The next EU budget cannot be business as usual
The bloc must rethink and reprioritize in order to seize opportunities and tackle the new challenges we face today.
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
German states unite against EU โsuperfundโ plan toย absorbย CAP
The ministers are calling for simpler rules, more flexible funding, and stronger support for rural development in the next EU farm policy.
Brussels backs off from big farm shake-up. Cuts are coming anyway.
The European Commission tried to gut the EU farm budget. Farmers, ministers and lobbyists fought back and won. But with funds shrinking, the pain is only delayed.
Greece names new ministers after high-level resignations over farm scandal
Thanos Plevris, a hardline MP with the nationalist Laos party, was appointed migration minister.
Greek farm scandal triggers top-level government resignations
European prosecutors accuse two former ministers of fraud with EU funds.
Prosecutor implicates two Greek ministers in huge EU farm fraud
European prosecutors allege two agriculture ministers committed โcriminal offensesโ in a long-running pastureland scam.
EU fines Greece โฌ400M over farm aid debacle
Brussels imposes massive fine after finding systemic failings in Greeceโs management of farm subsidies from 2016-23.
Death by dung: How Brussels failed to save Europeโs waters from a farm waste deluge
Nitrate pollution is destroying Europe’s aquatic ecosystems. Three decades after the EU started regulating it, there has been almost no improvement.
Greece shuts down agency at center of probe into massive EU farm fraud
European prosecutors are investigating a multi-million euro scam in which EU funds were allegedly channeled to non-farmers.
Slimming CAPโs bureaucracy requires a digital transformation; the seeds have been sown [Advocacy Lab Content]
Simplifying the EUโs Common Agricultural Policy is much like simplifying a Rubikโs Cube, but the Commission is trying anyway โ Euractiv scopes the road ahead.
European prosecutor slams โattacksโ and โintimidationโ against Greek farm fraud probe
Staff at the Greek agency responsible for doling out agricultural funds obstructed EU prosecutors in a corruption probe.
Losing its green: Whoโs to blame for Franceโs organic retreat
Inflation, limited access to organic foods, and a growing return to conventional farming are fuelling a slump in Franceโs organic market.
From farmland to supermarkets: the growing loss of agricultural land in Europe
In 2022, an analysis by the European Environment Agency (EEA) showed that more than 97,700 km2 of land in the EU had been converted into impervious surfaces.
Czech court rejects opposition bid to overturn small farm subsidy rules
The redistributive payment accounts for 23% of all direct EU subsidies in Czechia under the national Strategic Plan within the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
5 takeaways in the EUโs frothy wine packageย
Brussels tries to help an aging sector in terminal decline.
Meet the Mafia-busting MEP taking the fight against organized crime to Brussels
Giuseppe Antoci battled the Italian mob. But can he take on EU policymaking?
Von der Leyenโs first 100 days, graded
The Commission president promised to pull off seven political feats by March 10. Hereโs how she did.
European prosecutors indict 100 in Greek farm subsidy fraud
Prosecutions follow POLITICO investigation into scheme to bilk Brussels of aid earmarked for grazing land.
Czech farmers lead fresh EU border protests over Ukraine, LatAm trade deals
Farmers from Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary and Slovakia join Czech-led demonstrations, rejecting Ukraineโs efforts to ease concerns over cheap imports.
5 takeaways in the EUโs big agriculture (and food) vision
EU tries to make farming sexy again โ and keep farmers from revolting.
The big fat Greek plot to defraud the EU
โFarmers” raked in millions of euros for land they didnโt own or work.
Hungarian presidency to make last-ditch attempt to adopt conclusions on future CAPย
The conclusions published by the Hungarian presidency in October defended a “dedicated” CAP budget amid speculation about Commission plans to merge it with the Union’s cohesion policy.
Letโs work with farmers, not against them, says new EU agri chief
Christophe Hansen says his new vision for agriculture and food will be โdifferentโ and exclude โeat it or dieโ targets.
Romaniaโs presidential front-runner is all about farmers
Far-right independent Cฤlin Georgescu is trying to capture rural voters with fascist tropes.
Want food security? Eat less meat, major report says.
Europe’s top farming university is calling for smaller livestock herds and a shift toward plant-based diets.
