On Wednesday 19 February, the European Commission adopted its ‘vision’ for agriculture and food, opening up a number of important routes for allaying farmers’ fears, following the compelling results of the strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture in Europe.
The European Commission is proposing to evaluate the effectiveness of the rules on unfair trading practices, to accelerate the access procedures for placing biopesticides on the market, and is paving the way for a review of the direct support system to ensure greater fairness. There is still a big question mark, however, over the size of the budget for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), following negotiations on the 2028–2034 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).
The main elements of CAP reform remain unclear. As part of its ‘vision’ (https://aeur.eu/f/fku ), the European Commission believes that future CAP support “will therefore be more directed towards farmers that actively engage in food production, towards the economic vitality of farms and the preservation of our environment” (see EUROPE 13579/5).
Raffaele Fitto, the Commission’s Executive Vice-President, said that this ‘vision’ would enable a “new approach” to be put in place. He further told the press that food security and sovereignty in Europe are non-negotiable.
Reciprocity of standards. The European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansen, is therefore proposing to re-explore the issue of reciprocity of standards, i.e. ensuring that agricultural products that are imported into Europe comply with the same environmental requirements as those products that are produced within Europe. He specifically cited the case of pesticides, promising to ensure that the most dangerous products, banned on the continent for health and environmental reasons, “are not allowed back to the EU through imported products”.
“You could say it’s a barrier to trade. This is how certain third countries will interpret it”, said the Commissioner. “But, on the other hand, these products are highly toxic for our bees, for our pollinators”, he said, defending the statement.
A senior European official explained that today, the EU might be importing agricultural products that contain maximum safe levels of pesticides. However, for pesticides that have been banned in the European Union, either for health or environmental reasons, the European Commission would like to see a new principle established whereby the EU could also ban pesticides in imported products, even when they are at levels that are deemed safe for consumers. Before that, an impact study will be carried out to examine the impact on competition and trade.
On this basis, the European Commission could propose revisions to European legislation, i.e. Regulation 396/2005 on maximum residue levels of pesticides present in food and animal feed.
The other initiatives planned by the Commission to strengthen competitiveness of the sector are: - an EU Council action plan on how the EU intends to raise certain standards (Codex); - better alignment of production standards with regard to pesticides and animal welfare; - a task force to monitor food safety; - a ‘Unity Safety Net’ (anti-coercion, export credits).
With regard to the export credits noted in the ‘vision’, this is a work in progress with the European Investment Bank (EIB). The European Commission is not currently in a position to provide further details on this issue, which relates to support for European agri-food exporters.
Unfair trade practices. In addition to negotiations on the two proposals being tabled to strengthen the power of farmers in the food supply chain, the European Commission is currently evaluating the Unfair Trading Practices Directive.
According to sources, the EU institution intends to examine how best to resolve an issue where some farmers might be systematically forced to sell their produce at prices that are below production costs. This is an important point, and we are examining it in the context of reviewing this legislation and in line with the review of the Common Market Organisation (CMO) regulation”, added these sources.
However, we will have to wait for the results of the impact assessment, so the proposals are not scheduled for 2025.
Biopesticides. Another significant element is to ensure that farmers have easier access to the biopesticide market, “while protecting the environment and health”, said a senior official. The idea is to therefore enable accelerated approval procedures.
This issue will not be included in the forthcoming simplification package for CAP rules: that will be later in the year. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)