EU Moves to Simplify Agricultural Policies Amid Farmer Protests
Two months ahead of the proposed future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) expected in July, the European Commission has initiated a new reform aimed at alleviating bureaucratic burdens on farmers and providing greater flexibility for governments managing agricultural funds, which constitute over a third of the EU budget.
The primary goal of this reform is to reduce inspections and Green obligations while increasing support to combat the severe impacts of climate change. The upcoming simplification package, anticipated to be adopted on Wednesday, follows last year's reduction of the CAP's Green requirements in response to widespread protests from farmers.
According to EU estimates, this streamlining could lessen the administrative burden on farmers by approximately 15 billion euros annually. Key proposals in the new text include more flexibility concerning Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions (GAEC), which are the baseline standards farmers must meet to qualify for subsidies.
For the first time, there will be a restructuring of the aid system for those impacted by extreme weather events such as floods and droughts. This will enable governments to provide crisis-related supplementary subsidies as enhanced direct income support to affected farmers.
Additionally, the Commission is advocating for national flat-rate schemes to assist small farmers and businesses, proposing aid of up to 50,000 euros to promote the growth of small farms and increasing the maximum individual aid per farmer to 2,500 euros.
As part of the changes, countries will now only be required to notify strategic modifications to their national agricultural plans, further easing administrative procedures.
EU Commissioner Christophe Hansen expressed optimism, stating, "The voice of farmers has been heard loud and clear," during a speech at the Global Food Forum organized by Farm Europe in Jodoigne, Belgium. This forum provided a platform to discuss the revival of the agricultural sector and the future of the CAP.
Informally discussed at the forum was the emerging idea within the Commission to merge CAP funds with other programs in the next long-term EU budget. However, Coldiretti president Ettore Prandini cautioned against this, emphasizing the need for a clear distinction between cohesion funds and the Common Agricultural Policy. He welcomed the simplification measures as a significant first step toward restoring trust between farmers and institutions.
Concerns surrounding the single fund proposal have reached Rome, where Massimiliano Giansanti, president of Confagricoltura and Copa, announced that beginning May 20, a series of EU-wide initiatives would be launched to demonstrate the agricultural sector's strong disapproval of this suggestion.
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