European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen used her 2026 State of the Union address to set out an ambitious agenda for a Europe that is more competitive, more resilient and better equipped to act in an increasingly challenging geopolitical environment. A central message of the speech was clear: Europe needs to move faster. Competitiveness: Europe needs to move faster Building on the work of Mario Draghi and Enrico Letta, von der Leyen highlighted the progress made on

Organic production has become increasingly important in the European Union and is subject to specific standards. It is a farming and food production system that promotes environmental protection, biodiversity, the conservation of natural resources, high animal welfare standards, and the use of natural substances and processes. Organic farming is a part of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and the production and labelling of organic products are governed primarily by Regul

In July 2026, the European Commission tabled a long-awaited proposal to revise the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The ETS is one of the most important pillars of the European Green Deal and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The EU ETS was established in 2003 (EU ETS Directive), has evolved into a key instrument for achieving the EU's cliamte objectives. The current system is designed to reduce net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030, compared

The European Commission is consulting on draft rules intended to harmonise how packaging producers register and report under the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation. The proposal would introduce common formats for national producer registers, covering company details, extended producer responsibility arrangements, producer responsibility organisation certificates and authorised representatives. It would standardise the packaging data companies submit. For businesses o

On 14 October 2026, BeST is hosting* an high-level policy dialogue "From Mine to Mission - Critical Raw Materials for Defence Capability". It aims to explore how Europe can strengthen the resilience of critical raw material supply chains that underpin defence capabilities and defence-industrial readiness. Europe's defence capabilities increasingly depend on secure and resilient access to critical raw materials. Materials such as beryllium, nickel and niobium play an indispen

European Commission has taken another major step in implementing its artificial intelligence (AI) strategy with the launch of a €10 billion call for tenders to establish up to seven AI Gigafactories across Europe. Announced on 30 July, the initiative aims to create the high-performance computing infrastructure needed to develop next-generation AI models within Europe while leveraging an estimated €20 billion in additional private investment. The initiative forms part of the E