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Click here to Donate
Manufacturing Awareness and Image Campaign
for the Greater Philadelphia Region
Project Organization and Management: The fiscal agent will be the UrbanIndustry Initiative (UII), a 501 (c)(3) whose charitable mission is to place low income individuals in manufacturing jobs throughout the region. The UII was created in 1997 and has received and managed over $11 million in funding. The UII will contract project management to the Manufacturing Alliance of Philadelphia (MAP), a 501 (c)(6) trade association, the trade association for manufacturing in the Philadelphia region. MAP will manage the execution of campaign objectives. Project partners are Philadelphia, Bucks, and Montgomery Counties: The Workforce Investment Boards, Community Colleges, School Districts, Career & Technical Schools and the manufacturers of the Philadelphia region.
'What's So Cool About Manufacturing' Video Contest: Teams of middle school students, led by teacher coaches, are provided with video equipment and instructional materials and matched with local manufacturers. Each team has four months to create a short video profile of their partner company, and the career opportunities they offer to answer the question, "What's So Cool about Manufacturing?" The entries are judged by an expert panel and public vote—hosted on the Dream It. Do It. Website— and winners are recognized at an awards ceremony by industry and education leaders, dignitaries, and elected officials.
Support the Manufacturing Awareness and Image Campaign Today!
Urban Industries Initiative is a nonprofit 501(c),(3) organization Fed. EIN #32-0140849 We are registered with the Pennsylvania Bureau of Charitable Organizations Registration #34564. All gifts are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
See a video summary of some of the video's kids and manufacturers did with our friends from the Lehigh Valley. Lehigh's contest this past February generated 123,000 votes for their video contest. Now that's some serious traction!

subset: commoncrawl


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Hôtel Ibis Rouen Sud Zénith
29 Avenue Maryse Bastié Le Madrillet 76800 SAINT-ETIENNE-DU-ROUVRAY / Vallée de Seine
qualité tourisme, ibis
The Hôtel Ibis South Rouen Zénith is in front of the Zénith and the Parc des Expositions, 20 km away from the airport. You can easily arrive by the A13 motorway. 76 rooms with Internet. 4 of them are accessible for disabled persons. Bar, Snack 24 hours a day, car park, 4 seminars halls. Pets allowed.
Number of rooms : 75
Facilities : Free private parking, Bar, Television lounge
Comfort : Internet access, Cable/ satellite, Canal +, Telephone, Television, WIFI
Languages spoken : English, German, Spanish
|Double room (price per room)
|From 73.00€
to 125.00€
|Breakfast (price per person)
|From 10.50€
|Pet supplement
|From 5.00€
Methods of payment : American Express, Carte bleue, Postal or bank cheques, Holiday vouchers, Cash, Eurocard - Mastercard


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You should ditch your automotive and lace your walking shoes or value more highly to cycle or take public transport for your morning commute, if you would like to shed those additional kilos, in line with a recent study.
Adults who travel to work via cycling or walking have lower body fat proportion and body mass index (BMI) measures in mid-life compared to adults who travel to work via car, the study found. Even those who commute via public transport showed reductions in BMI and proportion body fat compared with people who commuted only by automotive. this implies that even the incidental physical activity concerned publically transport journeys could also be vital. The study checked out knowledge from over 150000 people from the united kingdom Biobank information set, a large, experimental study of 500000 people aged between forty and sixty nine within the Britain. The strongest associations were seen for adults who commuted via bicycle, compared to people who commute via automotive.
Image courtesy of Pinterest.com
After cycling, walking to work was related to the best reduction in BMI and proportion body fat, compared to car-users. For each sport and walking, bigger move distances were related to bigger reductions in BMI and proportion body fat. Commuters who solely used transport additionally had lower BMI compared to car-users, as did commuters who combined transport with alternative active strategies. The impact of transport on BMI was slightly bigger than for commuters who combined automotive use with alternative active strategies. The link between active commuting and BMI was independent of alternative factors like financial gain, space deprivation, urban or rural residence, education, alcohol intake, smoking, general physical activity and overall health and incapacity.
Study conducted by r Dr. Ellen Flint from the London school of Hygiene & tropical medicine aforesaid, 'We found that, compared with traveling by automotive, public transport, walking and sport or a combination of all 3 are related to reductions in body mass and body fat proportion, even when accounting for demographic and socioeconomic factors. many people live too removed from their workplace for walking or cycling to be possible, however even the incidental physical activity concerned in public transport will have a crucial impact.' Dr Flint adds: 'Physical inactivity is one among the principal causes of ill-health and early on mortality. In England, 2 thirds of adults don't meet recommended levels of physical activity. Supporting public transport and active traveling, particularly for those in mid-life once obesity becomes an increasing downside, can be a crucial a part of the world policy response to population-level obesity prevention.' The study appears in the Lancet diabetes & endocrinology journal.
To Lose Weight Easier Please Visit:


