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The largest European agricultural organization, Copa and Cogeca, the International Confederation of European Sugar Beet Growers (CIBE), and the organization representing the poultry sector (AVEC) have expressed their opposition to ratifying the trade agreement with Mercosur. According to the organizations, the agreement is unbalanced, especially in the beef and poultry sectors, Mercosur countries have an advantage; farmers also fear the cumulative impact of all agreements already signed on the EU's agricultural sector and its competitiveness and economic sustainability. Dual production standards for farmers in Mercosur and EU countries could also be a problem.
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Janusz Wojciechowski, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, spoke at the US conference on 09/02/2021, reiterating his call for the abolition of US tariffs on EU agri-food products. The tariffs have been discussed since October 2019 due to a dispute over subsidies between Airbus and Boeing. According to Wojciechowski, the introduced tariffs on wine, cheese or olive oil are detrimental to EU and US farmers, so he called on the new US administration to address and rectify the situation. According to the Portuguese presidency, discussions on trade relations have significantly improved and revived during the term of the new US President Joe Biden.

On 04/02/2021, the European Commission published the conclusions of a study on the CAP’s impact on sustainable land management. The Commission concludes that the CAP contributes to reducing the use of plant protection products and banning their use in areas of organic interest through the promotion of organic farming and other greening measures. The current CAP rules have helped to alleviate the process of soil erosion and have allowed for long-term positive changes in agricultural practices. The studies, together with the outcome of the public consultation on natural resources and the conclusions of previously published supporting studies on biodiversity and water, will contribute to a joint assessment of the impact of the CAP on biodiversity, soil, and water. The European Commission should issue a summary report on the topic by the end of this year.
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A proposal by some MEPs to introduce new trade measures in the CAP reform package was discussed in a Common Market Organization trialogue last week. France has supported measures to prevent imports of goods that do not meet EU health and environmental standards, but some other EU Member States consider the proposal to be extreme and contrary to World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. However, MEP Eric Andrieu (S&D, FR), European Parliament rapporteur for the report on the Common Market Organization, said that Parliament's proposal was compatible with WTO rules on sanitary and phytosanitary issues because European standards were set in line with scientific studies, which justified EU to adjust trade conditions for imported goods.

On 04/02/2021, the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) presented its own set of measures that could help strengthen agroecology in the EU. According to the CoR, agroecology helps to reduce the carbon footprint of agriculture, strengthen biodiversity, restore soil fertility, and protect against air and water pollution. According to the CoR, agroecology could therefore help to fulfil the goal of the European Green Deal, i.e., to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The CoR proposes that the new legislation for sustainable food systems (proposal to be presented in 2023) also introduce binding targets for the transition to agroecological practices in agriculture. To achieve this, the ERDF must phase out payments per hectare, provide basic payments per number of active persons on the holding, giving priority to supporting small and medium-sized agroecological holdings. The European Commission should present a new legislative proposal to halt the decline in soil organic matter content, give more support to short supply chains and small producers, but also ensure that European markets do not receive production from third countries that do not meet European environmental production standards. According to the CoR, at least 30% of the first pillar’s funds should be allocated to climate and environmental regimes (eco-schemes). VAT on organic, local, and seasonal products should also be reduced.
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