CAP reform

German farmers’ association slams government relief package

In response to the farmer protests that rocked Europe earlier this year, the governing parliamentary groups in Germany have agreed to introduce a relief package for the agriculture sector, amid dissatisfaction from farmers' organisation.

Nature Restoration Law, myths and facts for farmers

This week, the EU finally closed the chapter on the contentious Nature Restoration Law after months of political deadlock. This legislation has become a lightning rod for farming organisations opposing new sector regulations.

EU organic area reaches 10.5% of agricultural land, but falls short of 2030 target

Land used for organic agricultural production accounted for 10.5% of the EU’s total farmland in 2022, according to data released by Eurostat on 19 June.

Commission seeks to ease use of geo-tagged photos for farm checks

The EU executive proposed scrapping member states' obligation to ensure that most farm monitoring is carried out using geo-tagged photos by 2027.

Who will show up for the farmers?

Farmers and the agricultural sector were one of the key issues in the political debate before the European elections. With the vote nowbehind us, we’re looking into what the new parliamentary composition means for the sector in this mandate. Who will sit on the Agri committee and will the electoral promises to farmers be kept? 

Wojciechowski: Agrifood sector should be spared from EU-China trade tensions

Agrifood products should be kept out of the current EU-China trade tensions as the Asian giant is a key partner for the sector, EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski told Euractiv.

Do we need a biofuel police?

At the transport and energy Council yesterday (30 May), France, Germany and the Netherlands called the European Commission to launch controls in 3rd countries to reinforce the mesures against the import of fraudulent biofuels. 

After protests German farmers remain ‘very dissatisfied’ with federal government

January farmers' rallies in Germany marked the beginning of European demonstrations, but while they have largely ebbed away, growers remain unsatisfied with how the national government works.

Twitter Space: Upcoming EU mandate, what are the new agrifood priorities?

2024 marks the year of another significant change in the EU’s political composition. Every five years, EU leaders collectively determine the EU's political priorities, a process occurring in conjunction with the European Parliament elections and preceding the appointment of each European Commission. Kicked off by the European elections in early June, the shifts in political groups and coalitions within the EU will shape its policy agenda and future legislation.

Listen to this recent Euractiv Twitter Space to gather new information and opinions on the upcoming EU legislation and its possible priorities for the European agricultural sector.

Agrifood Special CAPitals Brief: the rules against unfair trade practices

Our tour of the EU this time focuses on unfair trade practices (UTPs) in the food supply chain, such as late payments or sales below production costs.

Commission to consider tools to speed up recovery of misspent agricultural funds

The Commission will assess if there is a need to incentivise EU countries to shorten the time for the reclamation of irregular payments, a spokesperson said after the European Court of Auditors (ECA) highlighted the lengthy process to return improper disbursements to the EU budget.

World Bank calls for sharp increase in investment to halve agrifood emissions

Money invested in cutting agrifood emissions should increase 18-fold and reach around €240 billion per year if we want to halve emissions and put the world on track for net zero emissions by 2050, according to a World Bank study published on Tuesday (7 April). 

Farmers take centre stage in parties’ EU election campaigns

After being neglected for years in the public debate, agriculture has become a hot topic at the EU level in recent years.

CAP simplification will get more and more complicated

Last week the European Parliament gave its final nod to a package meant to make the Common Agricultural Policy rules easier to apply for farmers and national administrations. But it is not the end of the CAP ‘simplification’ debate. It is just the beginning.

Cocoa growers face production shortage as EU anti-deforestation rules loom

As cocoa prices surge to record highs and Central and West African growers grapple with the impact of climate change, the cocoa sector is rushing to adapt its production to the EU anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR), which will take effect from January 2025.

Commission changes view on controversial insecticide, set to propose zero residues in food

In the next meeting on pesticides between the Commission and member states, on Monday and Tuesday, the bloc’s executive will table a regulation to slash to zero the insecticide thiacloprid residues in all food products, after having proposed to raise the limit of the maximum quantity of residues in imported food.

More actions needed to make organic farming competitive, say stakeholders

Amid fears that the EU will miss its target of 25% organic agriculture by 2030, stakeholders are calling for a more favourable policy framework to boost demand for organic products.

EU experts increasingly worried about impact of extreme weather on food security

Experts identified extreme weather as a primary challenge to food supply in Europe in an assessment of EU food security released by the European Commission on 16 April.

Agrifood Special CAPitals: Generational renewal

In 2020, almost one in three farm managers across the EU was 65 years or older. Generational renewal is among the main challenges of European agriculture, and supporting young farmers is one of the most important objectives of the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP).

Concern over Commission’s relaxing of environmental requirements for farmers

On this episode of our daily Today in the EU podcast we break down the concerns expressed regarding the European Commission’s decision to loosen the environmental requirements.