THE European Commission has unveiled a long-term vision for the European Union’s agriculture and food policy overnight, a roadmap which plans to boost EU farmer viability, but which has also triggered warnings about longer-term food security and future trade barriers for Australian agricultural exporters.

The paper, released by EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen (right), outlines a policy blueprint for the future of farming and food in Europe and agri-food imports to Europe through to 2040.

At its core is an acknowledgement of the food and farming sector as vital for Europe’s future food security and plans to transition to a low carbon economy, recognising farmers as part of the solution, not the problem.

It outlines a policy plan which aspires to improve the financial viability of farming in Europe through measures such as cracking down on unfair practices that require farmers to sell at below cost-of-production prices, and adding to farm revenues by aiming to ensure farmers are properly rewarded for eco-system services.

Making farming more attractive to young people in rural areas is a further central pillar of the long-term plan.

“The roadmap we are presenting today sets out the path for tackling the many pressures that EU farmers face,” Mr Hansen said.

While aiming to enhance local food production, the masterplan also points to harder future stances on imports, which could have implications for a key issue the plan aims to solve – long term food security in Europe.

The latest Eurobarometer public-opinion surveys show EU citizens overwhelmingly agree that securing a stable food supply in the EU at all times is essential.

But some trade experts warn the roadmap could in fact hinder long-term food security by imposing restrictions that will trigger inflationary pressure.

The plan says the EU wants stronger alignment of production standards for imported products to guarantee European farmers working under the EU’s ambitious standards are not at a competitive disadvantage to global competitors.

To enforce reciprocity with European standards the EU plans to establish a dedicated enforcement task force to strengthen import controls, the 28 page Vision document states:

“The EU product standards are the highest in the world and ensure that all imported agrifood products are safe. The Commission will ensure that relevant food safety legislation is properly implemented and enforced. A dedicated task force will be established, pulling expertise and forces from the Commission Member States, which will significantly increase the Union’s response to further strengthening the control on imports, including a powerful strengthening of controls on the ground. In the area of animal welfare, the Commission will make sure that future legislative proposals apply the same standards for products produced in the EU and those imported from third countries, also addressing enforcement related issues and concerns expressed by EU citizens.”

Mr Hansen said the Commission will start taking steps in 2025 to address the impact of greater coherences in standards relating to hazardous pesticides banned in the EU and on animal welfare.

“Additionally, the rigorous enforcement and controls of food safety standards remains a non-negotiable priority. The Commission will reinforce its focus on livestock to foster the long-term future of the sector.”

Policy could have negative implications for future European food security

Writing about the forthcoming European policy earlier this week, ag economist and market analyst Andrew Whitelaw from Episode 3 said the new policy could potentially exacerbate food inflation and cause food security issues in Europe.

“This draft policy would see products produced using chemicals banned in Europe not being allowed to be imported into Europe. We are heavily reliant on Europe for our trade in canola, more so than we are with barley into China. If they ban a chemical we need, then we are screwed.

“The same will apply to animal welfare practices. An obvious animal welfare practice would be mulesing; whilst it is not banned in Europe, pain relief is mandatory, which is not the case in Australia.

“A large part of this policy is about placating farmers who have been frustrated by EU policy over recent years. They want to make sure that their farmers, who are potentially facing challenging production due to a lack of chemistry, are not disadvantaged compared to other nations.

“This is green diplomacy, and it will have an impact on Aussie ag”. (See Episode 3 online article here)

Plan pillars

Broad pillars of the policy vision include steps to make the agrifood sector attractive with fairer incomes to encourage young people to enter the industry and to ensure farmers are not forced to systematically sell products below production costs.

Better targeted public support is also encouraged to help farmers adopt new business models, including from carbon and nature credits, as complementary sources of income.

The vision also states that the agricultural sector will play an important role in Europe’s transition to a low-carbon economy, which includes an emphasis on accelerating the adoption of biopesticides and biotechnology.

“The vision recognises the need to reconcile climate action with food security and the specific challenges faced by the sector. Farmers should be rewarded for adopting nature-friendly practices.

“In this context the commission will carefully consider any further ban on the use of pesticides if alternatives are not available in a reasonable time and will streamline access to biopesticides in the EU market.”

Farmers will be urged to adopt a voluntary benchmarking system, to be known as the ‘on-farm sustainability compass’, to help measure and improve their farm-level performance.

Other initiatives will include an annual Food Dialogue to find solutions for issues such as food affordability and innovation.

There is also a strong emphasis on reducing food waste and improving circularity, and addressing societal concerns for animal welfare.

“More carrots, less sticks”

The future common agricultural policy (CAP) will also be simpler and more targeted, with support more directed towards farmers who actively engage in food production, with a particular focus on young farmers.

It aims to do this with “more carrots and less sticks”, shifting the CAP “away from conditions to incentives”, with strong support for carbon farming, bioenergy production, organic and agroecological practices, the bioeconomy and circularity, and greater emphasis on transitioning to biopesticides and biotechnologies.

The EU livestock sector is critically dependent on imports for animal feed, especially soybeans from Argentina, Brazil and the US.

Protein Strategy

It’s 2040 vision also includes a new “protein strategy” which outlines aims to grow more plant-proteins in the EU while also encouraging greater use of plant-based proteins in human diets.

“The links between protein imports and deforestation, on the one hand, and the substantial greenhouse emissions (GHG) from animal farming, on the other, are also lending greater prominence to the use of plant-based proteins in human nutrition,” the protein strategy reads.

It says proposals being considered to close the EU’s protein gap include encouraging the domestic production of protein-rich crops and diversifying the available protein sources for food and feed with sources including microbial, insect and seaweed proteins.

“Finally, greater efficiency and circularity in the way food is produced and consumed would also contribute to the EU’s protein self-sufficiency and to mitigating the environmental footprint of its agri-food sector.”

It adds the EU will crack down on “misleading environmental claims and unreliable sustainability labels.”

European farmers welcome “Pragmatic Reset”

European farmer representative group Copa Cogeca described the blueprint as an ambitious vision” and “a pragmatic reset” in which the European Commission appeared to have “regained its bearings in agricultural policy”.

“However, it fails to address the elephant in the room: the future CAP budget and the resources needed to finance this package of measures,” a Copa Cogeca media release said.

The group welcomed language that it said showed the importance of agriculture within the current geopolitical context was now fully acknowledged.

“Commissioner Hansen’s approach rightly repositions agriculture as a key strategic asset and a pillar of European sovereignty. Farmers are also recognized as entrepreneurs and innovators who play a crucial role in addressing climate challenges, protecting the environment, supporting the bioeconomy, and contributing to society as a whole.

“The Commission has also correctly diagnosed the sector’s demographic and economic fragilities, bringing the issues of farm income, competitiveness, innovation, cooperation and generational renewal back to the fore.”

The European farming group also said it welcomed the need for stricter alignment of production standards for imported goods, particularly concerning plant protection products and animal welfare.

It said stronger and more comprehensive impact assessments of imports should be published prior to any major trade decisions.

“Yet despite these positive elements, today’s announcement misses a fundamental part of the equation. In the current context, it is impossible to ignore the ongoing debate over CAP financing in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

“Last week, Copa Cogeca warned of the dangers of merging funds and establishing single budgetary national plans.

“However, today’s vision makes no mention of the CAP budget and references to the second pillar and its funding are simply absent from the final version of the communication.”

“The vision is a step forward, but the key ‘enablers’ needed to bring it to life remain to be defined.” – To read the full media release click here

For more information on the EU Vision for Agriculture and Food visit the EC website here