When newly re-elected European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen acknowledged agriculture as a strategic asset, it piqued the interest of the community’s seven million farmers.
Patrick Pagani, deputy secretary-general of farm lobby group Copa Cogeca, said the recognition was in contrast to how European farmers felt they were previously treated.
“There has been a lack of farmer engagement but also a lack of recognition of the important role of farming in Europe,” he told Farmers Weekly at his Brussels office.
Earlier this year farmers took to the streets in 20 of the European Union’s 27 member states, protesting local and international issues such as a flood of Ukrainian food exports, a lack of response to drought and farmer returns being squeezed by processors and retailers.
Pagani said this reflected a top-down approach from Brussels bureaucrats who imposed targets on the sector and treated them as a problem.
He was therefore heartened at the noticeable change when in July Von der Leyen referred to agriculture as a strategic asset in her speech setting the scene for the next four years.
It is a comment not made in recent years.
“It means they consider farming and food as a priority and action will follow,” said Pagani.
He hopes it will encourage engagement with the sector and an end to impractical policies.
“We are happy to see this top-down approach abandoned and move to transitioning with the sector.”
Copa Cogeca represents 64 farming and co-operative members from the EU’s member states and is the largest such body in Europe.
It has 50 staff in its Brussels office.
Pagani said the challenges facing the sector are real.
The average income earned by 60% of Europe’s farmers is lower than other sectors and 30% of farmers will retire in the next decade.
Since 2005, 3 million farms have disappeared under urban sprawl or amalgamation.
The EU has a target of a 55% reduction in carbon emissions, compared to 1990 levels, by 2030, a 90% reduction by 2040 and carbon neutrality by 2050.
In 2020 EU agrifood systems contributed 31% of Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions.
During her campaign, Von der Leyen spoke of ensuring farmers can work their land without excessive bureaucracy while rewarding those who work with nature and preserve biodiversity and natural ecosystems while helping to decarbonise the economy.
She has commissioned a Strategic Dialogue on Agriculture, a vision for farming and food production that will be released shortly.
“This is important because it is a process that has never happened,” said Pagani.
While the commission’s approach to agriculture appears to have changed, he said that intent needs to be turned into action.
“We are only asking to have put back the competitiveness and economics of the sector, a transition that includes the three pillars: economic, social and environmental.”
The EU Green Deal, a policy adopted in 2022, aims to transform the bloc into a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy.
For agriculture, it aims to enhance food security, reduce the environmental and climate footprint of food and make food systems more resilient and sustainable through an aligned Farm to Fork strategy.
A report from Wageningen University warns livestock numbers could fall 10-15% in order to meet nutrient loss targets, while feed costs are likely to rise.
The policy will also lower the use of pesticides and antimicrobials, impacting crop yields.
Soil is one of the policy’s target area with an estimated 60% classified as unhealthy and 83% containing pest residues.
By 2050 data will be collected on the health of soils and made available to farmers and other soil managers to improve its management.
The Farm to Fork strategy seeks to balance environmental impacts, mitigate and adapt to climate change, and reverse the loss of biodiversity while ensuring food security and access to nutritious and safe food.
Pagani said the current NZ$690 billion Common Agricultural Policy expires in 2027 and his organisation will seek to negotiate a new policy that includes financial support, trade, plant protection, bioactive controls and fair trade protection for farmers selling products.
Other challenges being pursued by Copa Cogeca include flexibility in meeting the 2050 net carbon zero target, imported products having equal production standards to those produced locally, and shortening the six to seven years it takes to release a product developed with new genomic techniques.
More: Wallace is visiting seven countries in six weeks to report on market sentiment, a trip made possible with grants from Fonterra, Silver Fern Farms, Alliance, Beef + Lamb NZ, NZ Meat Industry Association and Rabobank. Read more about his findings here.