From a central and east European perspective, equalisation of CAP payments between all member states is long overdue. What is the background to this expectation, and how likely or desirable is it now, with Wojciechowski as Commissioner? […]
Poland’s choice for Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski’s had a tough hearing on 1st October – so tough, he’s had to answer written questions and may have to appear again on Monday. Then he may be subject to a secret ballot of the 48 MEPs who make up the Agri Committee. So who is Janusz Wojciechowski, what might he focus on, and what is the Polish impression of the MEP from the Euroskeptic ECR group? With new correspondent Igor Olech. […]
While the next CAP reform is still in discussion at the Council, and the European Parliament has not yet taken a final position, Samuel Féret explains the rationale of the new concept of CAP Strategic Plans for a future CAP as proposed by the European Commission. This is intended as a pivotal piece of the future new delivery model, probably the biggest proposed change in how the CAP is set to operate in the future. This is the second in a five part article series on what happens next for the CAP. […]
National Ministers from EU member states have put together a working paper that essentially eviscerates any significant environmental ambition of the CAP. ARC2020 is leaking the Working Paper on the Common Agriculture Policy, dated 5th September, in the interests of transparency and full disclosure of necessary information to all stakeholders. […]
France is the largest recipient of Common Agricultural Policy funds. But there are significant disparities among the country’s regions, between types of production, and among farms. […]
Work will continue in the new parliament on the CAP files developed by the Commission and progressed under the previous parliament. With a new parliament now in place, there was the potential for all of the previous work to be rejected, and allowed lapse under what’s called an unfinished business rule. While this will not be the case, what will happen is still uncertain. Here we unpack the options. […]
Three-quarters of the Common Agricultural Policy budget goes into direct payments for farmers – almost regardless of what they do. Most of the money benefits just a few large producers and fails to deliver on the social and environmental challenges rural areas face. […]
“Member States may decide to set up eco-schemes for agricultural practices such as the enhanced management of permanent pastures and landscape features, and organic farming” says the European Commission. What does this practically mean for support for organic farming? […]
A mini-Brexit took place back in 1985 with the UK budget rebate, which violates the principle of solidarity in European integration. But the payments made to farmers under the Common Agricultural Policy are hindering further threats of withdrawal from the European Union. […]
It took a freedom of information request to reveal the contents of the European Commission’s October 2018 study of the impact of the CAP on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. It finally came out on the Monday after the European Parliament elections. What can it tell us about the Commission, CAP and climate? […]
Organic livestock farming is the only CAP supported agri-environmental (AES) measure that has been shown to correlate with higher bird numbers. This finding comes from newly published research on birds in Finland. […]
No other part of the economy is so deeply influenced by European Union rules as farming, which is subject to the Common Agricultural Policy, or CAP. Agriculture covers 175 million hectares of Europe and shapes the landscape like no other activity. […]
The momentum behind Smart Villages continues to grow – both within EU and national policy circles and on the ground among rural communities. The challenge is to translate this momentum into a policy framework that provides fast and flexible tools which meet the needs and expectations of rural communities in different parts of Europe. This will mean avoiding complicated structures and plans, mobilising what exists in each place – and supporting local action rather than words. […]
Several organisation representing farmers and environmentalists came together in Brussels to protest against the Mercosur trade deal yesterday. Responding to a call from the Belgian farmers group FUGEA, farmers and activists gathered outside the European Commission to protest against the threat posed by Mercosur to farmer incomes, the environment, and the rights of indigenous peoples in South America. […]
How can the agricultural sector in Ireland be part of a Just Transition to address inequality in the sector and tackle climate change? Agriculture is not only a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in Ireland, it is also the most unequal sector in the Irish economy in income terms. When it comes to climate change and agriculture, we need to change how we think about the challenge of reducing emissions. Farmers and their communities must play a central role in planning climate action to ensure it is good for farmers as well as the planet. […]
Agricultural and Rural Convention