Speaking to journalists, Copa President Martin Merrild said “EU agriculture producers are up against huge challenges, being hit by low market prices and high input costs, as well as red tape under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The EU dairy and pork markets are starting to show signs of recovery but they remain in a fragile state. The improvement is partly due to increased demand from China. Pork prices have increased but are still behind last year. We need to find more new export outlets so that we are not totally dependent on the Chinese market. We also need to see the increase last for a year for pork producers to recover losses”.
“The dairy market is starting to recover but dairy producers still need to see the real impact of it. The July package should help producers to recover some of their cash flow”, he added
“The EU grain sector is also now in a critical state. France was particularly badly hit with a big drop in wheat production of 30% seen. Global cereal supply is at an all time high and global wheat prices are at their lowest level for 10 years. A good functioning Single Market and efficient transport capacity will be needed. Input costs cannot continue to increase like they have”, he warned. ”We need to press ahead with free trade agreements which are beneficial to the EU agriculture sector”, he added.
“The EU is meanwhile getting on with CAP simplification in a bid to make life easier for farmers. But what is the real impact? 70% of farmers in a Danish survey said worst thing about being a farmer is the bureaucracy. We welcome EU Commissioner Hogan’s simplification agenda but so far we haven’t seen tangible results for farmers. In the case of greening, the proposals for simplification that are being discussed will not make farmers’ lives simpler. Farmers are the ones that will use these greening measures and they want them to succeed. But most of all they need to be simple to implement and to use”, he warned.
Cogeca President Thomas Magnusson went on to welcome the Cork declaration on rural development, saying that it recognizes the crucial role of farmers, forest owners and their cooperatives in providing solutions to current and future challenges such as the economic prosperity of rural areas, food security, climate change. “EU policies should continue to support them in delivering these solutions through targeted innovation and investments, that enhance their competitiveness and sustainability”, he said.
He also welcomed the Slovak Presidency initiative to focus EU Farm Ministers talks on strengthening farmers positioning in the food chain so that they can get a better and fairer price for their produce. “In this context, it is fundamental to promote the development of agri-cooperatives as experience has shown that farmers who belong to cooperatives get a better price for their produce. It is important to maintain the stability of European policies such as the CAP so that producers and agri-cooperatives can plan ahead and invest in the sector”, he stressed
Wrapping up, Mr Magnusson said “We will hold the Congress of European Farmers 2016 on October 5/6 in Greece – a major event to debate the future of European agriculture to ensure an economically viable, sustainable and competitive sector in the future. We will also have a workshop focusing on Innovation and Smart Farming. It’s important to ensure that the farming sector is not considered only as an end-user in research and innovation and that they can use the latest technologies, so that they can sustainably produce more by using less. Come & join us!”
