10,000 border guards for Frontex: Why the EU risks conflated expectations. EPC Policy Brief, 21 September 2018

“Between now and 2027 we want to produce an additional 10,000 border guards. We are now going to bring that forward to 2020,” Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission, told Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz at the start of Austria’s sixth-months presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) on 1 July 2018.1 In his State of the European Union (SOTEU) speech on 12 September, the Commission President confirmed this number and provided a blueprint for the future of Frontex.2 For the EU, the proposed increase in Frontex’s resources will likely become a key argument to counter criticism from populist parties and demonstrate its determination to manage migration effectively

Aspects regarding the evolution of organic farming in the EU member states: Areas, agents, manufacturers

This paper represents an analysis of the way in which the organic farming has evolved in the EU member states, focusing on the crop production. The analysed period is 2000-2011, years for which a full set of data was found. Data regarding the following have been analysed and interpreted: organically farmed areas, number of farms, number of the manufacturers in the system and the main utilization categories for the organically farmed lands. The conclusions reinforce the idea that, in an era when the society is increasingly concerned with the health of its members and of the environment, the organic farming has gathered pace in the last years having an extremely dynamical evolution in Europe and not only

Context of mutations within the Romanian agricultural sector

This paper represents an analysis of the way in which the potato-growing areas and yields obtained in Covasna County have evolved, compared to the situation existent at national level. In the introduction and in the first part of the paper, the global and European situation is also mentioned, taking into account the special importance of potato in the human diet in different areas of the world. The period between 2006 and 2014 is analysed, with a special focus on the situation existent in 2014 and with references to the national situation, as it was mentioned before. The evolution of potato-growing areas and yields is also analysed, in comparison with other crops in the production structure of the county, with the aim to explain the meaning of this evolution and taking into account the special importance this crop has always had in the economy of the county. Although the potato-growing areas in the Covasna County have registered, similar to the national situation, a sharp decline, potato continues to have a special significance in the agricultural economy of the county, as well as in the agricultural economy of the entire country, that continues to be ranked the third place among the potato-growing countries at the European level

International, European and Romanian developments related to the dairy cows: Livestock and production obtained

Considering the population growth and the need to ensure food security, and also the fact that milk represents one of the basic foods in the diet of children and of adults, this paper seeks to obtain an image that is as accurate as possible of the evolution of dairy cow sector, at the global and European level and also in Romania. By using as working method the direct observation without intervention and by consulting the specialized bibliographical references, we have tried to select the most representative statistical data allowing us a proper analysis of the development of dairy cow sector. The analysis of the development of this sector at the international and European level indicated that the results obtained are decisively influenced by the production potential of the biological material and by the development of the exploitation technologies. Over time, the evolution of livestock was different, according to the development level of countries located in different geographical areas. While in areas such as North America and Europe, a decrease of livestock was noticed, at the same time a s a significant increase of production, in Africa and Asia, the increase of milk production was almost exclusively accomplished by increasing the cattle herd. In Romania, since 1989, the dairy cow sector has been undergoing a strengthening and development process, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by the National Strategy for the Development of the Livestock Sector establishes clear objectives and priorities for its support. The analysis performed allows us to consider that, at least for Romania, the dairy cow sector is yet an inadequately capitalized opportunity that could place our country as a front-runner on the European market

Developments in the European market of organic agricultural products

This paper represents an analysis of the development of the European organic agricultural product market, taking into account especially the consumption of organic agricultural products and some aspects regarding the consumers’ behaviour. The period between 2000 and 2012 was analysed, with particular attention to the situation existent in 2012 and with references to the global situation. The tendencies that are foreseen for the future of this market segment are also considered. The conclusions of this analysis emphasize the idea that, in an era when the population is increasingly more informed and interested in its health and of the environment it is living in, the organic food market, which is still a niche market, has real opportunities of development. The only condition is that all of those involved in this sector of organic farming (producers, processors and retailers) join forces in order to develop concepts and strategies for the organic farming of the future

Legal reglementations in the European Union and Romania regarding collection management, recovery and recycle of the waste packaging

