Responding to a question from Éric Sargiacomo MEP (S&D, French) about US threats to EU wines and spirits in the form of higher tariffs, EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, said he hoped the ‘unity safety net’ he had proposed would have a substantial budget post-2027.
Mr Hansen presented the ‘Vision for Agriculture and Food’ (see EUROPE 13601/19) to the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture.
Still on the subject of wine, the Commissioner pointed out that a final list (of products targeted by customs duty increases) had been published by the Americans and that it is open to consultation by stakeholders. He said he hoped to see changes to the list, to “remove products and thus begin to de-escalate the situation”. In his view, it is better to negotiate than to attack.
He confirmed that he had proposed a ‘unity safety net’ in addition to the existing anti-coercion instrument (to combat economic threats and trade restrictions). Mr Hansen admitted that funding for this safety net would have to be found, and that this would have to wait until the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028-2034.
Asked about the European Green Deal, which is missing from the ‘vision’, he said: “I think that the approach taken in the last Parliament was not the right one. It did not achieve enough, which is why this top-down approach is no longer appropriate”. He favours the introduction of more incentive-based measures, accompanied by financial interest, to encourage farmers to take the necessary steps, rather than forcing them without financial compensation. The agricultural sector is making enormous progress, according to the Commissioner, who pointed out that between 2023 and 2024, emissions from agriculture were reduced by 2%.
In addition, “we will strive to apply the principle that farmers should not be forced to sell their products systematically at prices below production costs”, the Commissioner promised.
Reciprocity. Mr Hansen pledged to work in 2025 “to better align our domestic production standards with those applied to imports, notably for pesticides and animal welfare”. He added: “I’m very firm on this, as the toxic pesticides banned in the EU should not be allowed back to the EU via imports. Similarly, any standards applied to our farmers on animal welfare need to apply as well to the imports that are coming into the European Union”.
Livestock farming remains an essential part of EU agriculture and “we will work to make this sector more competitive, resilient and sustainable”, the Commissioner also promised. Livestock numbers have fallen by 7.8% over the last 10 years, and “this is a trend that worries me deeply”, said Mr Hansen. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)