The Adventuresome Tales of a (former) Colorado Dirt Farmer: The Capital of Europe

So the first day in Brussels was jam packed. I don't think we even had time to breathe! Thankfully the bed at the Motel 1 were quite comfy. Even if we didn't get to use them for very long. So with the gusto of a McCloy Fellow, we were off for our second jam packed day in Brussels, learning more about the EU governing body.

The first two meetings of the day were with officials with the European Commission. This is one of the three parts (Parliament, Council of Ministers, and the Commission) that make up the EU government. The commission is actually the body that is responsible for writing proposed legislation. If the legislation is passed, which it can be amended as well, by the Parliament and Council, the Commission is responsible for implementing the new law. Clear as mud? Okay!

The first was Mr. Tim GRUMBEL who is the Assistant to the Deputy Director-General of the Commission's Directorate General Health and Consumers where he focuses on Animal Health and Welfare. During our meeting he went over what his commission is doing in regards to implementing current laws as well as a law that they have in the Parliament right now. Apparently, it takes a while, around 3-5 years, to pass a bill through. And we thought congress was bad. He also explained how the commission writes the rules for laws in a way that allows the member states of the EU to find their own way to comply. Many of the things we are learning are completely changing our paradigm on how government can work.

We next met with Mr. Jean-Marc TRARIEUX, who is in the Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development. He related what his DG to that of our USDA. Then, he immediately dove into TTIP. I was very interesting to hear the perspective on trade from his point of view and for at least as far as agriculture goes, what the EU is concerned with. One side revolves around process, especially in the processing of our meats. The fact is that both systems, US and EU, produce a high quality, safe and nutritious product in the end. It is just that we take different ways to get to that end product. Even so, it is interesting to start to see the thought process and beliefs that drive some of the differences. He also hammered very hard on geographical indicators, like cheese. While I think we all saw his point about an Italian flag being printed on a bag of cheese misleading consumers to believe that the cheese is from Italy, this really isn't how we view cheese in America. Even so, the ability for a producer of a specialty to differentiate his product is an important feature to European producers.

Next we went to lunch where we met up with a former AFBF employee, Chris Garza! He did great work for AFBF for 15 years in the trade field and he is now over in Brussles working for Kellog's in the government relations area.

Our last meeting of the day was with Dr. Christian PERNHORST, who is one of Germany's representatives to NATO. This was a fascinating meeting to discuss the history of NATO, what it does and the relevance that it has today. There was much discussion on the current NATO topics of the day, ISIS er ISIL er whatever those terrorist want to be called and the situation in Ukraine. All in all, it was outside of our normal areas of expertise and very fun to learn about something new and important because if we (including Europe) can't grow food because of aggressive incursions, many people go hungry.

Brussels Cathedral

Looking down from the hills.

We then took a guided tour around the city to see so many beautiful sights and then we were in for a real treat. One of Tiffanie Stephani's friends was having a party to raise funds for his project to help African farmers in Tanzania. So he threw a pie tasting party to help in this effort. I might mention he was British, so the pies weren't dessert pie, but tasty nonetheless. It was a great night to converse with others from around the globe, many of whom were involved in agriculture as well. What a great night, meeting new people and helping a great cause at the same time. We have had some truly unique experiences here in Germany, and this was definitely one of them. If you want more info about Farm Africa, check it out right here:http://www.farmafrica.org/