Failure to decide on CAP financing

Copa/Cogeca obviously have a particular furrow to plough, but there are some valid points in a recent press release, particularly about the failure to consider key financial issues.

'Last night, EU Agriculture Ministers, under the leadership of the Irish Presidency, reached a partial agreement on the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Copa and Cogeca acknowledge the progress made on several technical points of contention but warn that the most fundamental questions concerning the future of European agriculture remain unanswered. An agreement on the CAP without clarity on its financing, its common character and its implementation cannot provide the certainty that European farmers and agricultural cooperatives urgently need. This political and procedural deadlock was foreseeable and is largely the result of the approach chosen by the European Commission.

Copa and Cogeca recognise the efforts of the Irish Presidency and the improvements secured compared with the European Commission's initial proposals on CAP. In particular, progress on the definitions of eligible hectares and active farmers, the differentiation of area-based income support, provisions concerning retired farmers are welcome developments.

Nevertheless, significant shortcomings remain. Provisions concerning checks on land at farmers' disposal, farm stewardship requirements, including the application of the Do No Significant Harm principle, and the associated control and penalty system continue to raise serious concerns. The lack of explicit recognition of agricultural cooperatives in investment support and shortcomings in risk management must also be addressed. A reform presented as simplification cannot result in more complexity, additional controls and greater uncertainty for farmers.

Yet, for Copa and Cogeca, the most fundamental issues were left unaddressed yesterday. Three essential guarantees remain missing: preserving a genuinely common CAP, securing an adequate and dedicated budget that maintains its current value adjusted for inflation, and guaranteeing the resources which were promised by means of two letters by the President of the European Commission the 10% rural target and the resources linked to the mid term review which should be ring-fencing and ensured for sector.

Anywhere but in Brussels, such a situation would be considered utterly absurd. Yet yesterday, Agriculture Ministers agreed on the rules governing a policy without knowing what financial resources will be available to implement it. This uncertainty illustrates the consequences of the European Commission’s decision to integrate the CAP into a broader financial framework, undermining its visibility and predictability, while the current budget scenario points to cuts of more than 20% in the majority of EU Member States.