A new study, released last week, makes clear that the original Commission proposal for a reform of the Common Agricultural Policy is not in line with the EU Green Deal ambitions. What is more, it says that both the European Council and the European Parliament – with their recently-adopted positions – have made it even worse.
What does the study say?
The study, called The Green Deal and the CAP, largely confirms what scientists, activists and the Greens have been saying for months:
” – EU agriculture and food practices are currently not on the right track to meet the Green Deal ambition, objectives and quantitative targets related to climate, environment, nutrition and health issues in that sector.”
The study further confirms what the European Court of Auditors said in recent report: that despite the attempt to makes its funding greener, the CAP has not prevented any biodiversity loss over the past years.
” – To reverse these unfavourable trends, there is an urgent need to significantly strengthen many technical provisions of the CAP; in particular those related to conditionality requirements and eco-scheme measures, and those to improve the CAP governance, notably by making the attainment of targets legally binding and improving their enforcement, reporting and monitoring.”
The findings reiterate what 3600 scientists already told the Commission in a letter earlier this year. Amongst their 10 action points, they highlighted the need to strengthen environmental monitoring and enforcement to make sure the CAP delivers on biodiversity conservation, climate mitigation and sustainable food production.
Where does the study come from?
Was it done by Extinction Rebellion, Greenpeace, or even by us, the Greens/EFA Group? Quite the opposite: it was requested by the European Parliament itself, via its own Agriculture Committee! Its authors are not what one would call Greta-like environmental activists. It was written by Agro Paris Tech, which happens to be one of the most famous schools of agronomy in Europe, amongst whose graduates is the conservative French Minister for Agriculture, Julien Denormandie.
What now?
This is even more evidence that if we can’t withdraw the CAP proposal completely, it should at least be fixed by the people who still have the power to do so: the European Commission.
It’s a shame that this study was released just one month after the EP adopted its own position. Next Monday, MEPs will discuss the findings of the study, but no decision is foreseen as the EP has already adopted its mandate for negotiations.
However, it is not over yet. Next Tuesday, the Commission will sit with the EU Council and the European Parliament for a new round of negotiations. This study can be used as leverage for the Commission to get its act together and retract – or fix – the CAP. We need your help to make sure the Commission knows about it. Send a tweet to Frans Timmermans ahead of the next round of negotiations!