Today, Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the period until 31 December 2026. Under the slogan “Strength with Unity,” the Irish Presidency is committed to advancing European competitiveness, upholding European values, and strengthening European security.

While welcoming the Presidency’s commitment to a common, stable and fair Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), Farm Europe calls on the Irish Presidency to provide the political leadership needed to translate these ambitions into concrete decisions and avoid a fragmentation and inconsistencies of the policies and regulatory work streams. 

Multiannual Financial Framework 

The Irish Presidency commits to work intensively to advance agreement among Member States on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the 2028–2034 period, laying the financial foundations for the Union’s policies and priorities in the decade ahead.

Discussions on the overall framework will be taken forward in the General Affairs Council, while sectoral components, including the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs) and the European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), will be progressed in the relevant Council formations.

The Presidency aims to hand over a sufficiently advanced negotiating box to the President of the European Council, enabling EU leaders to take the necessary decisions on the Union’s future financing before the end of 2026.

Post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)

The Irish Presidency wants to place particular emphasis on food security, competitiveness, simplification, sustainability, and generational renewal as key priorities in shaping the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy.

Work on the future framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) will be a central focus of the Irish Presidency. In this context, Farm Europe recalls that European agriculture requires a structurally sound, genuinely common and strategically coherent CAP. Such a policy must simultaneously ensure agricultural sovereignty and environmental progress, safeguard viable agricultural structures while facilitating generational renewal, and provide European farmers with the certainty and investment tools they need for the future. 

A CAP without genuinely common conditions and clear baselines risks undermining its own coherence and the internal market. A clear co-financing rate should therefore be the norm rather than the exception. Agricultural conditionality should constitute the baseline for EU-level requirements instead of a multi-speed farm stewardship that would create 27 or more cross compliances. In addition, a fully EU-funded environmental and production-oriented measure is necessary to ensure the financial credibility and balanced implementation of the policy across all Member States.

The Role of Livestock in European Agriculture

While the European Commission will present the livestock strategy in the first days of the Irish Presidency, Dublin wants to stress the importance of livestock production, taking into account the diversity of production systems and regional conditions across the Union. It will steer the discussions in the Council to explore how livestock farming can better contribute to economic and social objectives while addressing environmental and climate-related challenges.

With regard to animal welfare, the Irish Presidency will emphasise that rules must be firmly grounded in scientific and technical evidence, as well as informed by the experience and best practices of Member States.

Specifically regarding the animal transport file, five meetings have been scheduled on this issue, compared with three under the Cypriot Presidency. As a result, the pace of negotiations is expected to accelerate from July onwards. The Presidency’s immediate objective is to conclude the review of Chapter I, identify the articles and annexes for which the text has been finalized, and hold bilateral meetings to facilitate the continuation of the negotiations.

Environmental, Climate and Water Policy

The Irish Presidency is committed to the EU’s ambitious agenda to fight climate change and to shift to a climate-neutral economy by 2050. In 2026, the Commission will propose several legislative amendments and initiatives on climate law, on which the Presidency will work.

The key priorities announced in its programme are progress on the review of the ETS1 Directive, the revision of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and the agreement and finalisation of strengthened ETS1 and ETS2 safeguards. The Presidency will also start discussions on the implementation package of the EU-wide 2040 emissions reduction target.

Farm Europe notes that the revision of CBAM and the extension of its scope have direct implications for agricultural inputs, in particular fertilisers, and will therefore require a careful assessment of impacts on the competitiveness of European farmers and urgent revision of the ETS-CBAM approach for fertilisers, taking into account better the specificities of agriculture and its potential contribution and challenges in the climate agenda. 

The Presidency also wants to support the development of high-integrity frameworks for private investment in carbon removals and nature restoration. In order to bridge the biodiversity finance gap, a key focus of the Irish Presidency is to shape the debate on biodiversity credits and developing principles of ecological integrity, additionality, social safeguards and permanence to prevent greenwashing. This aspect has direct relevance for farmers given its links to carbon farming and the CRCF framework.

The Irish Presidency will work to strengthen freshwater resilience across the EU, supporting the implementation of the European Water Resilience Strategy. Key areas of focus will be advancing the three main objectives of the strategy: restoring and protecting the natural water cycle, building a water-smart economy, and security of supply.

