Co-legislators discussing green architecture

During the trilogue meeting on Friday 30 April, dedicated to the “green architecture” of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the three institutions agreed on the need to reach a political agreement soon (most probably by the end of May).

The Council accepted the Parliament’s suggestion of having eco-schemes for animal welfare and, therefore, on having payments per livestock unit. On the ring-fencing for eco-schemes, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) appreciated the Portuguese Presidency’s offer of a progressive increase of the percentage from 22% to 25% but will be rediscussed this next meeting.

Co-legislators approved the principles that transfers between pillars should not lead to a decrease of funds for the environment and climate, but still need to find a compromise on the rates.

They also agreed on a slight amendment to Article 5 – suggested by the Parliament – clarifying that the new CAP should also contribute to the EU’s commitments stemming from the Paris Agreement.

Further discussions are also needed on climate-tracking, investments, and the social conditionality. This last item is one of the key priorities of the Portuguese Presidency, but co-legislators underlined the “practical difficulty in incorporating this dimension to the CAP” even if they agreed that worker’s rights in agriculture need to be respected.

In parallel to CAP discussions, IFOAM Organics Europe is conducting a questionnaire to gather information on the quality of the national consultation process on CAP strategic plans, the level of involvement of organic associations and on the envisaged content of CAP strategic plans in Member States.

IFOAM will prepare written feedback for the European Commission about the organic movement’s involvement (or lack thereof) in the design of the national strategic plans, and on whether the level of ambition to develop organic farming in the different Member States is in line with the EU target to reach 25% organic land by 2030. Moreover, we will develop communication tools to support our members in their national advocacy work on the CAP strategic plans.

For more information on the CAP and IFOAM Organics Europe’s work on this issue, please contact [email protected]. Please do note that we prioritise our members’ requests. For information about what you can gain from being a member, read our membership page and contact [email protected].