EU adopts proposal to exempt small farmers from crop diversification and rotation rules

Small tillage farmers with holdings below 30ha will be exempt from GAEC 7 regulations in 2026, following an approved proposal to the CAP simplification package

MEP Maria Walsh submitted an amendment to the European Commission’s agricultural simplification package to protect smaller farmers from overly cumbersome GAEC 7 regulations.

Farmers with holdings below 30 hectares will be exempt from GAEC 7 controls and penalties.

The announcement follows the approval of the amendment as part of a Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) simplification proposal.

MEP Maria Walsh, who is a full member of the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee, submitted an amendment to the European Commission’s agricultural simplification package to protect smaller farmers from overly cumbersome GAEC 7 regulations.

The proposal has been accepted by the institutions of the European Union and is now included in the CAP simplification package, which is expected to enter into force from 2026. The exemption will apply to farmers with holdings below 30ha (74 acres). 

Speaking on her accepted proposal, Ms Walsh said: “This is a real win for our small farmers, and a real win for common sense. From day one, I have been calling for fairer, simpler rules that actually work for the people producing our food.” 

“I initially proposed this exemption because the one-size-fits-all approach to farm regulation simply doesn’t work. Many farmers with small holdings between 10-30 hectares have been buried in paperwork and penalties for rules that made little sense for their scale of operation."

Irish Farmers’ Association grain chair Kieran McEvoy said the move to exempt farmers with an area below 30ha from GAEC 7 crop diversification and rotation regulations was a positive development.

“Our tillage area has contracted significantly in the past decade, and some of the exodus has been from smaller farmers who didn’t wish to grow more than one crop. Hopefully, this will help encourage these farms to consider producing tillage crops again,” he said.

Other elements within the new CAP simplification package are new crisis payments established for farmers for natural disasters, adverse climatic events or catastrophic events.

A newly created €75,000 payment was established under the rural development pillar for rural business start-ups and the business development of small farms. This lump-sum payment for small farm schemes increased from the current €1,250 to €3,000.