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The government of the Brussels region has decided to file a complaint against the European Commission with the European Court of Justice over its decision to re-authorise glyphosate, the most widely used pesticide in the world. Belgium was among the nine member states that voted against the renewal of the controversial chemical substance. Read more

Today, during the extraordinary AGRI Committee meeting was officially introduced and discussed a draft report on the CAP process. This document delivered by MEP Herbert Dorfmann (EPP), has called for “the existing system for calculating direct payments in Pillar I, which is often based on historic entitlements, to be replaced by an EU-wide uniform method of calculating payments, in order to make the system simpler and more transparent”.

A trade dispute between the US and EU would hit the agricultural sectors of both countries hard, farming association Copa and Cogeca has warned. Read the original post

The Greek ministry of agriculture officially approved on Tuesday (6 March) the re-authorisation of the world’s most commonly used weedkiller, Monsanto’s Roundup, which contains controversial chemical substance glyphosate. Greece was among the nine member states that opposed the EU’s plan to re-authorise glyphosate during a crucial vote last year. The reapproval was ultimately endorsed by a qualified majority thanks to Germany, which had previously abstained. Read the original post

The European Commission is proposing changes to the rules governing state aid in the agriculture sector, increasing the amount that national authorities can use to support farmers without the need for prior approval. The proposal - to increase the maximum aid amount from €15,000 to €25,000 over three years per farm holding - is a response to calls from EU member states to improve support for farmers at the same time as reducing the administrative burden and without distorting the market. Read more