EU member states’ agriculture ministers will meet in Brussels on Monday 17 and Tuesday 18 July to discuss the future of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), successful negotiations over the review of organic farming and regulations governing it, and the labelling of origin of dairy and meat products. A round-the-table discussion is planned on international trade issues.
The Agriculture Council, which will last for two days, will be the first council chaired by Estonia’s rural affairs minister, Tarmo Tamm, who will brief ministers on his priorities for the next six months.
The European Commission will present the results of a public consultation on the future of the CAP, on which a conference was organised on 7 July (see EUROPE 11827, 11825). A debate is planned on the CAP’s future financing. A European Commission reflection document presents a number of scenarios for reduction in agriculture funding over the net multi-annual programming period (post-2020). The ministers will also discuss progress in simplification of the CAP rules.
Organic farming. The ministers will examine the outcome of negotiations with the European Parliament that led to a compromise on 27 June on a review of the system applying to organic farming. The compromise has won the assent of most member states and the national experts on the Special Agriculture Committee (SAC) should be able to formally endorse it in early October before the text is endorsed by Parliament’s agriculture committee ahead of a vote in plenary.
Trade. The Commission will talk about international trade negotiations – the agreement in principle of 4 July between the EU and Japan, talks with Mercosur nations, Mexico, the Philippines and Indonesia, along with future talks with Australia and New Zealand.
During the preparatory work at the SAC on 10 July, a number of delegations again demanded greater transparency in the talks and called on the Commission for any decisions that might be taken at the upcoming WTO ministerial conference in Buenos Aires in December to not prejudge the debate about the future of the CAP.
Labelling. During the Council, Belgium will share its concerns about national compulsory labelling system for the origin of milk, dairy products and prepared meat products in whose processing increasing numbers of member states are involved. Slovakia will inform ministers about a meeting held in Bratislava on 30 May between the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia on double standards for the quality of some food products in the Single Market. Slovenia will intervene again about the Commission’s draft delegated act to authorise Croatian wines to be labelled ‘Teran,’ a Slovenian PAO. The European Parliament’s agriculture committee voted on 11 July against a two-month extension to the timeline for objecting to this plan, which expires on 19 July.
Drought. Portugal and Spain will report at the Council on the impact of drought on their agriculture. In the light of these ‘exceptional circumstances,’ the two member states are calling for authorisation for 2017 to increase advance direct farm payments of up to at least 70% and for farmers to be temporarily allowed to use land set aside for pasturing during the period when such practices are not allowed.
The Commission will provide the Council with information about the new action plan to counter resistance to antibiotics that it adopted on 29 June, and measures to tackle African swine fever.
Finally, Austria will brief ministers on the outcome of an international ministerial conference in Vienna on 9 and 10 May on non-GMO farming. The question of the movement of capital on the markets for land will be one of the many miscellaneous items discussed by ministers.
Fisheries. Fisheries ministers will be briefed on the Commission’s communication on fishing possibilities for 2018. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)