Brussels, 17 September 2026 – Following President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address and her call to “kickstart Europe’s economy”, AIM, APPLiA, Detergents Europe and FESI have issued a joint statement setting out a shared call for a stronger, more competitive and resilient European manufacturing ecosystem.
The four associations stress that Europe’s manufacturing strength relies on an interconnected ecosystem, spanning raw materials, components and technologies through to finished goods, recycling, logistics and industrial services. EU policy should recognise these interdependencies and support diversified supply chains that strengthen resilience and security of supply.
As the European Commission enters the second half of its mandate, the signatories call for an assessment of whether the cumulative body of EU legislation is enabling European companies to invest, innovate, scale up, decarbonise and compete globally while continuing to manufacture in the EU.
The statement also calls for coherent, workable and predictable regulation, better coordination across the Commission and greater recognition of the downstream industry perspective in EU priorities. The associations underline that Europe’s climate, circularity, resilience and strategic autonomy objectives should reinforce one another and contribute to a stronger European manufacturing base.
