CAP for the future

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) must undergo a fundamental reform to make it fit for today's challenges and to respond to society's demands to do no harm. We need to see a fair redistribution of EU funds so they reward sustainable land use that delivers for the public good, removing disparities between regions and states and targeting support for smaller farms and for those that provide quality jobs or environmental outputs. The much-needed transition to full sustainability requires the right investment of public funds so farmers can be supported in that process. In this way, we can achieve long term productivity and fertility within resilient food production systems and ensure fair, remunerative income for farmers, as well as diversified local economies and vibrant rural communities in a living countryside.

The Greens/EFA  have prepared  a policy paper to present their main political demands for the next CAP reform

• DOWNLOAD THE POLICY PAPER

Policy demands:

Part A: Society - Reinvigorating local economies, for vibrant rural communities

• Re-distributing CAP funds - access to land for farmers, not big business
• Fair farming, fair prices
• Maintaining small and diverse farm structures
• Food distribution and consumption in a sustainable production system
• Building resilient, fair rural economies for all, empowering local communities, creating jobs
• Ensuring policy coherence for development, to “Do No Harm”
• Putting people in control of the food system
• Improving public health

Part B: Environment - biodiversity, climate and animal welfare

• Improving animal welfare
• Ecological infrastructure: farming with nature, for biodiversity and climate change adaptation
• Role of agriculture in climate action; beware of false fixes such as agrofuels and chemical no-till
• More funding for organic agriculture
• Higher Natura 2000 payments

Part C: Economy - Supporting farmers’ autonomy and their role in the transition

• Reducing input dependency and corporate control over food chains, increasing farmer autonomy
• Impartial, publicly funded farmer advisory systems & participatory research to drive the transition
• Less CAP à la carte, more common action for common challenges
• Combat debt: shift from grants to loans may increase debt & reduce rural development results
• Prevent insurance schemes eating up increasingly limited Rural Development funds
• Avoiding the debt and dependency traps of precision farming, big machinery and big data lobbies
• Maintain the budget for the CAP, to fund a transition to sustainable agriculture and rural areas