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EU Food and Drink Unions Call for Financial Support

The COVID-19 pandemic has the potential for a serious and sustained global economic downturn.
The COVID-19 pandemic has the potential for a serious and sustained global economic downturn.

March 30, 2020 — Late last week, the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT) and FoodDrinkEurope (FDE) released a statement asking for urgent response to help during the COVID-19 pandemic. Both organizations have emphasized that they have a deep concern for the economic impact the disease will have. “We are concerned about the potential for a serious and sustained global economic downturn and the impact this will have on the workforce,” they state.

The European food and drink industry employs 4.7 million people throughout approximately 294,000 businesses. There are a significant amount of individuals and businesses being directly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. “More needs to be done to provide enhanced health protection for workers and economic support for struggling businesses,” they emphasize.

Both the EFFAT and the FDE are advocating for four policy measures:

  1. Increased support for food workers who are maintaining the food supply.
  2. Provide access to personal protective equipment (PPE) for all workers.
  3. Establish harmonized protocols for food sector workers.
  4. Support small- and medium-sized enterprises.

These requests have come during a difficult time: So far EU leaders have yet to agree on how to proceed with a common economic response to the coronavirus crisis. It is anticipated to be another two weeks before any solid decisions are made. In the meantime, concerns for the food industry continue to rise as COVID-19 fears spread throughout the world.