Farmers' president warns: EU reform plans endanger our agricultural policy!

Farmers' president warns: EU reform plans endanger our agricultural policy!

In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania it is bubbling in agriculture: Farmers' President Karsten Trunk raises serious allegations against the planned reforms of the European Union for promoting agriculture. His words are currently: "Mind lost". The president warns of a threatening development that could not only endanger European agricultural policy, but also the existence of many companies. In particular, the proposed merging of the agricultural fund with other policy areas could have fatal consequences. "The common agricultural policy is the cornerstone of Europe," said Trunk. But the plans that are in the draft of the European Commission seem to shine exactly this pillar.

The worries go hand in hand with the pressure, which was noticeable at the special Agricultural Ministers' Conference (AMK) in Berlin, where Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania clearly campaigned for the continuation and maintenance of a stable agricultural policy. Minister of Agriculture Dr. Till Backhaus emphasized how important the common agricultural policy (GAP) is for safe food supply and fair income. "We also have to ensure that rural development does not fall by the wayside," said Backhaus in view of possible cuts in the upcoming multi -year financial framework (MFR) of the EU and uncertain structural changes. stern.de

How serious the location is shows the fact that Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has invested impressive 27 billion euros from gap funds in agriculture and rural development since reunification. These funds make up more than a third of the farmers' income in the state. Trunk therefore calls for an independent, sufficiently equipped agricultural budget to ensure planning security. Larger companies in particular could be severely affected by undermined funding, which fueled fear that the interests of less privileged countries dominate the common goals of the GAP.

At the Ministerial Conference, three different scenarios for the future of the GAP from 2028 were also presented: A single EU fund could bundle all means, or it would be conceivable to have rural development out of the GAP. The worst would be if the budgets were reduced. These uncertainties make it all the more important for farmers to create precise planning horizons and to reduce bureaucratic hurdles.

But what does that mean for the jobs in the EU? According to current statistics, over 9.4 million people were employed in agriculture in 2019. In Germany alone, that was 597,000 employees in agriculture and over 625,200 in food production in 2018. These figures illustrate how important agriculture is for the entire economy. For every euro that is issued in the agricultural sector, this generates an additional 0.76 euros for the entire EU economy. Europarl.eu