The Agriculture Ministers of the EU countries agreed in Brussels on Monday 20 July that the European Commission’s future recommendations on the objectives of the Farm to Fork strategy should not delay the adoption of future strategic plans for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
They also called for sufficient funding for the post-2020 CAP, taking into account the new objectives.
At this first physical meeting of the EU Council since the Covid-19 pandemic, Agriculture Ministers once again discussed the Farm to Fork strategy and, in particular, the recommendations.
The Commission proposes to send recommendations to each Member State which should be taken into account in the preparation and approval of the national strategic plans. These recommendations are intended to help Member States ensure that the objectives, in particular of the Farm to Fork strategy, are taken into account in the formal submission of draft strategic plans. These recommendations will form part of the criteria to be used by the Commission in assessing and approving each strategic plan.
On 8 June, EU Agriculture Ministers expressed concern about the impact that the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity 2030 strategies could have on the CAP (see EUROPE 12501/9).
In Monday’s debate, Ministers further requested that the Commission present an impact assessment (economic, social and environmental) on the objectives of the Farm to Fork strategy.
Some countries are concerned about the very ambitious targets for reducing the use of pesticides and related risks (-50%), reducing the use of fertilisers and antibiotics (-50%) and areas returned to nature (10%).
The European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, replied that the objectives will be truly binding, following an impact assessment and the adoption of the legislative proposals by the EU Council and the European Parliament.
The European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, recalled that by the end of 2020, the Commission will send each Member State a series of recommendations on their future ‘strategic plans’ (which should come into force in 2023) so that they incorporate some of the objectives set by the European Green Deal.
Hungary and France called for Member States to be involved in this process, which was considered “political”.
The new French Minister of Agriculture and Food, Julien Denormandie, has admitted (as has his Danish counterpart, for example) that the timetable for preparing national strategic plans is tight. “The Commission’s recommendations must reach us fairly soon. They must be based on a harmonised methodology, with common and reliable guidelines and indicators”, he said. He called for ‘safeguards’ to ensure transparency in the political validation process. France advised that “the EU Council must be given feedback on the progress of these strategic plans”. Some countries, such as Estonia and Spain, have asked the Commission to be flexible in the process and to take into account the specificities of EU countries.
Several countries (Italy, Hungary, Czech Republic...) considered that these recommendations should not be binding. Italy was “very puzzled” about this new approach and advocated the adoption of mutual funds to overcome agricultural crises.
“We can increase the share of organic production, but the market has to follow”, said EU Council President, German Minister Julia Klöckner, among others. She called on the Commission to submit the recommendations in question and the requested impact studies promptly. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)