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Next year, the European Commission should carry out a mid-term review of the multiannual financial framework (the current MFF is valid for 2021-2027). Bulgarian Minister of Agriculture Javor Gechev said last week that the Bulgarian government will send an official request to the European institutions, in which they will insist on the revision of the MFF and the equalization of subsidies from the CAP for all agricultural producers in the EU. According to Gečev, the pace of external convergence has slowed down, in view of the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine, due to which the budgets of neighbouring states are burdened more than the budgets of Western countries.
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Germany's environment agency warns that proposed carbon removal certification rules could undermine the environmental integrity of EU climate policies. The main criticism is focused on the lack of control over the use of credits in carbon removal. Companies can meet their climate goals by buying credits for their current emissions. The agency proposes limiting the use of credits for fulfilling obligations outside the emissions trading system, outside the LULUCF Regulation, as well as for voluntary use without compensation and for use for subsidies.

European Commission announced on 09/03/2023 the approval of investments of more than €116 million for strategic projects under the LIFE Environment and Climate Programme. The funds will help eight projects in BE, EE, ES, IT, PL, SK and FI to achieve a climate-neutral EU and to fulfil other goals of the European Green Deal. The projects will also support the implementation of the EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2030, the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Zero Pollution Action Plan, the legal framework for nature restoration and contribute to the transition to clean energy.
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French retail groups will offer basic food at the lowest possible retail price in a bid to help consumers hit by inflation. For now, the agreement is set for a three-month period to help cope with a 14.5% increase in food prices over the past year. Chains will choose themselves which products to discount. The costs could reach several million euros.
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Environmental organisations Oxfam and Transport & Environment are calling for arable land to be used for food production and carbon storage, not for biofuel production. As part of their 'Food Not Fuel' campaign, they published a report last week (here) that says that if land currently used for biofuel production were to be given over to forests, it would have the potential to sequester up to 65 million tonnes of carbon. There would be a significant increase in food production if crops grown for fuel were replaced with crops grown for food. The organisations point out that even just 2.5% of this land used for solar panels would yield the same amount of energy, putting the remaining land to better use.