Report on Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture divides the Union

Brussels – Today marks the presentation of the final summary document of the seven-month Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters, “We must do more, and we will do more to defend our agriculture and make it more sustainable.” We gathered various reactions to this report.

Cristina Guarda, Verdi/Ale MEP and member of the Agriculture Committee, comments that “this report demonstrates the urgent need for change in EU agricultural policies. It is now up to the Commission to ensure the recommendations are reflected in the next CAP proposal.” In addition, the Greens/Ale Group welcomes the conclusions but stresses the importance of support for more “sustainable and resilient” production models. Great importance is also placed on supporting farmers in meeting climate challenges and enabling the EU to continue producing food.

Dario Nardella, a PD MEP and coordinator in the Agriculture Committee, welcomes Chairwoman von der Leyen’s commitment to recognise the centrality of the agricultural sector. The PD hopes that it will continue to be competitive and, to do so, there is an expectation to “strengthen farmers’ position along the supply chain and their negotiating power.”

Greenpeace‘s EU agricultural policy director, Marco Contiero, has spoken out, calling for real changes in the European CAP. The EU should stop funding water-polluting mega-farms and “should instead help farmers who are struggling, but making an effort to restore nature and provide healthier diets.” Not only Greenpeace supports this, Contiero reminds us, but all of European agriculture. If President von der Leyen wants to effectively embrace and address farmers’ concerns and ensure a sustainable future for the sector, she must build on today’s report by planning for substantial and beneficial changes for small farmers and the environment.

Olga Kikou, Director of Advocacy at the European Institute for Animal Law and Policy and organiser of the European citizens’ initiative “End the Cage Age”, views the Strategic Dialogue as a “classical delaying tactic.” The goal, which is purely political, would be to slow down the publication of draft reform bills regarding agriculture and appease farmers ahead of the elections. It calls on von der Leyen to maintain her position and fulfil the promises, ensuring farm animals “a life worth living, as the majority of EU citizens expect.”

The managing director of Filiera Italia, Luigi Scordamaglia, calls the document “inappropriate and with little concreteness”. The basic structure is good but not very concrete; “the big issue of European competitiveness and how to pursue it remains unresolved,” and the livestock sector is penalised. He does not like the similarities with the outgoing Commission’s previous Farm to Fork approach, which still seems far from the necessary course change for Filiera Italia. However, he still looks forward to the next steps.

A more conciliatory position comes from Marta Messa, secretary general of Slow Food, who participated in the Strategic Dialogue with Lili Balogh, President of Agroecology Europe and the Hungarian Agroecology Network Association. Messa appreciated this space for dialogue because of the presence of constructive key recommendations. The report’s approach to the food system is shared, but now she expects to see the recommendations “reflected in the vision for agriculture and food of President von der Leyen.”

Another conciliatory voice is that of ECVC, European Coordination Via Campesina, which notes the presence in the document of key steps for the agricultural transition. Further steps are hoped to be taken to concretise and implement the recommendations in the report, with changes in the UTP Directive , creating a directive on European soils, and strengthening the CMO, common organisation of agricultural markets, of the CAP.

Representatives of COPA-COGECA, distinguished as one of the main players in the Strategic Dialogue, are satisfied with the result achieved in these seven months of discussions, with the recognition of the agriculture and food sector as one of the main ones for European industry, the need to have food security, and the commitment to competitive sustainability. COPA-COGECA calls for a trade policy consistent with these results, recalling the importance of the agri-food sector in trade negotiations. The report for COGECA is “the beginning of a constructive process that will lead to a more balanced and strategic vision of agriculture.”

Coldiretti comments in a note that, as much as they appreciate the protection reserved for farmers and the balance of agricultural supply chains, a concrete change of course is lacking, not found in the document. They call for an increase in dedicated funds, recognising the importance of food security, so they are waiting to see the budget planning phase for the agricultural sector and the next CAP. In its closing, Coldiretti talks about the absence in the document of the relationship between health and food, in view of the reform related to NGT, new genomic techniques, different from the better-known GMOs.

The reactions of the actors involved in this wide-ranging work are varied and different, so von der Leyen will have to weigh her next moves carefully to avoid being trapped by her own promises, of which are many and may not please everyone, to a sector that is and will continue to be crucial to the European economy.