Dairy sector unveils ambitious roadmap to combat climate change [Promoted content]
The European dairy sector has committed to an ambitious roadmap to combat climate change, aiming for significant greenhouse gas reductions and enhanced sustainability practices. Industry leaders stress environmental responsibility, efficiency, and anim…
โReally dangerousโ: Farmers hate results of von der Leyenโs reform dialogue
Lobby group Copa-Cogeca is hardening its position after backlash from angry members.
Center right gets its way as golden boy Hansen lands EU farm job
Ursula von der Leyenโs pick for agrifood commissioner is a political animal and skilled mediator โ qualities he will need to do a better job than his hapless predecessor.
The plan to save European farming
Five things you need to know about a report on the future of farming presented to Commission chief von der Leyen.
China hits back at electric vehicle tariffs with probe into EU dairy
Beijing claims Europe is creaming off fat profits from oversubsidized cheese.
EU agriculture chief slams the idea of reform-linked funds for farmers
The idea of having an EU budget, including for agriculture, based on political conditions and milestones, as is the case with the blocโs post-pandemic recovery fund, is “unacceptable,” the outgoing Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski told…
Spat over subsidies breaks EU consensus on future of farming
EU agriculture ministers failed to reach their conclusions on the future of farming at a meeting on Monday (24 June) due to Romaniaโs disagreement on a point on the equalisation of subsidies between member states.
Commission seeks to ease use of geo-tagged photos for farm checks
The EU executive proposed scrapping member states’ obligation to ensure that most farm monitoring is carried out using geo-tagged photos by 2027.
EU budget spending needs serious re-thinking, OECD second-in-chief warns
Before talking about new sources of income for the EU budget โ known as โown resourcesโ โ the EU should assess the efficiency of its current spending,ย Fabrizia Lapecorella, the deputy secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and D…
Militant farmers vent fury in Brussels on eve of EU election
But only 1,000 show up to a protest boycotted by mainstream farming organizations.
EU countries seal relaxation of CAP green requirements until 2027ย
The EU Council gave its final green light on Monday (13 May) to a relaxation of the environmental rules under the blocโs Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which will apply until the end of the current period in 2027 despite vocal protests from green NG…
Commission mulls weakening petland protection requirement for farmers
A group of EU countries is calling to relax rules on mandatory practices to protect peatlands and wetlands under the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) only days after the European Parliament rubber-stamped an overhaul of six other environmental con…
CAP simplification will get more and more complicated
Last week the European Parliament gave its final nod to a package meant to make the Common Agricultural Policy rules easier to apply for farmers and national administrations. But it is not the end of the CAP โsimplificationโ debate. It is just the begi…
Parliament gives final nod to loosen green requirements for farmers
The European Parliament gave its final green light on Wednesday (24 April) to changes to some environmental conditions for receiving payments under the bloc’s subsidy scheme, which are expected to come into force by June, after member statesโ approval.
Rushed rollback of EU green farming rules triggers dismay
The bloc’s notoriously complex legislative process can apparently be simplified โ when it comes to farmers, that is, and when an election is around the corner.
A fairer future for farmers is a greener future for Europe
Addressing the inequities in our food system is essential to delivering justice for farmers and securing climate action.
Farm trade rift puts Ukraineโs EU aspirations in limbo
If Ukraine wants to join the EU, it may have to leave its agricultural sector out in the cold.
Itโs time to hit Amazon where it really hurts: In its pocket
The least the public should be able to expect is for the worldโs biggest companies to not receive public money without being held to the same standards as a family-run farm.
EU takes the ax to green farming rules
The European Commission’s move to slash environmental requirements for farmers comes as top scientists are urging just the opposite.
Europeโs farmer protests have been fertile ground for Russian propaganda
While starting at the grassroots level, the protests have been keenly exploited by Russia to sow division and undermine popular support for Ukraineโs defense.
5 things we learned from the EUโs big (and first) climate risk report
Farming must change. Diets must evolve. Southern Europe is at risk. And disaster looms if EU leaders donโt act after Juneโs elections.
Spainโs main parties clash over EU trade policy as farmers take to the streets
Spanish farmers on Wednesday (21 February) staged their biggest rally yet since protests began two weeks ago, as the ruling Socialist party and the centre-right opposition clashed in parliament over border controls and โmirror clausesโ in EU trade deal…
Hundreds of Czech farmers protest against EU regulations
Agricultural groups across Europe have been demonstrating against the EU’s Green Deal.