As part of its broader approach, the Presidency will promote deeper integration of biodiversity, climate and water policies to amplify cross-sectoral benefits and strengthen EU resilience, recognising the need for sustainable and equitable management and protection of shared marine and freshwater resources.

The Presidency will also steer preparations for Council Conclusions ahead of the UN Water Conference. The conference will build on the past ten years of work on the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on Clean Water and Sanitation and will look to accelerate the delivery of tangible outcomes during the remaining years of the 2030 agenda.

Bioeconomy, Energy & Transport Policy

Within the agricultural Council, the Irish Presidency will discuss the bioeconomy strategy, reflecting its potential to support diversification, add value to primary production, and contribute to climate and environmental sustainability. The Presidency will host the Global Bioeconomy Summit in October 2026, which will provide an opportunity to showcase European progress and initiatives on a global stage and to support international partnership for a sustainable bioeconomy. The Circular Economy Act will build on the second Circular Economy Action Plan and broaden measures accelerating the EU’s transition to a circular, low-waste and climate-neutral economy.

European energy markets have in recent years repeatedly proven to be directly dependent on external forces, and European citizens have repeatedly paid the price. The Irish Presidency wants to focus first and foremost on electrification, but believes that only through the unrelenting deployment of indigenous renewable and clean energy, supported by robust grids and a common ambition to electrify, will European countries, businesses and citizens achieve true energy security. A stronger focus on agricultural-based solutions would be welcome. 

On the AccelerateEU initiative and the Electrification Action Plan, and reflecting the One Europe, One Market Roadmap, the Irish Presidency will advance the EU’s energy agenda with the aim of delivering the European Grids Package and progressing the proposal on Energy Taxation. 

Through the work of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy (TTE) Council, the Irish Presidency will prioritise progress on discussions on Clean Corporate Vehicles. Alongside the proposals relating to CO2 Emissions Standards for Cars and Vans and the revision of the Emissions Trading System for Aviation and Maritime, which will be discussed in the Environment Council. The Presidency will promote the EU position at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) with a view to the positive adoption and implementation of the IMO’s Net Zero Framework. 

Farm Europe believes that the Irish Presidency has a great opportunity to shape the future of European agriculture by restoring an ambitious common policy and overcoming the structural challenges of the initial proposal of the European Commission related to the CAP. 

Farm Europe and Eat Europe have called on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to reverse the proposed 50% reduction in the 2027 budget for the EU agricultural promotion policy, warning that the cut would undermine the competitiveness of European farmers and agri-food businesses at a time of growing global uncertainty.

In a joint letter sent to the Commission, the organisations argue that reducing the budget from €205 million to €112 million sends the wrong signal when the EU is promoting strategic autonomy and encouraging consumers around the world to “Buy European”. They stress that promotion policy is not a cost, but a strategic investment that generates value for farmers, rural communities and the wider European economy.

“European agricultural promotion delivers clear economic returns,” said Yves Madre, President of Farm Europe. “It supports farmers’ incomes, strengthens the EU’s quality schemes and geographical indications, opens new markets and contributes to Europe’s agri-food trade surplus. Cutting this budget is economically and strategically short-sighted.“

The organisations also criticise the lack of consistency in recent budget decisions, arguing that repeated changes to funding levels create uncertainty for businesses and Member States and make long-term investment and planning increasingly difficult. They note that, despite announcements of record budgets, the funding effectively available to promotion programmes has already declined in recent years.

“The EU cannot promote European products with one hand while dismantling the very policy designed to support them with the other,” said Luigi Scordamaglia, President of Eat Europe. “At a time of increasing geopolitical tensions, trade barriers and unfair competition, European producers need stronger – not weaker – support to reach consumers both inside and outside the EU.“

Farm Europe and Eat Europe are calling on the European Commission to restore the 2027 promotion budget to a level that reflects the strategic importance of the policy and ensure stable and predictable funding for promotion programmes.

The organisations conclude that if the European Union is serious about strengthening its agricultural sector and encouraging consumers to choose European products, its political ambitions must be matched by adequate financial resources and avoid taking money away with one hand and returning part of it with the other.

