European farming ministers are meeting in Brussels to discuss the future of farming.
The current Common Agricultural Policy runs until 2027, but lobbying is well underway to shape the future of CAP.
Speaking in Brussels this morning, Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon TD, said the CAP is essential to a sustainable future for the agri-food sector
“Stability and certainty should be a key focus in our consideration for the next CAP post-2027”,he said.
“We need to focus on keeping the full CAP toolbox available to support our farmers. That requires a dedicated and robust CAP Budget, with the full set of options under Pillar 1 and Pillar 2.”
The discussion on the future of CAP is due to take place over lunch. The Council of the European Union said the starting point was to consider the Common Agricultural Policy as “as a safety-net for unstable times”.
The European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, has put together a ‘vision’ for the future of farming, a dossier which is expected to act as the blueprint for a future CAP.
“I’m keen to work closely with Commissioner Hansen and my EU counterparts to ensure the importance of the CAP is well understood during the negotiations on the next EU Budget”, said Minister Heydon.
“The Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food provides us with a strategic framework to plan for the sustainable development of the European agri-food sector, and a positive future for our farmers.
I particularly welcome that the Vision acknowledges the importance of the family farm model and the need to support its long-term viability. The design of the next CAP is of fundamental importance to delivering on that objective”, he added.