Brussels, 21/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - The Committee of Agricultural Organisations of the EU (COPA) and the General Committee for Agricultural Cooperation in the EU (COGECA) rejected all of the Commission's proposals on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). In a press release they argue that the present proposals merely constitute an element of the global policy in the areas of CAP and the WTO; they have a much greater impact than the Commission claims. Moreover, they insist: the decisions on this reform should only be taken after the results of the WTO and the accession of the new EU member states.
The COPA and COGECA also cast doubt over the six studies that the Commission published on the impact of these proposals. The position paper by these organisations, entitled 'Our vision for the future: sustainable agriculture for all Europeans', is available on the following website: http://www.copa-cogeca.be ('position papers' section).