EU announces concessions for farmers. The goal is to stop the protests
Next week, the European Commission will present new legislative proposals to satisfy protesting farmers in EU countries. This was stated by European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski.
“A very large reduction in the burden on farmers will be proposed,” he said.
According to the European Commissioner, this year the EU will not impose fines on farmers who do not comply with environmental or climate standards. Also, by the end of the budget period (from 2025 to 2027), changes will be made to ease the requirements of the European Green Deal.
“This will be a package of decisions that should allay all farmers’ fears not so much about the Green Deal as about its elements in the Common Agricultural Policy,” Wojciechowski added.
According to him, the concessions will include the abolition of the mandatory 4 percent of land reclamation. Farmers will also be able to continue to leave land fallow.
The European Commission promises to find a solution to mitigate the severity of crop rotation and the obligation to use winter cover. It is noted that each EU country will be able to choose the period for crop rotation.
In addition, farms of up to 10 hectares will not be checked for compliance with environmental requirements. According to the publication, such farms account for 75% of all agricultural farms in Poland.
Wojciechowski also proposed to expand state aid to farmers. This refers to assistance in connection with the war in Ukraine.
As a reminder, farmers and agrarians have staged protests in several EU countries. They are dissatisfied with the European Commission’s green policy and demand concessions from both the EU and their governments.
The largest protests were in France and Poland. In Poland, farmers are also demanding restrictions on imports from Ukraine.
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