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The Darchala's Chaos Device is an artifact found in both Heretic and Hexen. When used, it sends the player back to the start of the level (or near a portal the player came from in Hexen). It is best used to get out of unpleasant or dangerous situations (like, say, if the player is falling to his death; use of the artifact will instantly save him). The figure featured on the artifact closely resembles the "symbol of chaos" designed by Michael Moorcock.
In Heretic, if the player holds a Chaos Device when he is hit by the powered-up projectile of the Firemace (whose contact is normally lethal), the device will trigger automatically to save the player. However, the player will still lose half his health.
See Also:
|Heretic items
|Crystal Vial | Quartz Flask | Mystic Urn
|Silver Shield | Enchanted Shield
|Crystal Vial | Map Scroll | Bag of Holding | Ammo | Keys
|Chaos Device | Morph Ovum | Mystic Urn | Quartz Flask | Ring of Invincibility | Shadowsphere | Timebomb of the Ancients | Tome of Power | Torch | Wings of Wrath
|Hexen items
|Crystal Vial | Quartz Flask | Mystic Urn
|Amulet of Warding | Dragonskin Bracers | Falcon Shield | Mesh Armor | Platinum Helm
|Banishment Device | Boots of Speed | Chaos Device | Dark Servant | Disc of Repulsion | Dragonskin Bracers | Fléchette | Icon of the Defender | Krater of Might | Mystic Ambit Incant | Mystic Urn | Porkalator | Quartz Flask | Torch | Wings of Wrath
|Ammo | Keys | Puzzle Artifacts


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Several cat advocates implored Canton City Council on Monday to take a new approach with its animal control program. The contract for animal control services is up for renewal. The advocates urged the city to adopt the approach known as Trap-Neuter-Return.
City Council heard a wave of concerns and questions Monday night regarding the animal control program and the way feral cats are handled.
Several speakers, including those representing various organizations, urged the city to take a different approach to feral cats and to adopt a method known as Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR).
Spurring the comments was the pending legislation for the renewal of the city's contract with Philip Sedlacko for animal control services.
Councilman Patrick Barton, D-7, chairman of the personnel committee, said the concerns will be taken into consideration. Barton said he was uncertain whether council would vote on Sedlacko's contract at the next meeting.
Barton said he still believes there's a need for an animal control officer, including for complaints about raccoons and skunks. However, he said a special council committee meeting will be scheduled to discuss the issue and various options. Those who expressed concerns Monday will be invited, he said. An effort also will be made to include other views on animal control and feral cats, he said.
Sedlacko takes the cats to the Stark County Humane Society. Lou Criswell, the agency's executive director, said feral and diseased cats are euthanized. If a cat is injured or sick, depending on the seriousness, the cat is treated by a veterinarian or euthanized, he said Monday afternoon.
The cats "that are fine are going to be adopted most likely," Criswell said.
Last week, Sedlacko declined to comment on the issue.
At Monday's meeting, speakers included Toby Franks, of Canton, who promotes Trap-Neuter-Return.
Franks read a statement from Alley Cat Allies, a Maryland-based "national advocacy organization dedicated to the protection and humane treatment of cats."
If approved by council, the new one-year contract with Sedlacko would be for up to $27,129.
The group said that taxpayer funds would be spent better by providing a spay and neuter program.
Council President Allen Schulman, who has pet cats, said that other viewpoints exist, citing concerns about the quality of life of feral cats and the impact they have on birds.
In a brochure, Alley Cat Allies said that "feral cats are just as healthy as pet cats — with equally low rates of disease" and they "have the same life spans, too."
McKenzie Quartz, 11, of Jackson Township, also expressed concerns about the city's program. She volunteers with the Animal Protection Guild.
"Why do we have to kill them?" she said. "... There are people who know how to take care of wild cat families."