Farm Europe intervened today at the ComAgri Public Hearing on a new funding structure for the CAP, reflecting on the consequences for farmers and national authorities. Against this backdrop, our Secretary General, Luc Vernet, welcomed the political ambition, widely shared within the European Parliament, in favour of an autonomous, common and well-funded agricultural policy. But translating this ambition into practice is complex and requires unprecedented coordination and political will.

While on the Council side, between Coreper and the SCA, certain key parameters — notably the definition of farmer — are not consistent, the most effective way to avoid contradicting approaches is to secure the autonomy of the CAP. A first step has been taken by the European Parliament, by transferring most of the key articles into the CAP regulation. But we must go further by creating an autonomous plan — not a simple chapter — with its own rules of design, validation and its performance framework. 

Autonomous performance indicators should be preserved. Sustainable and efficient agricultural production is an objective in itself; it should be recognised as a pillar of performance and placed at the heart of the CAP as a fundamental and cross-cutting principle, in its very first article.

The “C” for “Common” risks, today, being replaced by the “C” for internal Competition. At high speed, the single market is turning into a battlefield, when agriculture should be a lever of collective sovereignty and geopolitical influence.

To avoid this, on the environmental side, a catalogue of measures is not enough: it does not avoid the risk of undermining the common rules. Rightly, Parliament calls for a clear baseline — but it must be given real, concrete legal force. 

Considerable work to simplify conditionality has been carried out over the past two years under the impetus of Commissioner Hansen and of the agricultural committee of the European Parliament. It should not be abandoned in favour of a “farm stewardship” which is not the end of conditionality, but a multi-speed conditionality. The diversity of our agricultures is not a matter of national flags: it exists everywhere, within our territories. It is no easier to reflect it at national level than at European level.

The “common” must also apply to the question of co-financing. Farm Europe regrets the absence of 100 % EU-funded measures for the environment and climate. And we also deplore the “at least 30 %” rule with no upper limit. To secure a level playing field, we call for a clear rule: 30 % co-financing, coupled to a “grandfathering” clause guaranteeing, in euros, the preservation of the current level to EU farmers.

On targeting “those who need it most” — an interesting but delicate concept — it is better to be factual rather than pointing out individual beneficiaries. Farm Europe has analysed, on the basis of paying-agency data, the impact on 5.5 million beneficiaries. Capping concerns, at most, 1 % of the CAP budget. Without even taking employment into account, it could seriously harm the viability of certain farms. As for degressivity, it would weigh above all on medium-sized farms, the backbone of our production: nearly 40 % are livestock farms, 35 % arable, and more than a quarter are in less-favoured areas. As in the previous reforms, other tools should be explored to guarantee the leverage effect of the CAP and to ensure that public money delivers tangible outcomes in terms of strategic autonomy and sustainability.

Parliament’s draft report reinstates a first pillar of non-cofinanced measures — basic support, coupled support — which are very important — and small farms — distinct from a cofinanced second pillar of rural development. What belongs to the common core of European policy must be 100 % funded by the Union.

Farm Europe asks that this logic be taken to its conclusion by extending it to climate and the environment. We propose renewed eco-schemes — “efficiency schemes” — which should fall under this first pillar: 100 % funded by the EU budget, written into a dedicated article. By placing competitiveness, production and sustainability on an equal footing, they would send the signal that economic performance and the environment do not stand in opposition.

The environment and climate are collective challenges; systematically co-financing these tools would seriously weaken the current programmes. Their funding risks falling by more than 60 %. Member States would be forced to arbitrate between optimising their co-financing, the environment, investment and risk management. Bad news for agriculture and for the credibility of the CAP.

Likewise, the €130-240 range for the DABIS is not adequate, since it does not integrate the current eco-schemes.

This same logic of common sovereignty applies to coupled support, a key tool for our livestock sector and our protein autonomy: we defend the 20 % ceiling, raised by 5 points, proposed by the Commission. It matches the ambition of preserving a capacity to produce across all territories, even where production costs are higher. The territorial dimension of the CAP should not be weakened but, on the contrary, strengthened.

