The Commission’s proposal to replace the ‘active farmer’ definition appears more bureaucratic
There are two parallel debates taking place in this CAP reform round under the general rubric of targeting, or who...
Assessing the Commission’s CAP proposal: presentation
I was pleased to make a presentation yesterday as part of the series of webinars organised by the European Association...
“Europe’s €1.8T budget fight just got real”
Let me make clear immediately that I have taken this headline from an article published in Politico yesterday written by...
Reflections on the future governance of the CAP
On 9 April last I took part in a workshop organised by the Policy Department for Regional Development, Agriculture and...
The likely size of the CAP budget in the next MFF – reprise
The likely size of the CAP budget in the next programming period 2028-2034 has been highly contentious since the publication...
Geographical Indications as One Health Instruments
Integrating Results-Based Environmental Payments into the EU Quality Framework By Pablo Palencia Pablo Palencia is a veterinarian and consultant with...
Institutional Reform Will Shape the Next CAP
How the new MFF architecture and the NRPP could redefine design, delivery and decisions in EU farm policy This guest...
An uncommon CAP?
The European Court of Auditors has released an Opinion on the draft CAP and CMO Regulations proposed by the Commission....
Beyond the CAP: Recognising Living Heritage for Generational Renewal
A new structural framework for rural resilience and global competitiveness in the face of the Mercosur challenge By Pablo Palencia...
Dealing with stranded assets in the green transition
The latest edition of the journal Nature Food includes an article by Anniek Kortleve and co-authors on the role that...
The rural 10% target cannot be monitored
In the autumn of last year, the European Parliament came close to rejecting the Commission’s MFF proposal as the basis...
Lessons from the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans
I am not an expert in nutrition and, if I am honest, I have been sceptical of the significance of...
Potential increase in CAP funding in next MFF
Commission President von der Leyen sent a letter to the Cypriot Presidency of the Council and to the President of...
Navigating the EU-U.S. trade relationship
2025 marked a decisive break in relations between the United States and Europe. From U.S. Vice-President Vance’s speech in February...
2025 was a record year for farm income, though not for all
As the tractors arrived in Brussels yesterday, it is important to keep a sense of perspective. European farm incomes broke...
The looming Mercosur tragedy
Weak political leadership in Europe looks likely to doom the EU-Mercosur free trade agreement in a vote among EU Member...
LULUCF targets off-course
The EEA recently published updated projections for LULUCF emissions and removals by Member State to 2030 and 2050. It is...
The role of capital in agricultural productivity growth
Discussions on the future competitiveness of European agriculture often return to the role of capital. Investment in modern equipment, digital...
Understanding the structure of EU agriculture
Agricultural structure data represent the crown jewels of agricultural policymaking. For researchers and policymakers alike, the Farm Structure Survey and...
Further reflections on CAP governance and budget
IDDRI, the Institut du développement durable et des relations internationals, has published a policy brief on the European Financial Framework...
European Parliament votes on CAP simplification and strengthening farmers’ position in the food supply chain
The European Parliament voted today to determine its position on two amending pieces of legislation proposed by the Commission that...
Strategic planning in the new CAP
The CAP Strategic Plans Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 established the governance and strategic planning framework for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)...
How big will the CAP budget be in the next MFF?
The answer to this question is of course that we cannot know for certain at this stage. Under the Commission...
Climate and environment in the Commission’s CAP proposal
There has been considerable speculation since publication of the Commission’s proposals for the MFF and for the CAP 2028-2034 in...
What impact will degressivity and capping have?
In my previous post, I calculated the size of the amounts that could be allocated to the degressive area-based income...
Commission proposal could allow significant increase in CAP basic payments in many countries
Initial reactions to the publication of the Commission’s proposals for the next CAP and their budgetary implications focused on the...
The distribution of direct payments in calendar year 2022
One of the striking proposals in the Commission’s CAP Regulation is the introduction of a much sharper degressivity in area-based...
Navigating EU fertiliser policy through turbulent times
The governance of nitrogen fertiliser markets in the European Union has long been shaped by a fundamental and persistent tension...
Import dependence for nitrogen supply
Nitrogen is a critical input to agricultural production. In the EU, approximately half of this nutrient is supplied from organic...
Fitting the CAP into the next MFF long-term budget
The Commission Communication on The road to the next multiannual financial framework published in February 2025 put forward several proposals...
Trump II tariffs and the EU agri-food sector
That the US now intends to impose additional tariffs of 25% on EU exports (along with those of other countries)...
Exemptions to the Enhanced Conditionality of the Common Agricultural Policy: Exercised, Exploited or Eschewed?
We are pleased to welcome this guest post by Pieter Zwaan. Dr. Pieter Zwaan is a Senior Research Fellow at...
Very limited impact of Mercosur Partnership Agreement on the EU beef market
The EU reached a negotiated agreement on the final texts of what is now called the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement on...
Agricultural policy reform in England and the 2024 UK budget
UK farmers are preparing to protest tomorrow November 19th outside Parliament against inheritance tax changes in the new Labour Government...
How net balances might influence Member State views on the size of the next CAP budget
In this post, I look at Member State net budget balances when it comes to CAP expenditure – which Member...
The overlooked role of exchange rates in EU agricultural competitiveness
My attention was caught by a post on X (formerly Twitter) this week from Franz Sinabell, economist at the Austrian...
What can we learn from the dismantling of GAEC 8?
Annex III of the CAP Strategic Plans Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 sets out the conditionality rules that farmers seeking CAP payments...
What does the outcome of the European Parliament elections mean for EU agrifood policy?
The confirmation of Ursula von der Leyen’s nomination as Commission President by the European Parliament today may give the appearance...
Introducing a tax on agricultural GHG emissions? The Danish case
In its first progress report on EU climate policy published in January 2024, the newly-established European Scientific Advisory Board on...
Long-term structural change in EU agriculture
The reduction in the number of farms and farmers in the EU has attracted increasing attention in this EU legislative...