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For the second year in a row, the Indium semiconductor assembly team will be on hand among the industry experts throughout the show, and will gather once again for a round table discussion focused on the semiconductor topics you are interested in. The style of this meeting is impromptu – please attend and bring up whatever is on your mind.
This years "Meet the Bloggers" event will be held Tuesday, July 14th, 2009 at Indium Corporation's exhibit booth #715 (South Hall), from 2-3pm PST. Simply show up, join the conversation, and have fun.
Hope to see you there!


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1 pav green peas(dried/fresh)
1 potato
2 tomatoes
1tsp coriander seeds
5pepper corns
1tsp poppy seeds
2tbsps coconut gratings
1small piece ginger
2 cardamom pods
1small piece cinnamon
5 red chillies(long variety)
6-8 garlic cloves
1 tsp oil
Salt to taste
Preparation time -15-20 minutes
Method of Preparation:
Wash green peas(If the peas are dried, soak them overnight, wash and keep aside). Skin potato and cut into small cubes. Cook peas with potato and tomato pieces in water till tender. Roast all the above ingredients. Grind them together to a fine paste. Pour ½ tsp oil in frying pan, drop masala paste in it. Cook for sometime (say, 5mnts) stirring constantly. Remove from flame .To the cooked potato-cum peas add salt, mix masala. Boil properly and then remove from flame.
The gravy should be moderately thin so that it goes well with puri and chapati.


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Providing Skilled Legal Expertise
for 135 Years
The construction industry is widely viewed as one of the most dangerous, with OSHA reporting that 19.6 percent of all workers killed on the job in 2012 worked in construction. Unfortunately, in addition to the 775 construction workers who lost their lives, thousands more sustained serious and life-changing injuries.
If you or a loved one was hurt in a construction accident, you may have a right to compensation or benefits for your injuries. There are a number of different ways to take legal action when a construction accident happens and an experienced New Jersey accident lawyer at Gebhardt & Kiefer, P.C. can help.
Construction sites are inherently dangerous areas. From accidents involving heavy machinery to life-threatening construction falls, bystanders and workers alike remain at serious risk. If you are an unsuspecting passerby injured by a construction mishap, you may file a liability lawsuit against the company or person at fault. If you are a construction worker hurt while on-the-job, you are entitled to workers' compensation benefits, which include fully paid medical bills, lost wages, and other expenses.
There are perhaps innumerable ways in which a person can suffer injury at a construction site. Scaffolding accidents are the most common, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all construction accidents. Other common causes include: falls, electrocution, and improperly braced trenches.
Common construction site accidents and injuries include:
New Jersey construction site accident injuries can include burns, vision loss, fractured limbs, loss of limbs, back and spinal injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and even death.
When attempting to determine the liability for injuries sustained in a construction accident, it helps to understand each party's responsibilities at the site. In the case that an accident occurs, any of the following parties may bear total or partial responsibility:
In many cases, workers' compensation benefits cannot cover all of your injury expenses. If a sub-contractor, property owner, architect, engineer, or someone other than your primary employer causes your injuries, you can sue the parties responsible. In this case, you are not limited by New Jersey's workers' compensation law.
When an innocent bystander suffers injury as the result of a construction accident, he or she may also be eligible to recover damages by filing a personal injury claim. Whether you're a construction worker or merely a bystander who has suffered injury, you may be eligible to receive economic recovery for your losses.
If you have suffered injury as the result of a construction accident, you are responsible for proving your case against the liable party(s). This usually requires the help of a qualified attorney. It is always wise to seek competent legal counsel after an accident to ensure that your rights are protected, especially since a statute of limitations applies to all workers' compensation and personal injury cases.
The insurance company wants to settle your case as soon as possible – and for as little money as possible. Our personal injury attorneys know how to protect you from the insurance companies and to present your claim in the best way possible to ensure your rights are protected and that you get the maximum compensation available. Call 908-735-5161 to schedule a free consultation, or fill out the contact form on this site. With offices in Clinton Township (Annandale) and Bridgewater, our firm serves clients throughout central and northwestern New Jersey.


