Salmonella cases no longer falling in the EU
The declining trend of salmonellosis cases in the EU has levelled off according to the annual report on zoonotic diseases published today.
Cases of Salmonella Enteritidis acquired in the EU have increased in humans by 3% since 2014 says the report, which is compiled by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). In laying hens, the prevalence increased from 0.7% to 1.21% over the same period.
“The increase shown by our surveillance data is worrying and a reminder that we have to stay vigilant,” said Mike Catchpole, ECDC’s Chief Scientist. “Even in a state of high awareness and with national control programmes for S. Enteritidis in place, there is a need for continuing risk management actions at the Member State and EU level,” he added.
Marta Hugas, EFSA’s Chief Scientist, said: “The decrease of Salmonella has been a success story in the EU food safety system in the last 10 years. Recent S. Enteritidis outbreaks contributed to a change in this trend in humans and poultry. Further investigations by competent authorities in the field of public health and food safety will be crucial to understand the reasons behind the increase.”
There were 94 530 human cases of salmonellosis reported in the EU in 2016. S. Enteritidis – the most widespread type of Salmonella, accounted for 59% of all salmonellosis cases originating in the EU and is mostly associated with the consumption of eggs, egg products and poultry meat.
Campylobacter and Listeria
Campylobacter, the most reported food-borne pathogen in humans, was detected in 246 307 people, an increase of 6.1% compared with 2015. Despite the high number of cases, fatalities were low (0.03%). Levels of Campylobacter are high in chicken meat.
Listeria infections, which are generally more severe, led to hospitalisation in 97% of reported cases. In 2016, listeriosis continued to rise, with 2 536 cases (a 9.3% increase) and 247 deaths reported. Most deaths occur in people aged over 64 (fatality rate of 18.9%). People over 84 are particularly at risk (fatality rate of 26.1%). Listeria seldom exceeded legal safety limits in ready-to-eat foods.
Salmonella food-borne outbreaks increasing
The 4 786 food-borne disease outbreaks reported in 2016 represent a slight increase in comparison with 2015 (4 362 outbreaks), but the figure is similar to the average number of outbreaks in the EU during 2010–2016.
Outbreaks due to Salmonella are on the rise, with S. Enteritidis causing one in six food-borne disease outbreaks in 2016. Salmonella bacteria were the most common cause of food-borne outbreaks (22.3%), an increase of 11.5% compared to 2015. They caused the highest burden in terms of numbers of hospitalisations (1,766; 45.6% of all hospitalised cases) and of deaths (10; 50% of all deaths among outbreak cases).
Salmonella in eggs caused the highest number of outbreak cases (1 882).
Read the full report: The European Union summary report on trends and sources of zoonoses, zoonotic agents and food-borne outbreaks in 2016
Notes to the editor
The EFSA-ECDC report on trends and sources of zoonoses is based on 2016 data collected from all the 28 European Union Member States. Nine other European countries reported on some of the indicators (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia).
Salmonella Enteritidis is the Salmonella serotype responsible for most salmonellosis cases and Salmonella food-borne outbreaks. It had been declining constantly since 2007 when the EU surveillance began and control measures in poultry were implemented. Data related to S. Enteritidis in this press release excludes cases associated with travel outside the EU.
ECDC media contact:
ECDC press office
Tel: +46 (0)8 586 01 678
Email: press@ecdc.europa.eu
France : Plan Juncker – signature du premier financement vert dans le secteur maritime
La Banque européenne d’investissement (BEI), Société Générale et Brittany Ferries annoncent le succès du premier financement maritime vert dans le cadre du programme Green Shipping Guarantee (GSG) de 750 millions d’euros de la BEI, mis en place l’année dernière avec Société Générale. Le nouveau navire Honfleur sera le premier ferry alimenté au gaz naturel liquéfié (GNL) par Brittany Ferries. Sa mise en service est prévue pour avril 2019 sur les lignes reliant Caen-Ouistreham (France) à Portsmouth (Royaume-Uni).
La cérémonie de signature a eu lieu hier, lundi 11 décembre, au Ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires Etrangères, au Quai d’Orsay à Paris, en présence de Jean-Yves Le Drian, Ministre de l’Europe et des Affaires Etrangères.
