THERE is a very strong public reluctance to use cloning in the food chain, according to European Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel.

EXPORT refunds for pigmeat, reopened by the European Commission last November to tackle difficulties in the sector caused by high feed costs and sluggish market prices, must be maintained for as long as possible.

EXPORT refunds for the dairy sector will go in 2013, world trade deal or no deal, according to Mariann Fischer Boel, member of the European Commission responsible for agriculture and rural development.

FARMERS who use the internet should visit Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Mariann Fischer Boel’s new blog website, and leave a message for the woman who — probably more than anyone else — determines their livelihood.