Macra: Active farmers not getting full credit under CAP
Macra’s agricultural affairs committee chairman Sean Coughlan said it is considering a proposal that those who are farming their land less intensively than the reference years of 2000 to 2002 should not be rewarded with a full payment in the new CAP.
He said a system where farmers must maintain 70% of their farming activity since the reference year to maintain their level of single farm payment under the new CAP would reward active farmers.
“Targeting active farmers rather than inactive farmers is essential to supporting food production and food security, a fundamental aim of CAP,” he said.
Mr Coughlan said everyone agrees there is a need to target active farmers under CAP, but no one has come up with a system to target single farm payments at the most active farmers.
“The CAP must facilitate land being released from persons who don’t want to engage in agricultural production and encourage it to become available to active farmers who want to produce food and grow their businesses.
“The only obligation on farmers currently is to maintain their lands in good agricultural and environmental condition, with no obligation or encouragement to maximise the productive potential of the land,” he said. He added that this does not go far enough in the national interest.
