Brussels – The new European Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is taking shape, but the most sensitive issue – that of funding – remains unresolved. The agriculture ministers of the 27 Member States reached an agreement yesterday evening (26 October) on the Council’s negotiating position regarding the regulation that will govern the CAP after 2027. This is a partial agreement, as it excludes financial and horizontal issues, which will be addressed in the negotiations on the EU’s next multiannual budget for 2028–2034.
The aim is to simplify the rules, make support more targeted and strengthen farms’ resilience to crises, while maintaining a common European framework but allowing national governments greater flexibility in implementing the measures. “The future CAP must support active farmers, provide opportunities for the next generation and help farmers cope with risks and crises,” said the Irish Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon, who chairs the EU Council.
One of the most significant changes concerns the structure of agricultural policy: the Commission’s proposal aims to move beyond the current two-pillar structure by merging the European funds for direct payments and rural development into a single framework. Agricultural measures would also be incorporated into the new national and regional partnership plans, which will bring together various European funding instruments. For farmers’ income support and crisis measures, Brussels has proposed setting aside around €300 billion, but the final allocation will have to be agreed as part of the next EU budget.
The Council also aims to focus support on farmers who are actually engaged in production, on young people and on smaller farms. Member States will be required to provide increased support for young farmers, aid for setting up new businesses and national strategies to facilitate generational renewal. On the environmental front, the text seeks to strike a balance between common objectives and flexibility in light of the diverse realities of the agricultural sector.
Risk management is also key, with the possibility of providing support for insurance, investments in climate adaptation, and crisis payments in the event of natural disasters, adverse weather events or animal and plant diseases. It is an issue that Italy insisted on at the meeting in Luxembourg. The Minister for Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, Francesco Lollobrigida, has called for social conditionality to be maintained – linking aid to compliance with labour standards – and for adequate resources to be guaranteed for crisis management tools, including the European Unity Safety Net fund.
The Council’s agreement now forms the basis for launching negotiations with the European Parliament. The real battle is shifting to the budget: the final amount of agricultural funding and the rules on the phasing-out and the cap on payments remain to be determined – two crucial issues for understanding who will receive aid and to what extent.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