Once with the Romania's adherence to the European Union, assuming some obligations and initiatives were imposed, from a national level to a local and a county level. Adherency to the European Union, made Romania assume its politics regarding the environment field and elaborate several plans of European directives implementations. All this plans lead to staging the directions which the European Union imposed by establishing the implementation method, delegating the component authorities and sanctioning all the implicated members, whom do not obey the environment legislation. Throughout these implementation plans, Romania requested transition and derogation periods, establishing clear terms of the implementation of all imposed requirements. Thereby, the next implementation plans were proposed: Implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 259/93 on the supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and out of the European Community, Directive 2004/12/EC amending Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste, Council Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste, Directive 2000/76/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the incineration of waste

Organic farming, a viable and feasible component of the Romanian agriculture

Taking into account the fact that organic farming is not a miracle, but a tangible reality of our days, a trend with more and more followers within the producers and consumers, this paper is included within those trying to demonstrate once more that for Romania also, the organic farming is a viable alternative to the traditional farming that leads in time to the degradation of soil and water resources, to air pollution, degradation of population heath etc. By using as working method the direct observation without intervention and consulting specialized reference sources, we have tried to select the most important definitions for the Romanian organic farming. We have also specified the objectives and principles of the organic farming and we have made a selection of the most important legal regulations on which the environment-friendly production is based, both at Community level and at national level. The analysis of the organic farming in Romania also showed that a process of institutional strengthening and development is currently undergoing for the organic farming, as in all the other countries, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by its actions, puts the organic farming in the centre of the development of the Romanian agriculture. As such, the evolution of this sector from one year to another was dynamic, with a steady pace growth of the eco-cultivated areas and of the number of animals resulted from organic livestock breeding. The analysis performed entitles us to consider that the organic farming is an inadequately capitalized opportunity for Romania that could place the country as a front-runner on the European market

Organic farming, a viable and feasible component of the Romanian agriculture

Taking into account the fact that organic farming is not a miracle, but a tangible reality of our days, a trend with more and more followers within the producers and consumers, this paper is included within those trying to demonstrate once more that for Romania also, the organic farming is a viable alternative to the traditional farming that leads in time to the degradation of soil and water resources, to air pollution, degradation of population heath etc. By using as working method the direct observation without intervention and consulting specialized reference sources, we have tried to select the most important definitions for the Romanian organic farming. We have also specified the objectives and principles of the organic farming and we have made a selection of the most important legal regulations on which the environment-friendly production is based, both at Community level and at national level. The analysis of the organic farming in Romania also showed that a process of institutional strengthening and development is currently undergoing for the organic farming, as in all the other countries, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by its actions, puts the organic farming in the centre of the development of the Romanian agriculture. As such, the evolution of this sector from one year to another was dynamic, with a steady pace growth of the eco-cultivated areas and of the number of animals resulted from organic livestock breeding. The analysis performed entitles us to consider that the organic farming is an inadequately capitalized opportunity for Romania that could place the country as a front-runner on the European market

Analyzing European Union Politics

The speed and depth with which the European Communities/ European Union has evolved is breathtaking and has radically shaped the life of the continent. Ever since the beginning of this ambitious economic and political project, scholars around the world have tried to explain the underlying logic behind it and the mechanisms of its functioning. Thus, a plethora of studies developed alongside the evolution of the EU. SENT (Network of European Studies) is an innovative and ambitious project which brought together about 100 partners from the EU member states, candidate and associated countries, and other parts of the world. It was a far reaching project aimed to overcome disciplinary and geographical- linguistic boundaries in order to assess the state of EU studies today, as well as the idea of Europe as transmitted by schools, national politicians, the media, etc. SENT’s main goal was to map European studies, in order to get a comprehensive picture of the evolution of European studies over the last decades in different disciplines and countries. This approach permitted to achieve a better understanding of the direction these studies are now taking. Five disciplines were identified where EU studies have particularly evolved: law, politics, economics, history, and social and cultural studies. The mapping of EU studies thus includes a review of the most studied issues in EU studies today, the main academic schools, the most influential journals and books published, but it also shows how local realities and national identities affect the study and teaching of Europe around the world. In addition, an important work was done in mapping and discussing teaching methodologies in relation to European studies with the aim of introducing and diffusing the most up-to-date techniques