Following the Versailles Declaration, the European Commission presented today a first set of measures on food security and on the resilience of our food systems. Copa and Cogeca share the Commission’s analysis on the situation and the stated objective of increasing the sustainability of EU agriculture while ensuring its production capacity. The European farming community welcomes the emergency and temporary responses outlined in this communication starting with the support granted to the Ukrainian population and farmers.
After the announcements made in REPowerEU on European energy independence last week, the European Commission published today a second landmark communication, focusing on food security and food systems resilience. The crisis plan presented by Commission Executive Vice- President Valdis Dombrovskis and Agriculture Commissioner, Janusz Wojciechowski, features short and medium-term actions. It also embraces the complexity of the situation, considering the repercussions of the war in Ukraine on the European Single Market for farmers and most vulnerable populations while outlining actions to be carried out in Ukraine and in the world to face the “hurricane of hunger” as stated by UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
Reacting to the humanitarian aspect of the communication, Ramon Armengol, President of C ogeca, said, “It is important for us to see that the European Commission is supporting humanitarian actions towards the Ukrainian population with special attention to our fellow farmer colleagues. It is reassuring also to read that the Commission has taken stock of the critical impact of the Ukraine invasion on the agricultural markets and has acknowledged the geo-strategic role of its agriculture in its deployment of a food shield towards the most vulnerable populations. European agri-cooperatives will be key players in the coming months, providing food not only in the EU but in third countries. It is essential in the short term to ensure liquidity to farmers and their cooperatives as input costs are raising sharply even further. Concrete actions from Member States for the agri-food sector in the context of the new State Aid framework are still needed.”
Copa and Cogeca welcome the exceptional measures and immediate derogations to ecological focus areas announced, such as the mobilisation of fallow land so that they can be cultivated in the Spring sowing season 2022, as well as the temporary easing of measures on animal feed sourcing. However, the complete lack of short-term proposals to relieve tensions on the fertiliser market is regrettable. This market is currently experiencing unprecedented turmoil, with historic high prices and a proven risk of shortages in the coming season. This issue will have to be addressed by the European Food Security Crisis preparedness and response Mechanism (EFSCM) as of today. Faced with soaring input prices, the mobilisation of the CAP crisis reserve, advancing the disbursement of direct payments, the setting up of a Temporary Crisis Framework for State Aids and the efforts to ensure proper functioning of the single market are all welcomed by the European farming community.
In2 the medium term, the C ommission recognises the importance of not compromising the productivity of European agriculture while reorienting the European agricultural model. Reacting to this statement, Christiane Lambert, President of Copa, said, “Despite the caricatures and twists of our positions over the past months, particularly in the context of the Farm to Fork Strategy, we have always supported the necessary sustainability approach to agriculture and food. We must continue to produce quality and affordable food in Europe in quantity and I am convinced that we can do so in an increasingly sustainable way. The accumulation of crises also shows us that we need to seriously address our dependencies on fertilisers, animal feed and fossil fuels. The options and solutions exist in agriculture to show that we can reconcile productivity and sustainability”
In the medium term, facilitating the market placement of plant protection products containing biological active substances, new genomic techniques, the deployment of mineral fertilisers alternatives, precision farming techniques, the proposed boost of the EU plant protein plan and the increased use of renewable energies and biogas are all concrete solutions, listed in the Commission’s communication, that would allow EU agriculture to increase its production while ensuring greater sustainability and independence. However, in contrast to the REPowerEU Communication, we regret the lack of detail at this stage on the investment mechanisms that can help stimulate more sustainable agricultural production and improve the resilience of the agricultural sector.
In the face of this crisis, as in the worst moments of COVID, European farmers and their cooperatives will be committed and they will support the proposed strategy for the sustainable growth of European agricultural production.
O artigo foi publicado originalmente em Copa Cogeca.