At the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on Monday 23 September, Belgium asked the European Commission to assess the possibility of using the common agricultural policy (CAP) crisis reserve to help farmers affected by outbreaks of bluetongue.
France has suggested measures to ensure that vaccines against this disease are available.
The Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, replied that funding opportunities must come primarily from the DG for Health and Food Safety. Other funding possibilities could be considered as part of the rural development programmes under the CAP strategic plans to restore agricultural production potential. State aid can also make a useful contribution to remedying the situation.
As a last resort, and only when the disease is perfectly contained and market losses are clearly identified and documented, exceptional measures under Article 220 of the common market organisation (CMO) Regulation may be considered, said the Commissioner. National authorities are invited to first use other available resources before considering this option. In this case, the European Commission can adopt exceptional market support measures “only if the Member State has taken rapid health and veterinary measures to eradicate the disease”, insisted Janusz Wojciechowski.
The measures would be co-financed by the agricultural crisis reserve, with the EU providing the equivalent of 50% of the expenditure borne by the Member States. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)