My Weekly Update: the first official visit to Portugal, new vine authorizations and a trip to a farm in Wallonia. - Main contents

Reflecting on my work over the past week I have to agree with the famous Portuguese quote which I think applies not only to the capital city but to the country as a whole; "Quem não viu Lisboa, não viu coisa boa"

Last week I made my first official visit to Portugal following an invitation from Minister Assunçao Cristas, Portuguese Minister for Agriculture. I was glad to take her up on her offer to visit this beautiful country and to have the opportunity to reach out to stakeholders and parliamentarians as well as meeting with the Minister and her officials.

My visit began on Thursday with a trip to the National Institute for Agricultural and Veterinary Research (INIAV) in Oeiras. Here I spoke to agri-food stakeholders about how the rural economy has been a significant actor in the economic recovery of Portugal. Later that day I attended the National Assembly of Portugal and spoke to the Agriculture Committee. It was here that I was keen to open a discussion about Portugal's rural development to date. I echoed that all three Rural Development Programmes for Portugal, Azores and Madeira were among the first 27 to have been approved by the Commission and affords not just Portuguese farmers, but also agri cooperatives and rural entrepreneurs alike the opportunity to kick start the programme. With the deadline for the end of Dairy Quotas less than two weeks ago, I am aware of the concerns from milk producers in the Azores about what the future may bring. Yet, I think the EU confidence in the rural economy of the Azores should not be underestimated and I am firmly of the opinion that agriculture and the agri-food sector can play a prominent role in the momentum of growth and job creation and the recovery of this wonderful country.

I also spoke to the EU Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, alongside the Portuguese Secretary of State for Europe, Bruno Maçaes. I presented the main elements of the 2015 Commission Work Programme and engaged in a question and answer session with MPs and MEPs in attendance. As I have said on a number of occasions before, I highly value the interaction with national parliamentarians and indeed my colleagues, Vice President Mogherini and Commissioner Moscovici had also visited the Assembly this year, so there is ongoing engagement between the Juncker Team and the Portuguese Parliament.

On Friday with Minister Cristas I visited Campotec, a prime example of a cooperative in the horticultural sector in the Torres Vedras region, and producers of the famous "Pera Rocha" pears. I also visited Quinta de Chocapalha, a quality family -owned vineyard and winery and a proud example of the potential of wine tourism in Portugal. This visit highlighted one area of CAP that is particularly relevant this past week. On Thursday the new vine authorisations were published, and these will enter into force in January 2016. This is certainly good news as it is an opportunity to increase wine production, notably in places like Portugal, in order to meet the growing demand in world markets.

Following my return from Portugal, I visited a dairy farm in Loupoigne in the Wallonia region of Belgium, to film a feature for "Le Clef des Champs" on Belgian TV channel RTBF. There I met Philippe Soreil, a mixed dairy and beef farmer, who with his wife and daughter, produce artisanal yoghurts, cheeses and butters.

This week in the College of Commissioners we discussed the Digital Single Market Strategy - there are huge opportunities for the rollout of rural broadband which I am working on closely with my colleague, Commissioner Cretu.

Reflecting on my work over the past week I have to agree with the famous Portuguese quote which I think applies not only to the capital city but to the country as a whole;

"Quem não viu Lisboa, não viu coisa boa"

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