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Spain and Portugal place the CAP among the main challenges of the new legislature

by AI | 24.Oct 2024 | Europe in brief AI

The ministers have also addressed the need for the EU to establish a mechanism to cover extraordinary damage to agricultural production affected by extreme weather events.

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Spain, Luis Planas, poses after an interview with Europa Press, at the Ministry of Agriculture, on September 6, 2024, in Madrid (Spain). Photo: Alberto Ortega / Europa Press

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Madrid  – The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of the Government of Spain, Luis Planas, and the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries of Portugal, José Manuel Fernandes, have agreed to prioritize the recurring drought that affects some areas of the Iberian Peninsula more intensely, as well as the issues derived from climate change and the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the new European legislature.

Planas and Fernandes held a ministerial meeting during the Portugal-Spain summit, which took place in Faro (Portugal), where they shared their concern about the drought that has occurred in recent years and affects certain areas of both countries more intensely, persisting despite the generally good start to the hydrological year.

The Spanish minister appreciated that the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, has included the development of a water agenda among the priorities for the new legislature.

Planas stressed that it is essential to apply the best and most innovative technologies to face a future with less water availability and emphasized the need to advance modern and sustainable irrigation, efficient in the use of water and energy, to maintain stable productions and guarantee food security.

The heads of the department also addressed the development of a common position in the debate on the European Strategic Dialogue and the configuration of the CAP from 2027, which must address aspects that provide solutions to the problems causing unrest among farmers and ranchers.

The Spanish minister recalled that the CAP must have a central role in community policies, according to the founding Treaty of the European Communities, because all its objectives remain relevant.

The meeting also addressed the need for the European Union to arbitrate a mechanism to cover extraordinary damages in agricultural productions, which are increasingly affected by extreme weather events that cannot be addressed with the current crisis reserve funds.

On the other hand, both ministers addressed fishing issues, agreeing on the need to defend the basic principles of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) to ensure that fishing and aquaculture activities contribute to environmental, economic, and social sustainability in the long term. (October 23)

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