Brussels, 15/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - MEP Michel Dantin (EPP, France) presented his draft opinion on Monday 11 January on behalf of the European Parliament agriculture committee on cohesion policy in the mountain regions of the European Union.
Dantin regrets that there does not yet exist a fully-fledged EU approach to mountain regions and proposes that efforts be made to adopt a common definition of mountain regions. He calls on the Commission, member states and the regions to strengthen synergies between different funds and measures (including rural development) for mountain areas in preparing and examining operational programmes. “Measures under the second pillar of the CAP (common agricultural policy) must ensure the sustainability and diversification of agricultural production in mountain areas by supporting the emergence of projects that create added value”, he says.
He calls, too, for the final report to stress the importance of establishing producer groups or organisations to strengthen the bargaining power of farmers in the food chain, particularly in mountain regions, create local markets and short supply chains and initiate approaches geared to quality. He also calls on the European Commission to strengthen promotion and information initiatives concerning the “mountain products” label.
The final report is expected to be put to the vote in the April plenary session. On this issue, regional development is the committee responsible. Iliana Iotova (S&D, Bulgaria) has been charged with producing the draft report. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)