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3.180. (...) From 1 October 2019 to 31 December 2022, the European Union made 261 new regular TBT notifications (and 40 revisions and corrigenda). These measures covered, inter alia, food, chemicals, pesticides, fertilizers, electrical and electronic equipment, cosmetics, vehicles, and construction materials, and were mostly based on health, safety, and environmental considerations. (...)

3.193. These regulations are complemented by other EU legal instruments containing requirements to be applied throughout the European Union and covering, inter alia, food and feed hygiene, labelling, food contact materials and packaging, food and feed additives, genetically modified organisms (GMOs), organic food, and residues of pharmacologically active substances (used in veterinary medicines), pesticides, and contaminants.

3.194. Moreover, in May 2020 the Commission adopted the Farm to Fork Strategy to support the ongoing reform process and the EU sustainability objectives. The Strategy is considered a key component of the European Green Deal and has some implications for the EU SPS regime. The Strategy identifies the areas of action to achieve a sustainable EU food system and comprises an action plan for the period 2020-24 that provides for, inter alia, the reform of the legislation on feed additives, pesticides, food contact materials, plant protection, animal welfare, and marketing standards for agricultural and fishery (including aquaculture) products. As part of this action plan, the Commission is also expected to propose new legislation to extend the scope of the requirement on origin labelling, introduce a standardized mandatory front-of-pack nutrition labelling, and establish a sustainable food labelling framework to inform consumers about the sustainability aspects of food products. This strategy also sets EU targets for reducing the use of chemical pesticides (and their risk), antimicrobials, and fertilizers by 2030 [253] , and foresees to integrate environmental considerations in the assessment requests for import tolerances for pesticides not approved in the European Union. As announced in the Strategy, the Commission plans to present a new legislative framework for sustainable food systems in 2023 to, inter alia, incorporate sustainability in all food-related policies, as well as a proposal for the setting of EU-level targets for food waste reduction.
[253] Under the Strategy, the European Union intends to reduce by 50% the use and risk of chemical pesticides by 2030, by 50% the use of more hazardous pesticides, (...)

3.201. (...) If EFSA [the European Food Safety Authority] concludes that the import tolerance is safe for consumers and does not present an environmental concern, the import tolerance can be granted. (...)

3.202. GMOs for cultivation, and for food and feed use are authorized at the EU level subject the Commission's approval, but EU member States may prohibit or restrict GMOs for cultivation under certain conditions. During the review period, the legal framework for the approval of GMOs was not subject to any change. In 2022, the European Union authorized six GMO crops (two maize, two soybeans, one oilseed rape, and one cotton) and renewed one authorization (cotton), all used for food and animal feed. In total, 19 new authorizations for GMO crops were issued between 2020 and end 2022 and another 7 were renewed, all for food and animal feed. Authorizations are valid for 10 years.

3.203. The European Union requires specific labelling for all food products (imported or locally produced) to be sold in the EU market, including products sold online. (...) Certain food products are subject to additional labelling requirements for safety and transparency reasons, and include GMOs, (...)

3.209. The European Commission is in the process of undertaking an extensive review of existing legislation and regulation on competition. Its Communication on Competition Policy calls for strong and effective competition policy and highlights the role it can play in achieving targets related to green, digital, and resilient single market.

3.238. The Commission has developed new voluntary green public procurement (GPP) criteria for several sectors, including for computers, smartphones, and road transport, to facilitate the uptake of such criteria in tender documentation. Though envisaged by the Circular Economy Action Plan, no mandatory GPP criteria have been introduced so far. Other new projects related to green government procurement include the Farm to Fork Strategy (sustainable food systems) , Level(s) (sustainable building) , and Renovation Wave (renovation of buildings).

3.242. (...) For the European Union, IPRs represent an important factor underpinning both the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its recovery and resilience-building efforts, in particular as they play a key role in incentivizing the knowledge-based and innovation-driven activities necessary for post-pandemic green and digital transitions.

3.243. The ever-growing economic importance of IPRs, both in terms of employment and contribution to GDP, was confirmed in a joint report by the European Patent Office (EPO) and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), released in October 2022. (...) For the first time, the report also included data, as subsets of patent and trademark intensive industries, on climate change mitigation technology (CCMT) industries, which contribute 14% of EU GDP and 9.3% of employment with a significant positive trade balance.