Made in EU: Cooperatives ensure value created in Europe, stays in Europe.

BRUSSELS -  As the European Union advances the Industrial Accelerator Act and revises the Public Procurement Directive, Cooperatives Europe and CECOP, with support from REScoop.eu and Euro Coop, are releasing a position paper today, calling on policymakers to look beyond the mere location of production. 

Our position, released today, argues that true strategic autonomy requires industrial policy to focus on who owns and retains the economic value created within the EU. It outlines how cooperatives inherently foster stronger, more stable supply chains and ensure that wealth is fairly distributed within the regions where it is created. By demonstrating this broad impact, the document shows that cooperatives are uniquely positioned to serve as the foundation for a resilient European economy

 "Cooperatives ensure value created in Europe stays in Europe". By prioritising the cooperative model, public spending can directly support quality jobs, social cohesion, and democratic participation.  

In the food retail sector, consumer cooperatives play a key role in strengthening local economies and sustainable food systems by promoting locally sourced food products, supporting shorter and more transparent supply chains, and ensuring that the economic value generated through their activities is reinvested back into the communities they serve, thereby reinforcing the link between competitiveness, sustainability, and territorial cohesion across Europe.

To deliver on this, we call for five clear policy shifts. We urge policymakers to explicitly recognise the strategic importance of cooperatives, including energy communities, in the "Made in EU" framework. Crucially, we recommend that the revised Public Procurement rules award additional points to enterprises that guarantee value retention, effectively creating a "European preference" for democratic, member- and citizen-owned models. Furthermore, we call for policy coherence across all European manufacturing concepts to ensure they prioritise an "Owned by EU" foundation, while providing targeted support to ensure SMEs and cooperatives are protected from the administrative costs of this transition. 

The upcoming revision of the Public Procurement Directive is a critical window for change. We call for "Made in EU" criteria that award additional points to enterprises that not only guarantee production in Europe but also ensure long-term value retention for local communities.

Read the position paper