process in the European Union (EU) concerning food safety in the case of raw milk cheese production. Food safety has been a key concern of the EU after several food scandals at the end of the 90´s such as the mad cow disease or more recently the usage of falsely labeled horse meat. As a reaction to that, the focus shifted from the creation of a common food market to food safety.
The case of raw milk cheese is in so far an interesting one because it symbolizes a dilemma for the EU. Firstly, because the milk that is used for the production is untreated. Untreated milk can be the cause of several diseases, yet this kind of cheese is deeply rooted in the culture of especially southern European cuisine. Secondly, the common market aims to standardized products with the aim to create an even bigger, more prosperous market and integrated market. However, the standardization takes place at the expense of product variety and the livelihood of small dairy farmers. The challenging task for the union is to find a compromise between these driving factors.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Policymaking: The legislative procedure in the EU, the balancing of interests
- Theoretical Framework concerning the European integration and policy-making: How Liberal Intergovernmentalism can explain regional integration
- Context and food legislation history: Health risk versus market interests?
- Cheesy? How raw milk cheese made its way through the EU's legislative procedure like the village of indomitable Gauls. The development of EU directives on raw milk production. Interest groups or food safety. How mature is the policy making process?
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This essay examines the policy making process in the European Union (EU) concerning food safety in the case of raw milk cheese production. The study focuses on the interplay between interest groups and food safety concerns in the development of EU directives on raw milk production. The main goal is to analyze the maturity of the policy making process and to identify the decisive actors and their influence on the decision-making process.
- The role of food safety in the EU's policy making process
- The influence of interest groups in shaping food safety regulations
- The application of Liberal Intergovernmentalism as a theoretical framework to explain regional integration
- The historical context and development of raw milk food regulations
- The effectiveness and maturity of the EU's legislative procedure in balancing different interests
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- Policymaking: The legislative procedure in the EU, the balancing of interests: This chapter delves into the unique features of the EU Commission and its role in initiating the legislative process. It outlines the ordinary legislative procedure (OLP) and its significance in adopting directives and regulations. The chapter also highlights the opportunities for lobbying by interest groups throughout the process.
- Theoretical Framework concerning the European integration and policy-making: How Liberal Intergovernmentalism can explain regional integration: This section explores the theoretical framework of Liberal Intergovernmentalism (LI) as a lens for analyzing European integration and policy-making. The chapter examines how LI can explain the dynamics of regional integration, particularly in the context of the EU's food safety policy.
- Context and food legislation history: Health risk versus market interests?: This chapter provides an overview of the historical context of food legislation in the EU, focusing on the evolving balance between health risks and market interests. It traces the development of food safety concerns and the regulatory measures implemented to address them.
- Cheesy? How raw milk cheese made its way through the EU's legislative procedure like the village of indomitable Gauls. The development of EU directives on raw milk production. Interest groups or food safety. How mature is the policy making process?: This chapter examines the specific case of raw milk cheese production and its journey through the EU's legislative procedure. It explores the tensions between interest groups advocating for different production methods and the EU's food safety concerns. The chapter also assesses the maturity of the policy making process in this context.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The key terms and concepts explored in this work include food safety, interest groups, policy making, European integration, Liberal Intergovernmentalism, raw milk cheese production, EU directives, legislative procedure, and the balancing of interests. The study focuses on the interplay of these elements in shaping the development and implementation of food safety regulations in the European Union.
- Citar trabajo
- Otto Möller (Autor), 2017, Cheesy? How raw milk cheese made its way through the EU’s legislative procedure like the village of indomitable Gauls, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/373376
