Copa and Cogeca believe that there are major challenges impacting the agricultural sector. These range from improving sustainability, addressing climate change and meeting the EU’s sustainable development goals as well as improving the sector’s resilience vis a vis the agricultural markets. They also include improving the economic performance of rural areas, getting young blood into the sector and improving farmers’ weak positioning in the food supply chain.
To achieve this, the future Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) must clearly ensure that there are no cuts in Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funding in the future. Only an economically viable and sustainable farming sector can deliver the public and environmental goods and services which benefit the whole of society. This is particularly important in view of the 20% drop in EU farmers income in the past four years, reaching the level of only 40% of average earnings of other economic sectors. The situation has become unsustainable. Farmers and their cooperatives as well as all citizens across the EU look to the EU and national governments to deliver prosperity, long-term stability and security in these challenging times.
Copa and Cogeca also believe that the CAP should continue to have truly common rules, in particular in the first pillar of the CAP. Suggestions outlined in the EU Reflections Paper to introduce co-financing in the first pillar of the CAP are therefore unacceptable. Copa and Cogeca nevertheless welcome recognition in the paper that common spending through a common budget gives added value.
Reacting to the reflections paper, Copa and Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen stressed “The level of the EU budget must clearly reflect the Union’s political ambition. Difficult decisions lie ahead but the relevant role of the farming sector as the first producer of safe, nutritious and quality food must be recognised and duly funded. In any case, an underlying principle must be followed – simplicity. For everyone’s sake, as well as for budgetary efficiency, policies including the EU budget must become simpler to use, administer and control.”
The move comes after the EU Commission released a new EU reflections paper on the future of the EU finances post 2020, underlining the many challenges ahead and setting out various options.
