|
|
| 29 jan 2018 |
19:59 |
|
Copa and Cogeca call on EU Farm Ministers to ensure strong, properly funded future CAP
Faced with increasing challenges, Copa and Cogeca underlined, during a meeting today with the Bulgarian Presidency, the need for a strong, properly funded CAP in the future.
|
|
Speaking in Brussels, Copa first Vice-President Joe Healy said “Up against the challenges of Brexit, the Mercosur trade talks, climate change, and the future CAP, 2018 will be a very significant year for farmers. The CAP – which provides affordable food for 500 million European consumers at the same time as supporting 40 million jobs in rural areas – is a success and must be fully funded in future. Farmers should not be worse off as a result of Brexit. Any new EU initiatives need to be funded by new money”.
Copa and Cogeca favour keeping the current structure of the CAP, which has 2 pillars, with simple and common rules, without any renationalisation and no co-financing of first pillar payments
Mr Healy called for no concessions to be made in the trade talks with the Latin American Trade bloc Mercosur. “We already import substantial amounts of beef, sugar, poultry and orange juice from these countries, with 75% of our beef imports (246, 000 tonnes) coming from Mercosur countries. We follow strict EU production standards which farmers have heavily invested in. Market access for these products must be minimalised”.
With farmers only getting 8% of the price of a loaf of bread, Copa-Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen concluded by underlining the need for legislation to tackle unfair trading practices (UTPs) in the food chain, with independent enforcement by an authority and sanctions for those who break the law.
|
|
|
|