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Our Products
Simply put, JOCK Dog Food offers complete and balanced nutrition in its simplest form.
More than just food for dogs, it's made using a nutritionally superior recipe
JOCK Junior
Suitable for all puppies, late pregnant
and lactating bitches.
Just as babies are not miniature adults, puppies are not smaller, younger versions of dogs. The growth and development of a puppy is hard work, and special nutrition is required. Young dogs require a wholesome diet that is balanced and easy to digest and are especially sensitive to the effects of dietary deficiencies, toxins, and poor quality ingredients.
JOCK Multistage
Suitable for adult
and active dogs
JOCK MULTISTAGE is formulated to get active dogs' tails wagging. Using only the finest, carefully selected ingredients, it provides a complete balanced nutritional diet, specifically geared towards the daily health of dogs with a zest for life.
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Complete and balanced nutrition,
Suitable for all dog breeds.
Complete and balanced nutrition suited for all dog breeds. The role that nutrition plays in keeping your dog healthy is absolutely critical. JOCK Value is specially formulated to completely address these needs and keep your pooch a few steps ahead of the rest.


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ActionAid calls the goat its hero. The concert is a tribute to how goats help fight poverty, providing milk for families, as well as a stream of income they can use to pay for school and food, which empowers women and the community at large.
Watch the concert that was performed live from a theatre in Stockholm. Experience the album All I Want for Christmas is A Goat in a brand new way. And don't forget to buy a goat.


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Discontented teens meet cranky granddad - and you can guess the rest
Review: Un été en Provence
Un été en Provence
Two stars out of five
Starring: Jean Reno, Chloé Jouannet, Hugo Dessioux, Lukas Pélissier
Directed by: Rose Bosch
Running time: 105 minutes
MONTREAL — What is it with French films and vintage English-language pop songs? You rarely hear a song sung in the language of Gainsbourg in a film made in France, but instead are assaulted by a slew of British and American pop tunes.
Writer-director Rose Bosch's pleasant, if slight, Un été en Provence opens on a high-speed train — the fabled TGV — heading toward the south of France with the classic Simon and Garfunkel folk song The Sounds of Silence providing the soundtrack, a nod to the fact that one of the characters, 7-year-old Théo (Lukas Pélissier), is deaf.
Soon enough, Théo and his two siblings, Adrien (Hugo Dessioux) and sister Léa (Chloé Jouannet), are in Provence in the hot summer, the season underlined by one-hit-wonder Mungo Jerry's rollicking oddity In the Summertime. Before this rather predictable drama plays out, you'll hear Dutch band Shocking Blue's catchy chart-topper Venus, Deep Purple's metallic Highway Star and, to cap it all off, a bunch of French hippies sitting around boozing and smoking weed singing old Dylan songs, including Forever Young and Knockin' on Heaven's Door.
But we're getting ahead of ourselves: First the three kids and their grandmother Irène (Anna Galiena) have to make it to Provence, which is how the story begins. She's taking them to spend the summer with their grandfather Paul (Jean Reno) because their parents have just split up and their mom is off for a job interview in Montreal. (That leads to a quip that if she stays in Montreal, she'll end up talking like Céline Dion, a line that elicited howls of laughter at the press screening I attended.)
The two teenage kids are peeved about being stuck in the middle of nowhere in southern France — they have trouble getting Wi-Fi to fire up their laptops and post on Facebook, Léa is disgusted by the lack of healthy bio food available at her grandpa's, and neither is particularly thrilled by their grandfather's grouchy attitude.
Turns out he has rarely seen the kids as a result of a lengthy dispute with his daughter (their mother) and that's one of the reasons he's such a miserable character. Of course, you know he's going to warm up to them. That's not giving away any plot points. You've seen it a million times.
And that's the problem with Un été en Provence. It's reasonably entertaining, but there are no surprises. There will be some romancing for the teenagers — involving young women from Britain and a dashing, somewhat sketchy, fellow who sells pizzas and does a little bullfighting on the side — and the Shrek-like ex-hippie Paul will turn out to be a real softy at heart.
Reno is OK — he could do this half-asleep — but it's the young thespians who bring some welcome energy, most notably 7-year-old Pélissier, who was born deaf, and is an absolute charmer as Théo, the little guy who'll finally get through to the grumpy old man.
Twitter: brendanshowbiz


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I'm at lunch at the new Bethesda 5G, which just opened last week. It is listed as store number 1023. I guess they switched to 4 digit numbers, and not just straight counting. (Since they have around 510 stores total.)
Here what I ordered on my bacon cheeseburger: bacon. Yep. Extra bacon counts as a free topping. Should be nice.


