Access to land for younger farmers and a focus on transport problems have been different highlights of the Commissioner’s speech on the EU Agricultural Outlook conference on Tuesday. The convention is a key annual gathering of European stakeholders, designed to engage and speak about the future of agriculture in Europe and the demanding situations which lie ahead.

Wojciechowski highlighted a selected center of attention on supporting natural practices, saying that he desires to decrease intensive farming, together with a discount within the intensive use of insecticides and fertilisers.

He said that this comes to the advent of an appropriate “offensive” motion plan, which will likely be carried out within the next 12 months.

He added that this may occasionally involve a contribution to the EU “Farm to Fork strategy”, taking a look at how organic manufacturing can lend a hand the agri-food sector give a boost to its sustainability across the agri-food provide chain.

He said the best way to try this will have to be with “carrots, rather than sticks”, indicating that the CAP will have to be used to incentivise best possible practices.

According to Wojciechowski, there are more than 12 million hectares of natural production within the EU throughout 200,000 farms, however the manufacturing and uptake of natural food differ significantly between member states, with charges of consumption of natural produce varying between 10% and zero.five% around the EU.

He highlighted that organic agriculture is these days “difficult to obtain” for many people and that worth is continuously a considerable constraint for shoppers.

Asked by EURACTIV, Wojciechowski mentioned that “consumption is the main barrier to the development of organic in Europe” and that this downside lies out there, especially involving issues referring to methods to sell natural products.

He added the solution to this lies in the second one pillar of the CAP, which he said should have an “instrument for intervention to support organic farming” which no longer handiest includes farmers but in addition extends to shoppers and the promotion of organic meals.

Grant young other people get admission to to land

Access to land for younger farmers was any other key focal point of Wojciechowski’s speech, the place he emphasized that younger farmers don’t seem to be adequately supported and incentivised to stick in the occupation and take up the “difficult challenges associated with farming”.

Lack of get entry to to affordable land for brand spanking new farmers is widely recognised as the most important obstacle to new farming entrants, with greater than part of Europe’s farmland controlled by means of farmers over the age of 55, and just about a 3rd through farmers over 65. In contrast, only 6% of the total land area is managed by means of farmers under 35.

A Commission source lately told EURACTIV that attracting younger other folks into the sector and serving to them establish themselves as viable companies is among the main priorities of the CAP post-2020.

Soy import, a problem?

Wojciechowski also highlighted transport as a big factor, noting that a lot of our imports for feedstock and animals contain long transport routes.

He said the Commission would focal point on reducing the distance between farm and fork, expanding Europe’s self-reliance within the process.

In this regard, he cited a debatable example of 36 million tonnes of soybeans imported into the EU from the Americas every year.

However, reducing the dimensions of long-distance transporting of feed or agricultural products starting from American soybeans clashes, in concept, with the industry policy put in place through the former European Commission.

In July 2018, former Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker agreed to import more soybeans from america with the intention to put the dispute on metal and aluminium tariffs at the back of and opening negotiations to reinforce industry members of the family.

At the start of this yr, the Commission authorized the import of soybeans also for producing biofuels, coming to the USA’s rescue after trade tensions with China, where soybean exports from the USA had been dropped to zero within the earlier months.