European Commission proposes a targeted review of the CAP

These proposals, related to conditionality and CAP Strategic Plans, aim to reduce the burden related to controls for EU farmers and provide them with greater flexibility for complying with certain environmental conditionalities. National administrations will also benefit from greater flexibility to apply certain standards.

The Commission therefore proposes a targeted review of certain conditionalities in the Regulation on CAP Strategic Plans. The review relates to the following conditionalities:

• GAEC 8 on non-productive features: EU farmers will have to maintain existing landscape features on their land but will no longer be obliged to dedicate a minimum part of their arable land to non-productive areas, such as fallow land. Instead, they may choose, on a voluntary basis, to keep a share of their arable land non-productive - or establish new landscape features (such as hedges or trees) - and thereby receive additional financial support via an eco-scheme that all Member States will have to offer in their CAP Strategic Plans.
• GAEC 7 on crop rotation: EU farmers will be able to fulfil this requirement by choosing to either rotate or diversify their crops, depending on the conditions they are facing and if their country decides to include the option of crop diversification in their CAP Strategic Plan.
• GAEC 6 on soil cover during sensitive periods: Member States will have much more flexibility in setting what they define as sensitive periods, and the practices allowed to fulfil this requirement.

Reinforcing the position of farmers in the food supply chain is one of the key objectives of the CAP. To contribute to the ongoing discussions with agriculture ministers and the European Parliament, the Commission presents several options for actions that could be taken forward in the short and medium term:

• The Commission will launch an observatory of production costs, margins, and trading practices in the agri-food supply chain. It is expected to hold its first meeting this Summer.
• The Commission proposes options for targeted improvements to the current legal framework set in the Regulation establishing a common market organisation of agricultural products (CMO). These options include reinforcing the rules applicable to contracts that farmers conclude with buyers in the food industry or retail, and strengthening producer organisations to allow farmers to cooperate and act collectively.
• The Commission will conduct a thorough evaluation of the Directive on unfair trading practices in the food supply chain, in force since 2021. A first report will be delivered in Spring 2024 presenting a consolidated state of play of the implementation of this Directive by Member States. This report will then feed into a more detailed evaluation that the Commission will present in 2025, which could be accompanied, if appropriate, by legislative proposals.

Discussions with Member States on these possible measures will take place in several formats, most notably the upcoming agriculture Council on 26 March.