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An unannounced inspection has seen a Great Eccleston care home rated as 'requires improvement' by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
The report on Northlands Village Rest Home found it 'requires improvement' in the 'safe', 'effective' and 'responsive' categories.
We scored highly in the 'caring' and 'well-led' categories which is what we think it's all about. We have also fixed all the issues flagged up by the CQCManager
It was carried out on September 10 by two social care inspectors who spoke with a range of people about the Raikes Road service. This included four people who used the service, two relatives of people using the service, seven members of staff, including the registered manager, a cook and care staff.
They concluded the service 'did not have effective recruitment practices in place to ensure staff were appropriately checked to ensure they were safe to work with vulnerable people' and there were some gaps in the staff's training.
The report also found no interview records or notes to show candidates had been through a formal interview process and no evidence that care plans were being followed or backed up by appropriate risk assessments or reviews.
However the service was rated 'good' in both the 'caring' and 'well-led' categories. The report stated 'staff treated people with patience, warmth and compassion and respected people's rights to privacy, dignity and independence'. Relatives of people using the service also told inspectors they could approach managers or staff with any issues they had. The service had procedures in place for dealing with allegations of abuse and staff could describe what constituted abuse and the action they would take. Manager at the home, Susan Bell, said: "We are very happy with the report and we think we did very well considering the CQC's new way of inspecting services. We scored highly in the 'caring' and 'well-led' categories which is what we think it's all about. We have also fixed all the issues flagged up by the CQC."
The service is run by Simon and Chrstine Dickinson who have been asked by inspectors to send them a report detailing the action taken. No formal action has been taken by the CQC, although its inspectors will check the changes have been made.


text: 1 This is it. I have made it. A half day and four finals stand in-between me and summer. I am beyond excited!!! Today's Friday Favorites is a little bit different. It is just fun life style stuff, nothing fashion, beauty, or blog related so I hope you enjoy! Favorites: […] Friday Favorites { Life Style Edition }15 May, 2015 in Favorites / Life tagged edition / favorites / friday / Friday Favorites / life / life style by Carrieonblogs


