News

Energy Commissioner Kadri Simon announced on 18/02/2021 that renewable, low-carbon fuels and gases would be subject to a comprehensive EU certification scheme. The new regime will be part of the RED II Directive and will present an updated set of incentives to promote the use of these fuels in various sectors. It will also be presented in June 2021 for a revision of the EU Energy Taxation Directive in line with the EU's updated 2030 climate targets.
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On 18/02/2021, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Janusz Wojciechowski confirmed intention to reach an agreement on the shape of the future CAP by May 2021. According to the Commissioner, the negotiations are now in their final stages and should be completed during the Portuguese Presidency. However, despite the Commissioner's remarks, a dispute erupted last week between the European Parliament and the Council over one part of the CAP reform package - the Common Market Organization (CMO). The European Parliament has criticized the Council for being too slow in negotiating the CMO, and Portugal has responded to criticism by saying that the CAP package could only be partially closed under the Portuguese Presidency, without the conclusion of an agreement on the CMO. The topics of market measures and crisis management have still not been properly discussed within the CMO. However, according to unofficial information, there are also problems in the part devoted to the CAP Strategic Plans, not only on outstanding issues related to green architecture (setting up area for non-production elements or allocating a budget for eco-schemes), but minimal progress has also been made on defining permanent grassland and the real farmer definition, or on capping of direct payments.

Last week, the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism (EFFAT) called on European agriculture ministers and MEPs to make the CAP payments conditional on compliance with national and international working conditions. A copy of the letter was also sent to Janusz Wojciechowski, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, and Nicolas Schmit, Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights. In addition to EFFAT, the letter was signed by other trade associations, NGOs - a total of about 300 signatories. In the letter, the organizations emphasize that there are around 10 million workers and seasonal workers in the EU's agricultural sector. However, during the coronavirus crisis, according to EFFAT, many of these workers had to face human rights violations, inhumane working conditions, low wages, and long working hours. Therefore, according to the authors of the letter, subsidies from the CAP should not only be conditional on compliance with environmental standards or animal welfare rules, but also compliance with working conditions set by national and European legislation - i.e., in addition to environmental conditionality, social conditionality should also be met. The introduction of social conditionality among the rules of the new CAP is now being discussed as an option by EU Member States in the Council and in the Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA), and social conditionality is also supported by several MEPs.
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Wolfgang Burtscher, Director-General of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) confirmed on 17/02/2021 the Commission's intention to present a new action plan for organic farming on 31/03/2021. The action plan - part of the European Green Deal, will focus on meeting one of the objectives of the Farm to Fork strategy (which is also part of the EGD), i.e., strengthening the area of organic farming to 25% of the area of agricultural land by 2030. The action plan will present "massive" initiatives at all levels of the supply chain over the next six years, covering all possible instruments and policies. The rules, conditions and opportunities of current organic farmers should be strengthened, but maximum support should also be provided to farmers who decide to convert from conventional to organic farming or other forms of sustainable agriculture. According to Burtscher, the challenge will be to stimulate demand for organic products, which could be achieved, for example, through changes in the public procurement system.

On 18/02/2021, the European Commission published a new study on the socio-economic impact of the CAP on rural development. According to the results, the CAP can, through a range of instruments and measures, contribute to balanced regional development and strengthen the socio-economic inclusion of rural areas, but success depends on what measures and instruments Member States have chosen to implement. For example, in the case of CAP direct payments, the Commission states that direct payments have a positive impact on employment in rural areas but emphasizes that they are often criticized for providing significant financial support to larger farms. CAP payments should therefore be made more regionally, focusing on the poorest agricultural regions in the EU, and to support those farms (in terms of size and type) that face the worst social and economic conditions. The CAP Strategic plans should therefore also be assessed by stakeholders representing the disadvantaged rural population. The study will contribute to the development of a forthcoming long-term vision for rural areas, which the Commission plans to present in autumn 2021.
More information is available here.