Farm Europe also calls for giving every farmer, in every Member State, access to risk- and crisis-management tools. This should be the choice of farmers, rather than that of Member States. This direction is directly connected to an investment oriented CAP. 

These are a few key levers on which a balance between national flexibilities and clear European orientations would prevent the CAP from becoming an à-la-carte programme — preserving its political dimension, preserving the political role of the European Parliament in its capacity to steer a genuine project of shared agricultural sovereignty at European level, for efficient and competitive production.

At a pivotal moment for both the European Union and Ukraine, Farm Europe and the Association “Ukrainian Agribusiness Club” (UCAB) held today an internal workshop bringing together members of both organisations to discuss the role of agriculture and bioeconomy in strengthening Europe’s competitiveness, strategic autonomy and climate ambitions.

Held in the margins of the EU–Ukraine Reconstruction Summit, the workshop comes at a particularly timely moment as discussions on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union advance, and the European Union working on revising the Renewable Energy Directive and implementing a new bioeconomy strategy. Participants agreed on the importance of fostering an open dialogue to address both opportunities and concerns.

Opening the discussion, Dacian Cioloș, former Prime Minister of Romania, highlighted the need to build a shared vision for agriculture in an enlarged European Union.

During the workshop, Luc Vernet, Secretary General of Farm Europe, presented Farm Europe’s agricultural production radars and biomass flow analysis, illustrating the diversity of agricultural production across Europe and the strategic role of biomass in delivering food, feed, renewable energy, biomaterials and climate solutions, especially to lay down the conditions for a carbon neutral economy, which is to a large extent an agri-based bioeconomy.

Discussions emphasized that agriculture must be recognised as a central pillar of the European bioeconomy to achieve climate neutrality, energy security and food security objectives, as it is and should remain a central pillar of vitality of all rural regions. The European Union shall lay down the conditions for unlocking the potential of all regions, including those with lower agronomic potential and higher production costs. Unlocking the potential of bioeconomy, fostering investments in EU farms and unleashing industrial investments will be key to overcome land abandonment and to avoid increasing dependencies on future bioeconomy value chains. 

The workshop marked the first step in a broader Farm Europe–UCAB structured dialogue. Its conclusions will help shape future reflections on Ukraine’s EU negociation process and the future of a competitive and sustainable European agricultural model.

Weak Committee on public health’s outcome fails to deliver needed ambition.

Following the vote in the European Parliament’s Committee on Public Health, Eat Europe and Farm Europe strongly distance themselves from the adopted report, arguing that it falls far short of the ambition and coherence needed.

We welcomed the EU Cardiovascular Health Plan presented by Commissioner Várhelyi in December 2025 and have followed the work of the Committee in the expectation that it would strengthen the approach put forward by the European Commission. However, the final text fails to meet this objective and represents a missed opportunity.

Concerns are particularly strong on Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs), where the adopted text remains limited and fails to reflect the growing scientific and policy attention to their role in non-communicable diseases. In line with positions previously expressed in communications by Eat Europe and Farm Europe, we believe a more explicit and science-based approach to UPFs is needed to properly address dietary risk factors for cardiovascular health. 

While we acknowledge a few positive elements – such as the recognition that the main risk factor is alcohol abuse rather than consumption per se, and the emphasis on nutrition education, balanced procurement policies, and the recognition of the role of red meat within a balanced diet – we consider these insufficient to address the broader weaknesses of the report.

The text also introduces an unbalanced framing of dietary patterns, weakens ambition on energy drinks, and reopens controversial debates on front-of-pack labelling, including approaches that risk indirectly reviving wrong and misleading logic for which a few multinational corporations and member states were lobbying fiercely. Concerns remain regarding additional labelling requirements and warning labels for the wine sector, which risk creating disproportionate burdens without clear public health gains.

Overall, the adopted report reflects a lowest-common-denominator compromise that lacks strategic clarity and does not provide sufficiently effective guidance for cardiovascular disease prevention and healthy lifestyle promotion.

We will continue to work with Members of the European Parliament ahead of the plenary vote to strengthen the text and ensure a more evidence-based and courageous approach to cardiovascular health policy.

