Link CAP subsidies to income to
support farmers in difficulty and create a temporary,
complementary fund to the Common Agricultural Policy, to
accelerate the transition towards sustainability of the European
agri-food sector - these are some of the 14 recommendations for
the future Common Agricultural Policy contained in the final
report of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture,
the forum launched by European Commission President Ursula von
der Leyen in response to the farmers protests.
The final document was delivered to von der Leyen on September 4
and it will guide the work of the next Commission, which, in the
first 100 days of its term, will present a new "vision for
agriculture" of the EU.
The 110-page final report is divided into 10 guiding principles
and 14 recommendations.
In response to the farmers' protests that have shaken the
continent in recent months, the report urges European
decision-makers to take "decisive action to address the
challenges", in particular those of the transition of the sector
and fair income for farmers.
The core of the 14 recommendations is the one regarding the CAP
of tomorrow, which recommends providing direct support to
farmers "who need it most", rather than tying subsidies solely
to the amount of land they own and to mandatory environmental
standards.
This new targeted support - the report states - should "prevent
farm abandonment and help ensure farmers a decent income,
targeting those most in difficulty, in particular small and
mixed farms, young farmers, new entrants and areas subject to
natural constraints".
To accompany the challenges of the transition, the dialogue also
suggests adding a "temporary just transition fund" to the CAP
resources to complement support for the transition towards
sustainability in the sector.
Other recommendations include "a review of animal welfare
legislation and a new regulatory framework" to introduce a
system of animal welfare labelling at the European level.
Launched in January by President von der Leyen, the strategic
forum is made up of 29 participants from cooperatives,
non-governmental organisations and civil society representatives
under the leadership of German professor Peter Strohschneider.
A total of seven plenary sessions were held from the end of
January to the end of August, leading to the unanimous adoption
of the final document, which was handed over to von der Leyen.
It also highlights the need to establish a European Commission
"nature restoration fund", with "adequate resources outside the
Common Agricultural Policy" to support farmers and other land
managers in restoring and managing the EU's natural habitats.
Stressing the urgency of "ambitious and feasible action at all
levels to ensure that the sector operates within planetary
boundaries and contributes to climate protection and
restoration", the forum suggests the establishment of a fund
separate from CAP resources dedicated to supporting Member
States in achieving the objectives of the controversial nature
restoration law, which came into force in August.
The report was presented at a press conference by the president
of the dialogue alongside von der Leyen, who confirmed her
intention to present the roadmap on the future of European
agriculture "within the first 100 days of the next mandate". In
the future roadmap, von der Leyen anticipated, the European
executive will focus on "ensuring a fair and sufficient income
for our farmers", because Europe "has the best food quality in
the world. Therefore, they must receive the livelihood they
deserve".
The second point, she added, will be support for sustainability
objectives for an agriculture that "works for nature and with
nature", since farming communities are the first "victims of the
climate crisis", she pointed out.
The third pillar of the roadmap will be the "reduction of
administrative burdens for companies to make the sector
competitive", which the community executive has already tried to
reduce in recent months by getting down to work on the CAP.
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