EU: The controversial demands for Europe’s farmers

A few months ago, thousands of farmers protested in Brussels. They set fire to tires and dumped manure on the streets. Some even broke through police barriers with their tractors. On Wednesday, all of this had an effect. A group of experts presented Ursula von der Leyen with a 110-page document. It calls for nothing less than the restructuring of European agricultural policy. And the President of the EU Commission seemed open to it.

“Hardly any sector is as important for our continent as agriculture,” said von der Leyen. “But our farmers are facing many challenges.” They mentioned global competition and the consequences of climate change, such as droughts and floods. More will be done, said von der Leyen, to protect Europe’s farms. This is a key demand of conservative politicians who are setting the tone in Brussels after the European elections.

In September 2023, the Commission President launched what is known in EU jargon as a Strategic Dialogue. 29 organizations, from the farmers’ lobby to food companies to Greenpeace, discussed the future of agriculture for months. There were more than 100 meetings, the last of which lasted 38 hours. Von der Leyen will soon incorporate the experts’ recommendations into legislative proposals.

Brussels wants to reform agricultural policy together, which is one of the EU’s oldest projects and a central element of integration. Farmers on the continent have been receiving subsidies since the 1960s. And to this day, this is the second largest item in the European budget after the Cohesion Fund, the funding pot for poorer regions. Between 2021 and 2027, 420 billion euros are to flow into the agricultural sector.

The panel of experts, led by German scientist Peter Strohschneider, wants a number of changes. Farmers currently receive direct payments of at least 156 euros per hectare. The report says it would be better if those farmers who need it or who are particularly committed to environmental protection and animal welfare received help. However, this would require a “substantial” increase in the agricultural budget. More money seems to be the best solution to farmers’ problems in Brussels.

Approval from the Conservatives, scepticism from the Greens

But money is a sensitive issue. Last year, the EU wanted to increase its budget by 66 billion euros, for example to finance aid for Ukraine and asylum policy – which led to a months-long dispute with the capitals. But perhaps the national governments will be more generous with farmers. After all, the recurring protests are putting them under pressure.

Von der Leyen spoke on Wednesday in the Berlaymont building, where the Commission is based – and in front of which farmers engaged in street battles with Belgian police officers earlier this year. What she said was met with approval by conservative politicians in Brussels, but skepticism by the Greens and Social Democrats.

“The reality is that some of the recommendations so far have been rejected by the Commission and Ursula von der Leyen’s EPP in the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee,” says Maria Noichl, SPD MEP. She cites the restructuring of direct payments as an example. CDU MP Norbert Lins said: “Separate funds for agriculture to meet the challenges of the future are a first step in the right direction.”

The panel of experts around Strohschneider made another controversial demand: the EU, they said, should represent farmers’ interests more strongly in talks with other countries about free trade agreements. For example, a deal with the Mercosur economic community, which includes Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Bolivia, is currently on hold. This is because some EU members fear that cheap agricultural products from South America could flood Europe. The 29 organizations participating in the strategic dialogue share this concern. In simple terms, their message is: farmers before free trade.

And what do the experts say about the EU’s climate policy, which was one of the triggers for the recent farmers’ protests? They are calling for agriculture to reduce its CO₂ emissions, as many other industries are doing. Farmers have not been affected so far. But the group is not very keen on the idea of ​​farms participating in the European emissions trading system, just like an energy company, for example, has to buy pollution rights. The discussion about this is “premature”. In other words: A little climate protection for the agricultural sector is OK. But please not too much.

Stefan Beutelsbacher is a correspondent in Brussels. He reports on the Economic, Trade and Climate policy the EU-17.