On Tuesday 14 November, in preparation for the next meeting of the Special Committee on Agriculture (on 20 November), the Member State delegations will be discussing the lessons to be learned from the first year of implementation of the strategic plans for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
The European Commission will shortly be adopting a report on the CAP strategic plans submitted by the Member States (see EUROPE 13271/16).
On 1 January 2023, the CAP strategic plans began to be implemented in the Member States. “The first year of implementation was a real challenge for most Member States due to several factors,” explains a document from the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council to guide the discussions of the SCA delegations. The factors cited are: the necessary and difficult adaptation to the rules arising from CAP reform (new rules on CAP beneficiaries, strengthening of cross-compliance, definition of active farmer, redistributive payments and eco-regimes), the tight timetable (the plans were adopted by the European Commission in the second half of 2022 and required national regulations to be adapted in a very short space of time) and the market situation (effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the start of this new CAP).
The Spanish Presidency believes that “the main issues revolve around the challenge posed to Member States by the direct payments application campaign and the scheduled opening/closing dates”. Spain also questions whether farmers have received sufficient information on the new rules in good time. It also wonders whether there has been a “significant change” in the number of applicants or in the areas included in new applications.
Link to the Spanish note: https://aeur.eu/f/9id
Strategic dialogue. In addition, the organisational arrangements for the ‘strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture’, which is due to be officially launched in early December at the major annual conference on the EU’s agricultural prospects, are becoming clearer. On 6 November, the Vice-President of the European Commission, Maroš Šefcovic, who is responsible for this dossier, met with representatives of farming organisations, the agri-food sector, consumers and NGOs. The conclusions of all the discussions should be presented by April and serve as a roadmap for the next European Commission in terms of agricultural policy. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)