In a letter sent today to Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné ahead of the forthcoming Biotech Act II, and to the Members of the EP committee on Public Health after the publication of the Draft Report on the Biotech Act I, Eat Europe and Farm Europe welcomed the European Commission’s ambition to strengthen Europe’s biotechnology sector while urging policymakers to focus support on those applications that can deliver tangible benefits for society, the environment, and the European economy.

The two organisations express strong support for the ambition of Biotech Act II to develop in particular of bio-based value chains that can contribute to Europe’s strategic autonomy, industrial competitiveness, circular economy objectives, and the reduction of dependence on fossil resources.

The letter highlights the need for a stronger and more coherent EU strategy for bio-based industries, noting that while some Member States actively promote bio-based solutions, regulatory frameworks and market incentives remain fragmented and often place such innovations at a disadvantage compared with established alternatives.

Regarding novel food and food produced through advanced biotechnological processes, including precision fermentation and cell-based production, both in the framework of the current negotiations on the Biotech Act I and the future proposal on Biotech Act II, the organisations call for a cautious and science-based approach.

“The debate on biotechnology is increasingly driven by promises rather than demonstrated results. Europe should focus on addressing real and immediate needs, rather than being guided by biotech hype. Industrial biotechnology can already contribute to reducing our dependence on fossil-based resources and support the transition to a more sustainable economy. By contrast, many of the claims associated with novel food technologies lack robust scientific validation and do not warrant public funding or preferential regulatory treatment. Biotechnological applications in the novel food sector should therefore be subject to particularly stringent assessment standards, comparable to those applied in the pharmaceutical sector,” said Luigi Scordamaglia, President of Eat Europe.

While unfortunately and inappropriately some attempt to add “novel food and innovative food” is ongoing in the European Parliament’s discussions on Biotech Act I, Eat Europe and Farm Europe stress that existing evidence regarding the long-term health impacts and environmental performance of precision fermentation and cultivated-food technologies remains incomplete and raise serious questions. Current sustainability assessments often rely on assumptions concerning future industrial scalability, energy consumption, impact on environment and production systems that have yet to be fully demonstrated. 

For this reason, the organisations argue that public support schemes or dedicated State aid measures for such food technologies would be premature in the absence of robust, independent and transparent scientific evidence confirming their claimed benefits.

The letter also underlines the strategic importance of European agriculture in ensuring food security and resilience.

Eat Europe and Farm Europe therefore call on the European Commission to ensure that the Biotech Act II is built around clear principles of sustainability, safety, scientific evidence, and technological responsibility, while preserving Europe’s high standards for the protection of human health, the environment and consumers.

“Food security cannot be reduced to the industrial capacity to manufacture ingredients in technological facilities. Europe’s food sovereignty has been built on a productive agricultural sector rooted in rural communities across the continent. Farmers must remain at the centre of Europe’s food system. 

Europe can and should become a global leader in biotechnology. But leadership is not about chasing every technological trend. It means directing innovation where it delivers clear public value, measurable environmental benefits and greater strategic autonomy,” concluded Yves Madre, President of Farm Europe.

Farm Europe and Eat Europe express serious concerns regarding the draft third amendment to the German Animal Husbandry Labelling Act – recently notified to the European Commission – which introduces a mandatory classification system with significant implications for intra-EU and international trade.

While the objective of improving transparency for consumers is shared, the proposed framework risks becoming a technical barrier to trade by extending compliance obligations to importers of pork and processed meat products. This expansion goes beyond existing EU minimum standards, which are already among the most stringent worldwide in the field of animal welfare.

In particular, mandatory labelling requirements for imported products introduce additional operational complexity and risk undermining trade flows, without delivering meaningful added value in terms of animal welfare, which is already ensured through robust EU legislation and established control systems.

The proposed approach also risks undermining the work of millions of European livestock farmers, who already operate under very high standards of animal welfare, food safety, and environmental sustainability. The introduction of classification schemes that may automatically penalise certain production systems, regardless of actual on-farm improvements over time, could create market distortions and mislead consumers.

The sector reiterates the need for a fully harmonised EU approach, to avoid regulatory fragmentation across Member States and to ensure fair and level playing field conditions within the Single Market.