Ukraine and us
Tensions over renewed trade benefits to Ukraine were high last week, with the coming week shaping up to be just as fraught.ย
Calls grow for EU farm chief to quit as protests spread
Janusz Wojciechowski is said to be “seriously considering” resigning after speaking to the leader of Poland’s Law and Justice party.
Protesting farmers share table with EU leaders
Von der Leyen, Rutte and De Croo chat with farm lobbies after EU summit.
EU Commission proposes package to defuse farmersโ anger
In the face of growing protests by farmers, the European Commission officially proposed on Wednesday (31 January) introducing safeguard measures to cap Ukrainian food imports and accepted France’s proposal for a partial derogation from the fallow-land …
French farmers prepare for lengthy showdown as they launch โsiege of Parisโ
New Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is scrambling to appease the agriculture sector as tractor protests escalate.
France axes tractor fuel hike, cuts red tape to appease angry farmers
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is looking for a way out of his first political crisis as farmersโ protests spread across the country.
French โfarmfluencerโ slams attempts to politicise farmersโ protests
French ‘farmerfluencer’ รtienne Fourmont, who is using his YouTube and social media to make farmers’ voices heard at a time when they are protesting heavily in France and the rest of Europe, told Euractiv about the urgent need to change the way farming…
French farmers attack foreign trucks, destroy cargoes, report says
Belgian cauliflower, Polish chicken and Spanish wine dumped on road in southern France.
Carbon pricing for agriculture key to cutting emissions, say EU climate advisers
Current policies are not a sufficient incentive for farmers to do more to achieve the EU climate targets, according to the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change (ESABCC) experts, who warned of the need for a carbon pricing system for the…
Agri commissioner calls for ceiling on CAP payments toย largeย farms
European Union farming subsidies should be compulsorily capped to cope with the accession of agricultural powerhouse Ukraine, according to the EUโs Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski, as discussions heat up about the future shape of the next…
Eleven EU countries call for more โflexibilityโ on CAPโs fallow land rules
Eleven EU member states, including France, are calling for greater “flexibility” in the previously derogated requirement to leave land fallow under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in a proposal that has left the European Commission perplexed.
German farmers: Ukraine membership would spell end of EU farming system
Ukraine joining the European Union in the future would result in the ‘death’ of the family farm as we know it, according to German Farmers’ Union President Joachim Rukwied.
Ten German farms went bust each day last decade
Germany saw an average of 10 farms go out of business every day in the last decade, according to the German government’s agricultural policy report, which has spurred associations and the opposition to call on the agriculture minister to take action.
Berlin sends new agriculture envoy to help Western Balkans with EU accession
As part of its efforts to secure EU accession for the Western Balkans, the German government is sending for the first time an agricultural attachรฉ to the region to help it implement the often highly technical EU legislation in the field.
Ukraineโs accession would cost โฌ186B, EU estimates
Future enlargement of the EU would greatly affect farming and cohesion funding allocation.
German regions insist on reorientation of EU farm policy
A group of regional agriculture ministers in Brussels this week called for a far-reaching and fundamental reform of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) – but the European Commission remains hesitant.
Study: Mixed impact of green measures in EUโs farming subsidies scheme
EU countries that have been given more freedom to design environmental measures under the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) are showing little ambition with measures that have very little positive environmental impact, a new study has found.
Agri-diesel debate: Can tractors be climate friendly?
The German government appears to have dropped a much-debated idea of cutting diesel subsidies for farmers for now, but the question of what climate-friendly alternatives there are for tractors and other agricultural machinery remains.
Germany aims to tweak CAP plan as green measures fall through
Germany’s federal states have agreed on proposals to improve the catalogue of eco-schemes, a new instrument under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to reward sustainable farming practices, whose take-up has so far been lower than hoped.
French minister blasts NGOsโ โpermanent spirit of demolitionโ on EU farming subsidies
NGOs are suing the European Commission for having approved France’s national plan for implementing the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) despite allegedly breaching EU law – a move that French Agriculture Minister Marc Fesneau calls a “destructive battle”.
Admitting Ukraine will be the EUโs biggest geopolitical contribution to the war
The ‘Ukraine question’ will be the new Commissionโs single biggest political priority, and it will dominate politics in Brussels and other European capitals for years to come.
EU auditors court slams lacklustre EU soil protection efforts
The European Commission and EU member states are not being ambitious enough with their protections for EU soil, nearly 70% of which was found to be unhealthy, the European Court of Auditors said.