Walid Battal
The President of the European Commission has announced that during the first 100 days of her second term (which will start on 1 November), she will present her vision for agriculture based on a recently published report. The German stateswoman, who was re-elected with 401 votes for a second term, says she will make sure to ease the bureaucratic burden on farmers. It drew up a roadmap based on a report provided by the German academic Peter Strohschneider. This report recommends that Ursula von der Layen, among other things, federate the various actors in the agri-food chain around a strategic dialogue, but also encourage governments to secure sufficient incomes for farmers.
Commissioned by the President earlier this year, the report also contains other guidelines, including the creation of a temporary Just Transition Fund to support the sector towards greater sustainability. It also encourages work on greater coherence between the EU’s trade and environmental policies, as well as food labelling that gives clearer indications on animal welfare.
Thanks to this report, this year’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will benefit from structural reform, despite the possible political risks that could revive opposition. Indeed, several European governments have reared their heads over the past year. Whether it is because of the war in Ukraine and its harmful consequences on the sector, or more locally, the Brussels tractor parades in January, several factors threaten regional agricultural policies. Carbon neutrality is also a delicate subject in this case. Indeed, the European Union (EU) wants to meet the commitments made under the Paris Climate Agreement and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. To this end, it cannot afford to leave the agricultural sector without imposing efforts to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.
However, Ursula Von Der Leyen did not give any details on how she will defend European farmers in trade negotiations, such as those with Mercosur (Mercado Común del Sur or Southern Common Market). To be continued…