In this context, strong expectations are placed on the forthcoming EU Livestock Strategy, which should provide a coherent and forward-looking framework recognising the strategic role of European livestock farming, the importance of animal proteins in balanced diets, and the need to invest in innovation, digitalisation, and competitiveness.

Only through coordinated EU-level policies will it be possible to support productivity, strengthen rural resilience, and preserve Europe’s agricultural diversity, avoiding a structural decline with potentially significant economic, social, and environmental consequences.

Therefore, Farm Europe and Eat Europe call upon the European Commission to engage in constructive work within the framework of marketing standards in order to incentivise and better structure segmentation strategies designed to meet specific consumer expectations.

Farm Europe and Eat Europe welcome today’s vote by the European Parliament, which adopted at second reading the Council position at first reading on New Genomic Techniques (NGTs). This step is bringing this long-awaited Regulation to its final adoption. After a long way of negotiation, European farmers will finally have the tools they urgently need to strengthen the resilience, competitiveness and sustainability of the agricultural sector.

Today marks an important day for EU agriculture. NGTs are very much needed and farmers are ready to exploit their full potential. This vote declares that the European Parliament has decided to choose science over ideology. That gives farmers the certainty they have long awaited.

By confirming the compromise reached during trilogue negotiations, the European Parliament has sent a strong signal of its commitment to responsible support of the sustainability and competitiveness of EU agricultural enterprises. The Regulation provides a clear regulatory framework which is finally enabling the concrete deployment of innovation. These innovations have become essential to address the challenges posed by climate change altogether with increasing pressure from pests and diseases, water resilience, and the reduction in available crop protection products.

The agreement offers a much-needed opportunity for both farmers and consumers. It will support the path towards sustainable intensification. This is enabling European agriculture to produce more and better, while laying the foundations for a resilient and increasingly carbon-neutral economy in which agriculture is part of the solution.

While the deal is necessarily a compromise, it nevertheless represents a light at the end of the tunnel after years in which European farmers have been constrained by political choices that too often placed ideology ahead of data and science.

Farm Europe and Eat Europe now call on the Commission and the Member States to ensure the swift and effective implementation of the Regulation, so that the benefits of these innovations reach farmers and consumers on the ground without delay. The work does not end with today’s vote: clear, predictable and workable implementing rules will be essential to deliver on the promise of this framework and to keep European agriculture competitive in the global market.

Farm Europe acknowledges the Council’s adoption today of a partial general approach on the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPP) and European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) legislative files. Further work needs to be carried out and deepened in order to fully support European farmers in their transition towards more efficient, resilient and profitable food systems and to ensure that the EU delivers on its sovereignty objectives.

Following their endorsement by Coreper on 14 June, Ministers reached agreement on key elements of these proposals. This marks a major step in the negotiations on the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), locking the Council’s position on key elements while allowing work to move forward on others. Budgetary and other MFF-related elements will be addressed as part of the broader package negotiations.

Regarding the National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPP) Regulation, Farm Europe acknowledges the achieved progress while stressing that several crucial issues remain unresolved. The Council’s partial general approach maintains the CAP as a chapter within the future National and Regional Partnership Plans rather than as an autonomous policy, raising important questions about the long-term governance and visibility of the CAP. 

While the Council retained the list of CAP measures in the NRP Regulation, the current approach does not reintroduce an environmental and production measure financed entirely through the CAP budget. Any environmental measures remain subject to co-financing requirements. Farm Europe considers that such a fully CAP-funded measure is necessary to ensure the financial credibility and balanced implementation of the policy across all Member States. 

Moreover, the application of the “Do No Significant Harm” principle to the CAP remains unfit for purpose for agriculture. Instead, it should be addressed within the CAP-specific framework, in line with the principle that sectoral legislation should prevail over horizontal rules.

Furthermore, Farm Europe regrets that the Council has not yet established within the EU Crisis Facility a dedicated agricultural reinsurance instrument, despite repeated calls from Agriculture Ministers, Commissioner Hansen and numerous Members of the European Parliament. 

