Brussels, 28/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - Young farmers believe that market measures in the common agricultural policy (CAP) should be carefully analysed and strengthened, making sure that farmers can plan more effectively and do not have to rely only on corrective actions in the event of crisis.
In its opinion on 22 March on the Commission proposal on market management instruments and the common organisation of markets (CMO), the European Council of Young Farmers (CEJA) believes that an effective safety net should be introduced in the CAP post-2013 to promptly and effectively address crisis situations, which include the significant price volatility of agricultural products. CEJA calls for market management tools that deal with the roots of the crisis and mitigate the consequences of volatility. It welcomes the proposal to make a “risk management tool kit” available to member states (in rural development schemes) which could be used to mitigate production and income risks. However, CEJA says, this should remain an EU level approach ensuring that there is no attempt to repatriate the CAP.
Market management tools should, CEJA argues, include favourable insurance for producers, both against natural disasters as well as against loss of income, and the establishment of mutual funds. However, these tools will not be sufficient and Europe-wide market management measures need to be implemented.
CEJA considers that appropriate criteria should dictate an EU level-trigger for safety nets, and be reviewed according to market evolution on a regular basis. These criteria should include changes in prices and production costs. They should make it possible for safety nets to be triggered promptly and early, before the crisis situation has occurred, young farmers say. Here, CEJA considers that there also needs to be a clearer definition of the term “crisis”. If either the European Parliament or the European Council identifies a situation as a crisis, safety net instruments should automatically be triggered.
On the specific issue of private storage, CEJA feels that this measure should be activated with increased rapidity and coordination when market crises occur. It calls for the creation of an independent EU-wide observatory of markets, where volumes and market perspectives across the EU will be evaluated on a regular basis to provide the food chain actors (particularly producers' organisations) and public authorities with objective information, in order to be able to react appropriately to future market situations.
Sugar quotas and olive oil. CEJA is of the view that sugar quotas should not be ended from 2015, as the Commission is proposing, and that the current sugar regime should remain in place until 2020. CEJA also calls for the reference price of olive oil to be updated so that it is in line with the current price situation. In addition, the private storage system for olive oil should be triggered more quickly. Young farmers say, too, that reinforcing producer organisations by giving them responsibility for price negotiation and marketing should be essential priorities for the olive oil sector. It is also important to intensify the research of analytical methods for the identification of better quality requirements and to increase funding for consumer information on olive oil and its health and nutritional benefits and quality. (LC/transl.rt)