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European Commission
Brussels, 3 December 2013
The EU's bilateral trade and investment agreements – where are we?
According to IMF estimates, over the next years, 90% of world demand will be generated outside the EU. That is why it is a key priority for the EU to open up more market opportunities for European business by negotiating new Free Trade Agreements with key countries. If we were to complete all our current free trade talks tomorrow, we could add 2.2% to the EU's GDP or €275 billion. This is equivalent of adding a country as big as Austria or Denmark to the EU economy. In terms of employment, these agreements could generate 2.2 million new jobs or additional 1% of the EU total workforce. Below is an overview of the most important on-going and concluded free trade negotiations.
On-going negotiations
United States of America – The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks started with a round held on 8-12 July 2013 in Washington, D.C. Negotiating groups set out respective approaches and ambitions in twenty various areas that the TTIP is set to cover, including custom duties and technical standards for goods produced on both sides of Atlantic.
The second round, which took place from 11-15 November in Brussels, focused on trade rules and the regulatory component of the TTIP that will feed into a political review in January 2014 (IP/13/1091). Before the review takes place, the negotiators will meet again for a third round of talks during the week of 16 December in Washington D.C.
The initiative of a transatlantic agreement is based on the recommendations of the EU-US High Level Working Group on Jobs and Growth that steered the deliberations on the future EU-US relations since late 2011. According to an independent study by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, London, an ambitious and comprehensive trans-Atlantic trade and investment partnership could bring the EU economic gains of €119 billion a year once the agreement is fully implemented.
Agreement on investment with China – Investment negotiations were officially launched on the occasion of the EU-China Summit held in Beijing on 21 November 2013 (IP/13/1099 and MEMO/13/1012). The first round of talks should take place at the end 2013 or early 2014. The Commission will negotiate on the basis of the mandate approved by the Council on 18 October (MEMO/13/913).
The current level of bilateral investment is way below what could be expected from two of the most important economic blocks on the planet. Just 2.1% of overall EU Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is in China. The main purposes for these negotiations are the progressive abolition of restrictions on trade and foreign direct investment as well as promoting the overall objectives of EU policy in the world. The EU-China investment agreement will improve access to the Chinese market and provide EU investors in China a high level of investment protection in a single, coherent text.
Canada – On 18 October 2013, Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper reached a political agreement on the key elements of a Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) (IP/13/972). It will be the first free trade agreement between the European Union and a G8 country. It will remove over 99% of tariffs between the two economies and create sizeable new market access opportunities in services and investment. Based on the political agreement, technical negotiations will have to be completed so as to finalise the legal text of the agreement.
In 2012 Canada was the EU's 12th most important trading partner whereas the EU is Canada's second-largest trading partner, after the United States. In 2012, the value of bilateral trade in goods between the EU and Canada was €61.8 billion. An economic study jointly released by the EU and Canada before the negotiations showed that a comprehensive trade agreement could increase their bilateral trade by another €25.7 billion.
Japan – The EU and Japan launched negotiations for a free trade agreement in April 2013 (MEMO/13/348) and have held so far three rounds of talks. The third round took place from 21-25 October in Brussels (IP/13/998) and progress in negotiations was discussed at the EU–Japan Summit in Tokyo on 19 November (MEMO/13/1015). The next round is scheduled for early 2014.
Japan is the EU's second biggest trading partner in Asia, after China. An FTA could increase EU GDP by 0.6% and boost EU exports to Japan by a third. 400,000 additional jobs are expected in the EU as a result of this deal.
The Commission is aware of concerns in some Member States and industry sectors, particularly as regards non-tariff barriers in Japan. This is exactly why the Commission agreed with Japan – even before potential negotiations started – that Europe could 'pull the plug' on negotiations after one year if Japan does not demonstrate that it is removing certain non-tariff barriers.
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – The EU negotiates currently with four countries of the ASEAN region. The negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement with Singapore, launched in 2010, were concluded successfully in December last year (IP/12/1380) and the agreement was initialed in Singapore on 20 September 2013 (IP/13/849). However, the talks on investment protection that started only after the Lisbon Treaty entered into force, giving the EU new competencies in this area, are still on-going. On 18 October, the Council adopted also a mandate which will allow the European Commission to start investment negotiations with other ASEAN countries (MEMO/13/913).
In the meantime, the negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement continue with Malaysia and Vietnam. The 5th round of FTA negotiations with Vietnam took place in Hanoi on 4-8 November 2013. The negotiations have entered a substantial phase and the sixth round of negotiations will take place in Brussels in the week of 13 January 2014. Thailand started bilateral negotiations with the EU only later, in March this year (press release). The third round of these talks will take place in Brussels during the week of 9 December.
The EU remains open to start negotiations with other ASEAN partners and hopes one day to integrate these deals into a global region-to-region trade agreement. As a whole, with €191 billion of trade in goods in 2012 and €51 billion services in 2011, ASEAN is today the EU's third largest trading partner outside Europe, after the US and China and well ahead of other partners.