Finally, the transitional derogation foreseen for 2028 reflects the considerable complexity foreseen in drafting and approving the new National and Regional Partnership Plans, highlighting the inconsistency of merging various funds and related policy implementations, and the need for distinct CAP plans. Enlargement discussions also make it advisable to provide for an autonomous review of the CAP framework, independent of developments in other regulations. 

As regards the European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), Farm Europe considers that this fund should offer an essential source of additional funding, complementing the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), to support the transition towards more efficient and resilient food systems. To deliver on this objective, earmarking under the Fund must be binding, transparent, predictable and genuinely accessible to farming sectors.

The precisions introduced by the Council’s partial general approach to embrace a broader food systems perspective are welcome. While these additions represent a positive step forward, several critical elements remain absent. As acknowledged by the European Parliament Rapporteur Carlo Fidanza, the Competitiveness Fund should be a key instrument to finance large-scale projects of European interest that exceed the capacity of individual Member States. These investments are considered essential to reinforce the resilience of the EU’s agri-food system, particularly in light of increasing climate, economic, and geopolitical pressures.

Against a backdrop of growing geopolitical instability, food security must be recognised as a strategic component of Europe’s economic resilience and overall security. Farm Europe therefore calls for a dedicated allocation within the ECF to support strategic storage capacities for agricultural products and critical inputs, as well as targeted support for digital and water resilience infrastructures in the agricultural sector. Such investments are essential to safeguarding agricultural production, strengthening resilience to climate and market shocks, and preserving European rural areas’ vitality.

Farm Europe therefore looks to Ireland, in its Presidency role, to provide strong leadership and ensure progress on these key priorities, with the objective of safeguarding the CAP’s autonomy, predictability and unity, while also enhancing support and investment opportunities through the ECF.

Farm Europe and EAT Europe welcome the adoption by the European Parliament in Strasbourg of the agreement on the revision of the Common Market Organisation (CMO) regulation, following the successful interinstitutional negotiations led by rapporteur Céline Imart. This vote confirms a major step forward for both farmers and consumers. It strengthens the position of farmers in the food supply chain through enhanced contractual relations and improved possibilities for producers to organise collectively. It also establishes clearer rules regarding the use of meat-related denominations, protecting consumers from misleading practices and safeguarding the value of agricultural production.

We warmly congratulate MEP Céline Imart for her leadership and determination throughout this process, as well as all Members of the European Parliament who supported this important reform. We also acknowledge the engagement of the European Commission, notably Commissioner Hansen, and the Member States that contributed to reaching this result.

The Parliament’s endorsement sends a clear signal: words matter, transparency matters, and farmers deserve a fairer position within the food chain. Consumers must be able to make informed choices based on accurate information about the products they purchase, while producers must be protected against unfair competition and market confusion.

The agreement represents a significant achievement in line with the objectives of the “Words Matter” campaign launched by Farm Europe and EAT Europe in 2024. By recognising the need for stronger protection of meat denominations and excluding cellular and lab-grown products from using meat-related terms, Europe has taken an important step towards greater clarity and coherence in food labelling.

At the same time, the strengthening of contractual relations and producer organisation tools constitutes tangible progress in addressing the long-standing imbalance of power within the food chain. These measures should contribute to improving farmers’ bargaining power, increasing predictability, and creating fairer market conditions.

Today’s vote is not the end of the journey. Farm Europe and EAT Europe underline that work must continue in the context of the forthcoming CAP reform package, which includes a broader revision of the CMO regulation.

This next phase will provide an opportunity to further reinforce farmers’ position in the food chain, improve market resilience, restore clear rules and financial allocations for sectorial interventions, and continue efforts to ensure that consumers receive clear and transparent information. In this regard, particular attention should be given to reinforcing marketing standards, securing coherent reference thresholds (former intervention prices), with updated and differentiated figures adapted to economic and sectoral realities, as a key tool to better guide market management and intervention logic. The reform should also strengthen and upgrade the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme, ensuring greater effectiveness, better targeting food education at school, with an increased impact on healthy consumption habits. In addition, it should reflect on the establishment of comprehensive crisis prevention and management mechanisms, including the possible development of strategic stocks to respond more effectively to market disruptions and food insecurity for the most needed. This work has already been engaged by the EP rapporteur on the CMO, Mr Sargiacomo.