ESRA presents study on raw materials

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On 30 January, the European Sugar Refineries Association (ESRA) presented a study on access to raw materials in the EU cane refining sector. A roundtable event in the European Parliament - hosted by MEP Sofia Ribeiro - focused on the topic “EU free trade agreements – a fair balance on agricultural market access?”  The event brought together representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission (including John Clarke, Director - Directorate A: International at DG AGRI), representatives of EU Member States, third country representatives from Brazil and Australia, and industry stakeholders.  At the event, ESRA presented a new study (see link below) that gathers compelling evidence of the need to provide access to raw materials to our sector, through the inclusion of duty-free tariff-rate quotas on raw sugar in EU trade agreements. Without such actions, our sector faces a perilous future. ESRA would like to thank all those who attended, and MEPs Sofia Ribeiro and Christofer Fjellner for facilitating this timely event. 

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