The Commission's long-awaited reform plans for the CAP, also known as the 'health check', were presented in Brussels on 20 November by Mariann Fischer Boel, EU commissioner for agriculture and rural development.
The proposals are non-legislative, but set the stage for discussion and deliberation in advance of formal legislative proposals expected in the spring of 2008.
More decoupling, less money
Dubbed a "blueprint for streamlining and further modernising" the CAP, the health check builds on the 2003 round of reforms by proposing an extension of de-coupling requirements to virtually all agricultural sectors.
Farmers with sizeable land holdings who receive large payouts would also face significant subsidy cuts under the plans:
- 10% cuts for payments above €100,000;
- 25% cuts for payments above €200,000;
- 45% cuts for payments above €300,000.
Landowners in Germany, the UK and the Czech Republic would be particularly affected by the plans. France's large agricultural sector will also be significantly affected by the plans, but French President Nicolas Sarkozy recently announced his commitment to reforming the sector (EurActiv 12/09/07).
No more 'pseudo farming'
Under the current system, farmers or landowners engaged in agricultural activity who own more than 0.3 hectares are eligible for CAP subsidies. The Commission wants to raise the thresholds - potentially to above one hectare - in order to reduce the risk of fraud by 'pseudo farmers'.
"If you keep one goat in your backyard you are not a real farmer," Fischer Boel told journalists in Brussels on 20 November.
Set-asides and money for environment
More extensive modulation also features in the plans: by 2015, the Commission wants to gradually shift 13% of direct aid to the Rural Development Fund, up from its current level of 5%.
Water management plans and other climate change-related measures should be added to cross-compliance requirements as part of the health check, which calls for an end to 'set-asides', meaning land which farmers are required to leave fallow in order to protect natural environments and species.
Currently, 10% of EU agricultural land must be set aside. The Commission wants to abolish set-asides entirely for a period of one year, to let farmers grow more cereal in response to increased demand and rising food prices.
But the EU executive remains vague about environmental safeguard alternatives to the set-asides, and is looking for input during the upcoming discussions.
One possibility, according to the Commission's agriculture spokesperson Michael Mann, would be to use the increasing amount of funds modulated from the direct payments towards environmental purposes. Another possibility is a voluntary scheme whereby farmers would protect land next to key waterways, Mann told EurActiv.
Budget talks
The CAP budget for the period beyond 2012 will be dicsussed in 2008-2009, but the health check "in no way" prejudges the outcome of the budget talks, according to the Commission.
The Commission hopes the health check reforms, which would apply to the period 2009-2012 and pave the way for further reforms in the post-2012 period, will be adopted by the Agriculture Council under the French EU Presidency before the end of 2008.
