Alongside the 100th Berlin Green Week, one of the biggest agricultural trade fairs in the world, the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, told a press briefing on Thursday 15 January that the European Commission is planning to spend almost €400 billion on agriculture over the period 2028-2034 of the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) (see other news).
He promised that “environmental, economic and social sustainability” would be at the heart of the CAP in the future, and said that agriculture needed to be made more resilient in the face of extreme weather events, market volatility, animal diseases and geopolitical instability.
43% of the funds in national and regional plans must be dedicated to the environment and climate, he stressed.
Mr Hansen estimated that the simplification measures would cut red tape by 1.6 billion for farmers and 210 million for the authorities.
He believes that alternatives to pesticides, such as biopesticides, should be brought to market more quickly. Time to market in Europe is 8 to 10 years, compared with less than 12 months in the United States.
Asked about the proposal to cap aid at €100,000, which is causing problems in Germany in particular, Mr Hansen said that this ceiling would only apply to decoupled payments (those not linked to production levels). There would be no ceiling on investment aid or coupled payments.
“The aim is to transfer more funds to young farmers, who represent less than 12% of farmers in Europe”, he explained. He added that it should be ensured that the money does not go to large investors or landowners who are not really involved in active agriculture. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)