Southern Mediterranean - The EU has completed so far two rounds of negotiations for a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) with Morocco and the third round of talks will take place in January 2014. The deal should strengthen EU-Morocco trade relations building upon existing agreements, including the Association Agreement of 2000 and the agreement on agricultural, processed agricultural and fisheries products of 2012. Morocco is the first Mediterranean country to negotiate a comprehensive trade agreement with the EU. The Commission has also a mandate to start a similar process with Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan.
India – Substantive progress has been achieved since the beginning of the negotiations in 2007. Now both sides need to go the final mile to put the package together. India combines a sizable and growing market of more than 1 billion people and is an important trading partner for the EU as well as an emerging global economic power.
Mercosur – Negotiations of an EU-Mercosur Association Agreement were launched in 2000, but suspended in 2004 due to substantial differences on the Trade part of the agreement. Negotiations were resumed in May 2010 (IP/10/496). Since then, nine negotiating rounds were held between the EU and Mercosur, which have focused on the trade rules rather than customs duty reductions.
At the EU-Mercosur trade ministerial meeting held in Santiago on 26 January 2013, the EU and Mercosur agreed to exchange offers on market access concessions for goods, services and government procurement not later than in the last quarter of 2013. Work related to preparation of the offers on both sides is on-going.
Gulf Cooperation Council – Negotiations for a free trade agreement were suspended by the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2008. Informal contacts between negotiators continue to take place.
African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP) – Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) are trade and development partnerships between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP), based on the Cotonou Agreement concluded in 2000. The aim is to consolidate free access to the EU market for products from our ACP partners, foster trade-related cooperation and attract investment, in order to promote sustainable development.
The negotiations started in 2002 and have covered seven regional groups: West Africa, Central Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA), Eastern African Community (EAC), South African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group, the Caribbean (CARIFORUM) and the Pacific. The EU continues the talks with all of them except CARIFORUM that signed a full Economic Partnership Agreement already in 2008.The EU Negotiations are now entering a decisive phase in the Eastern African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group. In the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa progress is uneven.
From 15 to 19 July 2013, EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht traveled to four African countries: Kenya (part of the EAC) and Namibia, Botswana and South Africa (members of the SADC EPA Group) (IP/13/686). Commissioner De Gucht used this opportunity to discuss ways to strengthen trade and investment relations with the African regions, in particular through comprehensive trade and development partnerships under EPAs. Commissioner De Gucht returned to the region in November, visiting South Africa again, and then Cameroon (Central African region) and Côte d'Ivoire (Western Africa) (IP/13/1057).
The EU has twelve trade negotiations under way and several more trade and development negotiations (EPAs) ongoing.
Free Trade Agreements finished but not yet applied
Eastern Neighbourhood – The EU has recently concluded negotiations for a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) with Moldova, Armenia and Georgia. The DCFTAs are part of the Association Agreements with these three countries. The official initialing of the Association Agreements with Moldova and Georgia took place during the Eastern Partnership Summit on 29 November 2013 in Vilnius.
Given the decision taken by Armenia in the beginning of September to join the customs union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, the steps required for the agreement with this country to become effective are not pursued at this moment.
The EU is the main trading partner for each the three countries. In 2011 trade with the EU represented more than 50% of total trade flows for Moldova, 32% of overall trade for Armenia and 26% for Georgia. Once implemented, the DCFTAs would provide for a significantly improved mutual access for goods and services between the EU and its eastern neighbours. Furthermore, they will ensure an open, stable and predictable legal environment for the benefit of businesses and consumers on both sides.
Ukraine – The EU and Ukraine concluded the negotiations for a deep and comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) in December 2011. On 15 May 2013, the Commission adopted the proposals for Council decisions on the signing and provisional application of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, including its trade part (IP/13/436). Ukraine decided to suspend temporarily the preparations for signing but the EU offer is still on the table (Presidents' statement).
Singapore – The negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the European Union and Singapore were concluded in December 2012 (IP/12/1380) and the agreement was initialed in Singapore on 20 September 2013 (IP/13/849). The procedures allowing the agreement to become effective are expected to be completed by late 2014.
This is the EU's second ambitious agreement with a key Asian trading partner, after the EU-Korea FTA, and the first with a member of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Once fully implemented, the deal will open up markets on both sides in a number of sectors.
Singapore is by far its largest EU trading partner in the South-East Asia, accounting for about a third of EU-ASEAN trade in goods and services, and for more than three-fifths of investment stocks between the two regions. Over 9000 EU companies have set up their regional hub in Singapore.