En 2016, dans le cadre du plan d’investissement pour l’Europe (« plan Juncker »), et du Mécanisme pour l’Interconnexion en Europe (MIE), la BEI et Société Générale ont signé un accord cadre de garantie d’un montant de 150 millions d’euros visant à soutenir les projets de construction navale, et de modernisation des navires existants, en faveur d’un transport durable et de la protection de l’environnement, conformément aux objectifs définis dans le cadre de la COP21.
La compagnie maritime française, Brittany Ferries, est aujourd’hui pionnier dans le secteur du transport maritime vert avec la signature du premier financement de navire bénéficiant du soutien de la banque de l’Union Européenne dans le cadre du programme GSG, dont l’action est prioritairement axée sur le respect de l’environnement et la lutte contre les effets du changement climatique. Avec l’acquisition de son nouveau navire Honfleur, Brittany Ferries confirme son élan pour développer le GNL, actuellement source de carburant la plus propre, contribuant ainsi à une amélioration significative de la performance environnementale de sa flotte.
Société Générale est intervenu en tant qu’arrangeur principal du financement d’un montant de 142,6 millions d’euros pour l’acquisition du ferry Honfleur commandé par Brittany Ferries, qui comprend une tranche de 49,5 millions entièrement garantie par la BEI.
« Ce financement vert dans le secteur maritime est une « première » au niveau européen » a souligné le Vice-Président de la BEI Ambroise Fayolle. « C’est un financement particulièrement innovant, mené avec succès grâce à la garantie européenne dans le cadre du plan Juncker, au concours du Mécanisme pour l’Interconnexion en Europe et au rôle pilote de Société Générale dans ce secteur. En structurant ainsi un financement plus risqué sur un secteur nouveau d’intervention, la banque de l’Union européenne réaffirme avec force son engagement en faveur d’une croissance verte, responsable et pérenne à l’échelle internationale. Notre objectif est de soutenir les efforts des armateurs français pour développer un transport maritime plus respectueux de l’environnement grâce à un outil de financement adapté et attractif. La performance environnementale des “autoroutes de la mer” est au cœur de notre action climatique conformément aux engagements pris lors de la COP21 et aux priorités du Grand Plan d’Investissement du Gouvernement français. »
Jean-Marc Roué, Président du Conseil de surveillance Brittany Ferries a déclaré : « Brittany Ferries est à double titre très fière aujourd’hui. Elle est de fait la première entreprise maritime à bénéficier de l’accord cadre conclu en 2016 entre la BEI et Société Générale dans le cadre du programme GSG, et ce grâce au Plan Juncker et au MIE ! Mais également avec ce financement, elle est la première entreprise française du transport maritime passager à ouvrir la voie de la transition énergétique grâce au GNL. Implantée dans 4 pays de l’Union Européenne, Brittany Ferries, entreprise européenne, place cette ambition de l’exemplarité à la hauteur des objectifs, que la COP23 vient de rappeler aux Etats comme aux entreprises ! »
Séverin Cabannes, Directeur général délégué de Société Générale, a commenté : « Le succès de cette opération emblématique résulte à la fois d’une étroite collaboration entre la BEI et Société Générale, banque pilote dans la mise en place du programme GSG, et de la relation de confiance établie de longue date avec notre client Brittany Ferries. A cette occasion, Société Générale réaffirme son soutien à ses clients pour le développement du transport maritime vert.
Cette opération, qui s’inscrit dans l’offre « Finance Durable & à Impact Positif » de Société Générale, témoigne aussi de notre capacité d’innovation et de notre esprit pionnier dans le développement de solutions de financement intégrant les enjeux environnementaux de nos clients. »
L’intervention de la BEI, alliée à la garantie européenne, a permis d’optimiser la structure financière du financement en réduisant notamment de façon significative la charge financière supportée par Brittany Ferries.
Pierre Moscovici, commissaire européen pour les affaires économiques et financières, la fiscalité et les douanes, a déclaré à ce sujet : « Ce financement permettra à Brittany Ferries d’améliorer l’efficacité énergétique de ses navires et de réduire ainsi leur empreinte écologique. Ce projet bas carbone va dans le sens de l’histoire, alors que le One Planet Summit est sur le point de commencer. Et les projets à énergie propre seront sans cesse plus nombreux à être financés dans le cadre du Fonds Européen pour les Investissements Stratégiques 2.0.»
