As the anger of farmers continues to rock certain European Union countries (such as Spain), the three groups in the ‘European Economic and Social Committee’ (EESC) stressed on Wednesday, 7 February, the importance of ensuring an appropriate income for farmers and of preventing agricultural products that do not comply with European standards from entering the EU (see EUROPE 13345/1).
Peter Schmidt (Group II, German) told journalists that the difficulties farmers are facing did not start yesterday—or even when the ‘European Green Deal’ was launched—but several years ago. He expounded on the “unfair distribution” of remuneration within the food chain, which puts farmers who are sometimes forced to sell at a loss when faced with the disproportionate bargaining power in the agro-industry at a disadvantage.
EESC rapporteur on the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), Stoyan Tchoukanov (Group III, Bulgarian) highlighted the need to “renegotiate” margins so that farmers receive a fair share of the profits. He added that if farmers are on the streets today, it is less to do with the issue of climate change and more to do with demanding a decent income.
President of the World Farmers’ Organisation, Arnold Puech d’Alissac (Group I, French) supported the idea of having “a discussion with the industry”. He mentioned a campaign by France’s OFPM (observatory on the formation of food product prices and margins) showing that, in 2018, less than €7 out of every €100 spent on food products went to farmers.
Asked about the impact of free trade agreements between the EU and its trading partners, Mr Schmidt said, “If we set standards for the EU, products arriving in the EU must comply with the same standards”. He insisted that free trade must not lead to a race to the bottom and simultaneously warned against calling the internal market within the EU into question.
Mr Puech d’Alissac felt that if you go too far, too fast, farmers are the ones who pay the price. He feared “unfair competition” to the detriment of European agriculture if Mercosur products arrive in the EU. Furthermore, he criticised the fact that the CAP requires fallow land to be set aside but prohibits livestock from being placed on this fallow land.
Strategic dialogue. The three speakers also criticised the fact that the European Commission had not invited either the EESC or the European Committee of the Regions to participate in the strategic dialogue that the EU institution recently initiated with sector representatives in order to make proposals on the future of agriculture in Europe (see EUROPE 13337/7).
At the end of January, the EESC wrote President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen to ask how it would be involved in the deliberations. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)