There are also five interim Economic Partnership Agreements with African, Caribbean and Pacific States that have been negotiated but have not yet entered into force. These are with Cote d'Ivoire, Central Africa (Cameroon), the Southern African Development Community, Ghana and the East African Community.
In total, the EU has finished negotiating ten trade agreements that have yet to enter into force.
Free Trade Agreements already in place
Central America (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama) - The Association Agreement between the European Union and Central America (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama) was approved by the European Parliament on 11 December 2012 (IP/12/1353). The trade provisions of the agreement apply with Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama since 1 August 2013 (IP/13/758), with Costa Rica and El Salvador since 1 October 2013 (IP/13/881) and with Guatemala since 1st December 2013 (IP/13/1183).
This agreement opens up markets on both sides, helping to establish a stable business and investment environment and foster integration between the EU and the whole of the Central America. The agreement is also meant to reinforce economic integration between the members of the Central American region.
The EU is Central America's second biggest trading partner. In 2012, the total trade flows in goods amounted to €14 billion, including almost €1.4 billion worth of trade with Honduras, €1.2 billion with Panama and €0.4 billion with Nicaragua. Benefits of the agreement will be particularly tangible for the Central America's economy that is expected to grow by over two and a half billion euros annually once the agreement applies to the entire region.
Colombia and Peru – The FTA with members of the Andean region, Colombia and Peru, has been provisionally applied with Peru since 1 March 2013 (IP/13/173) and with Colombia since 1 August 2013 (IP/13/749).
The EU is the second largest trading partner of the Andean region after the US. It is expected that, once fully implemented, the deal with both Andean partners will result in total tariff saving for European and Andean companies of more than €500 million per year. The improved, more stable conditions for trade and investment are expected to boost trade and investment between the two regions. The aim of the agreement between the EU, Colombia and Peru is also to foster regional integration. Therefore, the door is still open for the other Andean countries – Ecuador and Bolivia – to enter into the partnership.
South Korea – The EU-Korea Free Trade Agreement entered into force in July 2011. This has been the first of a new generation of free trade agreements that went further than ever before at lifting trade barriers and making it easier for European and Korean companies to do business together. As the FTA has lowered import tariffs for European products at the Korean border, EU exports to the peninsular country have grown strongly giving the EU a trade surplus with Korea for the first time in 15 years. Marking two years since the start of the implementation phase, the state of play was discussed, inter alia, on the occasion of the EU–South Korea Summit held in Brussels on 8 November (IP/13/1046 and MEMO/13/959). On 11 November the parties initialled an Additional Protocol to the EU-Korea FTA to take into account the accession of Croatia to the EU.
Mexico - Since the entry into force in October 2000 of this comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, total bilateral trade has doubled, passing from €21.7 billion in 2000 to €47.1 billion in 2012. In the margins of the EU-CELAC1 summit in Santiago in January 2013, the EU and Mexico agreed to explore the options for a modernisation of the EU-Mexico Agreement. The new talks should deepen the existing provisions but also cover areas not included in the existing agreement, such as services, investment, public procurement, trade rules, etc. Following-up on the decision taken by Presidents Barroso and Peña Nieto in the summit, a Joint Working Group, tasked with a reflection on the modernisation of the agreement, met on 22-23 October 2013.
Economic Partnership Agreements are being implemented in with three regions: the Caribbean (fifteen CARIFORUM states), the Pacific (the only country currently applying is Papua New Guinea) and Eastern and Southern Africa (four ESA countries - Zimbabwe, Mauritius, Madagascar, the Seychelles).
South Africa - South Africa is the EU's largest trading partner in Africa. The Trade, Development and Co-operation Agreement, in force since 2000, established a free trade area that covers 90% of bilateral trade between the EU and South Africa. Liberalisation was completed by 2012. South Africa is now involved in further negotiations with the EU as part of the South African Development Community (SADC) EPA Group.
Chile - The EU and Chile concluded an Association Agreement in 2002, which included a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement that entered into force in February 2003. The EU-Chile Free Trade Agreement is broad and comprehensive and covers all the areas of EU-Chile trade relations. EU is Chile's second largest source of imports, after the USA. The EU is also Chile's third largest export market, after the recent rise of China as an important export market for the EU.
On top of these "classic" free trade deals, Free Trade Agreements are a core component of many Association Agreements as well as Customs Unions (Andorra, San Marino, Turkey). Hence the EU also has free trade deals in force with a number of countries and territories in Europe (Faroe Islands, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia) and the Southern Mediterranean (Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestinian Authority, Syria, Tunisia) and three with African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (Caribbean, Pacific and Eastern and Southern Africa). Trade provisions of the agreement with Syria are currently not applied.
The EU therefore has already in place trade agreements with some 50 partners.
For further information
EU's bilateral free trade agreements
How do Free Trade Agreements work? Trade negotiations step by step (factsheet)
Transparency in EU trade negotiations
Community of Latin American and Caribbean States
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