“Greening finance for sustainable business” – Speech by Vice-President for the Euro and Social Dialogue, Financial Stability and Financial Services Valdis Dombrovskis
Opening Remarks
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to thank the organisers; it is a pleasure to be here today, 2 years after the signature of the landmark Paris agreement. The European Union played a leading role in driving forward this agreement. This puts a special responsibility on our shoulders to lead by example in its implementation.
170 countries have ratified the Paris agreement by now, which sends a powerful signal that the low-carbon transition is here to stay. We are just at the beginning of this journey, but there is much reason to be hopeful. We can show that there is no contradiction between sustainability and economic growth: In the last 27 years, EU emissions dropped by over 20%, but our economy grew by more than 50% over the same period.
The EU is committed to reducing carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2030. To reach that target, we will need around 180 billion euro in additional yearly low-carbon investments. This is well beyond the capacity of the public sector, so private capital will also need to play its part.
The good news is that this is within the vast capacity of our financial system: together, asset managers and institutional investors manage about 35 trillion euros in Europe. But for private investors to fund the transition to the low-carbon economy, we need to put in place the right conditions and incentives.
What does this mean?
- It means providing trust in green financial products, by giving clear and reliable information to those who invest in them.
- It means improving access for retail investors, and supporting institutional investors to direct their capital towards a long-term impact.
- And it means incentivising market participants to be more conscious of long-term risks and opportunities.
Both at EU level and national level, some work is already done. And I’m pleased that countries like Sweden, France and Luxembourg already have rules and labels to attract sustainable investment.
At EU level, we have already taken first steps:
- For example, as of next year, our directive on non-financial disclosure will take effect. This is in line with the recommendations of the Task-Force on Climate Related Disclosures. And it means that large listed companies will have to disclose information that investors need to assess sustainability risks.
- And earlier this year, we proposed a major revamp of financial supervision in the EU. Among other things, it would integrate sustainability into the mandate of the European Supervisory Authorities, to put pressure on the financial sector to address these issues.
But for our effort to succeed, we need more than a piece by piece, sector-by-sector approach. Other parts of the world are forging ahead in this field. We need to use the full scale of the EU’s single market, and attract green investment with new products and business models.
At the European Commission, we have established a High-Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance, which will present its final recommendations in January. On that basis, we will present in March a comprehensive Action Plan to lay the foundations for sustainable and green finance to reach its true potential. Without prejudging the outcome, I can say that the work will be in three directions:
First, we will propose to integrate sustainability factors into investment mandates. This means these criteria will be reflected in the duties that asset managers and institutional investors have towards those whose money they manage. This would clarify their legal obligation to factor sustainability risks into capital allocation decisions.
Second, investors need a common language and classification system for what is considered green and sustainable. After all, if we are telling investors to choose green products, we need to know what those look like. Our goal is to have an EU taxonomy – or a classification system – for sustainable finance. This is a necessary condition for sustainable finance to reach scale. And it would allow us to define EU standards and labels for Green Bonds and Green Investment Funds. This would also allow us to address market fragmentation and accelerate green investments by all types of investors.
Thirdly, European banks play a major role in financing the economy. To incentivise lending, we are looking positively at the European Parliament’s proposal to amend capital charges for banks to boost green investments and loans by introducing a so-called green supporting factor. This could be done at first stage by lowering capital requirements for certain climate-friendly investments, such as energy-efficient mortgages or electric cars. We could model it on existing capital requirement adjustments for investments in SMEs or high-quality infrastructure projects.
To conclude, these are some of the ambitious measures we are planning in our Action Plan. We should act quickly to position Europe and our financial sector as the leading global destination for investments in green technological development.
Closing remarks
I was very pleased to see how much commitment and how much willingness there is from the participants of the broader economy to move towards the low-carbon future and to make financial markets more sustainable. What we need to do is to incentivise green finance across the entire investment chain, and change the mind-set of those who manage our money. And we see that this is already happening, so that is good news. The European Commission is fully committed to this goal, because we believe we need to work together, at EU-level, but also at national and local level, to deliver the low-carbon transition.
To continue this discussion, the Commission will be organising a high level conference on 22 March next year focused on the role of financial services in the transition to a sustainable economy. This will also be an occasion to present out Action Plan on Sustainable Finance. I believe it will be another proof of Europe’s ambition to take the global lead on sustainable finance.
Thank you very much.