ACR+

In the span of a few days in early March, the European Commission published its first Climate Law, a New Industrial Strategy, a New Circular Economy Action Plan, and indicated what the equally as important Farm to Fork Strategy would focus on. Furthermore, a technical working group tasked with devising green investment guidelines published its final report (the much-awaited Green Taxonomy) on 9 March.

Building on one another thanks to the obvious synergies among them, these developments are key to the EU’s economic, environmental and social well-being going forward. While the pandemic may have overshadowed them for the time being, we hope that the work on implementing and substantiating them will continue going forward. We also trust that the Commission will roll out the important missing pieces of the Green Deal, such as the EU Biodiversity Strategy, the Farm to Fork Strategy and the impact assessment on increasing the carbon emission reduction target for 2030 from 40% compared to 1990 levels to 50-55%.

Summarised in this issue is our take on these important recent developments.

• The New Circular Economy Action Plan sets the bar high
• European Commission publishes landmark Green Taxonomy criteria
• EU's first Climate Law comes under fire from...everyone
• Circular economy and climate neutrality at the core of the new Industrial Strategy
• Farm to Fork Strategy to balance multiple pressures on food value chain