'How to ensure a fair standard of
living for farmers' and 'how to ensure the sustainability of
agriculture within planetary boundaries' are the two questions
at the heart of the new 'vision of European agriculture' that
the European Commission will present within the first 100 days
of its new term.
This was stated by the Director General of DG Agri, Wolfgang
Burtscher, speaking on 14 October at a hearing in the European
Parliament's Agriculture Committee (Agri) on the conclusions of
the strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture, the forum
launched on 25 January by the President of the European
Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to respond to the tractor
protests that have shaken Europe in recent months.
The recommendations of the Dialogue that were delivered to the
European Commission last month will be the basis for Brussels'
work on the future of EU agriculture.
While it will be up to the next European executive to decide
"the exact content" of the vision, the two questions identified
by the representative of the European Commission will be at the
heart of the supporting structure of the new course.
"Simplification and reciprocity in trade agreements" will be the
other aspects that will flow into the vision, which should also
be the basis of the proposal for the future post-2027 CAP,
expected no earlier than summer 2025.
In the discussion with the European Commission, it became clear
that, for many, the crux of the discussions will be
strengthening the budget dedicated to the new Common
Agricultural Policy.
The European Union must move "to strengthen the competitive
capacity of our agriculture, a strategic asset for the
Continent: it is necessary to define a budget for the CAP that
is adequate to the challenges of the future. Farmers must be
incentivized and not subsidized, and it is necessary to adjust
the budget of the Common Agricultural Policy" post-2027 "in a
strong and stable manner, coherent and adequate to inflation",
suggested Massimiliano Giansanti, president of Confagricoltura
and newly elected head of Copa, the Brussels umbrella
association that protects the interests of farmers.
Giansanti indicated five pillars on which the future European
Commission should work in its next term, starting from "decent
income for our activity", intervening in particular on the value
chain to prevent consumers and farmers from feeling the effects
of price increases. There is also a focus on the "bureaucratic
and administrative simplification" of the agricultural policy,
on the reciprocity to be guaranteed to farmers in the rules for
trade with third countries, on the promotion of "generational
turnover" and, above all, on "research and innovation to address
the challenges of climate change". Giansanti recalled that
farmers must overcome all "these challenges in a difficult
climate context", they are the "true guardians of the
environment", not the problem, "but the solution to the
problem".
"Farmers are the first ones to want to preserve biodiversity,
ensure food security and fight climate change, but we need more
resources for agriculture, entrusting them to those who innovate
and those who deserve to be helped, starting with small farmers
who are often the most disadvantaged", pointed out Dario
Nardella, an MEP for the Democratic Party and coordinator for
the Socialists and Democrats in the agriculture committee. Also
among the Dems, the president of the Envi committee Antonio
Decaro recalled that the "agricultural transition will require
sacrifices from our farmers, Europe must be ready to make them
for them. We understand the challenges that the sector must
face, we need a common path", he said, relaunching the idea of a
Fund for the agricultural transition "to align the objectives of
the CAP with the environmental and climate challenges of the
Green Deal".
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