The Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies will play a crucial role in the implementation of the European Green Deal and the Recovery Plan for Europe. We need to assess the potential contribution of the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors to achieving the targets set in both strategies. However, we also need to pay particular attention to the impact on those sectors. Our farmers, fishers and aquaculture producers deserve fair transition, predictable conditions and adequate financial resources.
Marija Vučković, minister for Agriculture of Croatia
In particular, ministers exchanged views on the main challenges and opportunities in achieving the strategies' targets. They also discussed the suggested additional measures by the Commission to make the implementation of the future common agricultural policy more efficient in order to help achieve the ambition of the Green Deal. Finally, ministers presented their views on whether the new proposal for the EU budget 2021 - 2027, including the new European Recovery Instrument (“Next Generation EU”), is adequately designed to fulfil the ambition of the Farm to Fork and the Biodiversity strategies.
Ministers welcomed both strategies and the ambition to strengthen the role of farmers in the supply chain. They stressed that the ambitious goals of the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies had to be matched by an ambitious budget. Many delegations expressed their concerns that insufficient funds may put at risk the financial viability of EU farmers and stressed that the proposed CAP budget allocations were not in line with the strategies' targets.
Ministers expressed concerns that the efforts made to reach the goals designed to limit the use of pesticides and antibiotics may reduce EU farmers' competitiveness in the global market. They also asked the Commission to take into account specific national circumstances.
In their discussion, ministers supported the ambition to introduce common food labelling rules. The importance of the forestry sector to reach the targets of the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies were also highlighted.
Ministers agreed that the European Green Deal was a step in the right direction, but acknowledged that there were significant differences in the initial positions of the member states, which had to be taken into account, and that uniform approaches should be avoided. Ministers also highlighted the need to define data collection and progress monitoring across sectors, as well as the need to use uniform, accurate and comparable data. In their interventions, they emphasized the importance of good communication with farmers who are supposed to provide the greatest efforts. Finding a common solution in terms of financial support for the adaptation and the transition of the entire food production sector, from primary production to final products, was also often mentioned. In relation to flexibility requirements and a longer period of adaptation, ministers exchanged views on the compatibility of the Common agricultural policy proposal with the requirements of the European Green Deal.
- Video conference of agriculture ministers, 8 June - public session
- Video conference of agriculture ministers, 8 June - press conference
- Presidency note on the Farm to fork and Biodiversity strategies
- Farm to fork strategy (European Commission)
- Biodiversity: how the EU protects nature (background information)
- European Green Deal (background information)
- EU biodiversity strategy (European Commission)
- Future of the CAP Post-2020
- COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak and the EU's response (background information)
