IFA tells EU Commission CAP must deliver better future for farm families

THE Common Agricultural Policy must deliver a better future for farm families, the 87,000-member Irish Farmers Association has told the European Commission.

In a submission to the Commission as part of a consultation process ahead of the review of the CAP in 2013, the IFA highlighted the multi-functional role of the policy for 500 million EU citizens, the environment, food producers and society generally.

Stressing that it is top of his agenda, IFA president John Bryan said he will convey his view directly to Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Damien Ciolos today. Mr Bryan said he will highlight the importance of maintaining a fully-funded, index-linked CAP budget that is directed at active farmers and the productive sector.

He said previous reforms of the CAP have addressed many of society’s concerns in relation to the benefits of such supports to agriculture.

European consumers have a sustainable supply of safe, quality food produced within the Community at reasonable prices.

“The CAP has delivered real value for EU consumers, who now spend 13% of their household budget on food compared with 30% in the early 1980s,” he said. However, Mr Bryan said price and income volatility for the producer has increased greatly since the 2003 CAP reform.

This is due to the decoupling of payments from production, greater exposure to an increasingly liberalised world market and ill-conceived trade deals where the viability of EU farm families is traded off for other questionable gains in financial and other services.

“The increasing dominance of the retail sector in the food supply chain is also threatening the viability of the European family farm model,” he said.

Mr Bryan said the CAP post-2013 must ensure a better standard of living for farmers and its structures should only be adjusted to preserve the family farm model, address income volatility and to meet new challenges such as climate change.

Commissioner Ciolas, speaking on the CAP at an informal meeting of EU agricultural ministers in Spain, said direct payments need to be better targeted.

“In that sense they cannot be based on historic production. We need to find objective criteria applicable to all, which are understood by society as a whole, but also highlight the broader benefit that agriculture gives to society.

Mr Ciolos said a firm framework which provides market stability is needed, but the market must be able to play its role and to guide farmers in their production decisions.