The European Commission proposed on Friday legislative revisions to drastically reduce the green rules of the Common Agricultural Policy, in response to the farmer protests, Le Soir reports, but one main Belgian agricultural union is not happy.
The Commission wanted to respond to demands from European farmers for a reduction in their administrative burdens, while "maintaining a high level of ambition in terms of the environment and climate".
Measures include the adaptation of the nine "good agricultural and environmental conditions" that condition access to agricultural subsidies. These compulsory steps for farmers would become purely voluntary, encouraged by possible additional premiums.
The proposed measures will apply until the end of the current CAP in 2027. Each Member State will be free to adapt the agricultural policy to its national conditions, which could lead to a growing cacophony.
"The Commission is taking strong and swift action to support our farmers in a time when they are dealing with numerous challenges and concerns," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. "We are sending a clear message that agricultural policy adapts to changing realities while staying focused on the key priority of protecting the environment and adapting to climate change."
The Walloon FUGEA farmers' union did not welcome the announcement, and said: "From the outset, we have been calling for action on prices, not on environmental standards."
This announcement has not failed to arouse the discontent of organisations who are against the regression in environmental standards and protections.
"We have forgotten that these standards are not there to disturb and prevent farmers from working but to protect nature and the population. To satisfy a few intensive farmers, we are putting the majority of others at a disadvantage", Gaëtan Seny, an agricultural expert at Natagora, told Le Soir. He also denounces a "hold-up in which the Belgian Presidency of the EU is complicit".
