Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) The European Commission approved the first Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) plans on Wednesday.
The body pointed out in a statement that it approved CAP plans for Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Poland, Portugal and Spain, stressing that this presents an important step for implementation of CAP at the start of 2023.
The EC noted that the CAP is part of its plan to make the agricultural sector in the EU more resilient, sustainable and modern.
“Under the reformed policy, funding will be more fairly distributed to small and medium-sized family farms, as well as to young farmers,” the Commission stressed.
It added that new policies will provide incentives for innovation and ecological production, expressing belief that coming changes will improve food security in the bloc.
The EC stressed that EU member states chose which proposed measures to include in their CAP plans, while the Commission assessed whether their plans are in line with CAP objectives.
The body added that CAP plans will contribute to EC’s environmental goals set out in its Biodiversity and Farm to Fork strategies.
Five-year plan
Janusz Wojciechowski, EU Commissioner for Agriculture, noted “we are now one step closer to implementing a new CAP for the next five years… this step comes at a crucial moment, when the importance of providing robust support for our farming sector has become abundantly clear.”
“Farming is a long-term business and European farmers need to have a clear legal and financial framework for the future… the new CAP will help us to support stable farming livelihoods and long-term food security by fostering a smart, competitive, resilient and diversified agricultural sector,” he concluded.
The Commission noted that the bloc will spend some 270 billion euro on CAP in the period between 2023 and 2027, adding that the first approved plans are worth 120 billion, of which more than 43 billion will go exclusively towards the green push.
It stated that EU farmers will reduce their use of synthetic fertilisers, increase production of renewable energy and implement sustainable production methods without negative effects on food production.
The EC concluded that member states’ CAP plans must be ambitious enough to deliver on the bloc’s environmental commitments.
