On Thursday 20 November, the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development approved the text of an agreement with the EU Council on simplifying certain Common Agricultural Policy rules.
The text of the provisional agreement was adopted by the members of this committee with 34 votes in favour, 3 against and one abstention. It must now be approved by Parliament at a forthcoming plenary session, and then by the EU Council, before the new rules can come into force (see EUROPE 13755/15).
The new text provides for certain environmental and control requirements to be relaxed. Farmers will not be subject to more than one official on-site inspection per year. Member States will be able to determine the extent to which partially organic farms can be considered as automatically complying with certain Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions (GAEC). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)