The European Commission is proposing to allow EU farmers to benefit from derogations for the year 2024 from Common Agricultural Policy rules that oblige them to keep certain areas unproductive. The Commission’s proposal, sent today to the Member States, provides a first concrete policy response to address farmers’ income concerns. It also follows requests made by several Member States at the Agriculture Council meetings.

The President of the Commission notes that “Farmers are the backbone of EU food security and the heart of our rural areas. The Commission’s ongoing commitment is delivered through the Common Agricultural Policy budget of €386.7 billion, which helps stabilize the income of European farmers while rewarding their climate and sustainability efforts. Today’s measure offers additional flexibility to farmers at a time when they are facing multiple challenges. We will continue to work with our farmers to ensure that the CAP strikes the right balance between responding to their needs while continuing to provide public goods for our citizens.”

To receive the CAP support they are entitled to, farmers must respect an enhanced set of nine standards beneficial to the environment and the climate. This principle of conditions applies to almost 90% of the used agricultural area in the EU and plays an important role in the integration of sustainable farming practices. This set of basic standards is referred to as GAEC, which stands for ‘good agricultural and environmental conditions’.

The template GAEC 8 requires, among other things, the devoting a minimal share of arable land to unproductive areas or features. The latter usually refers to fallow land, but also to features such as hedges or trees. Farms with less than ten hectares of arable land are usually exempt from this obligation. Today, the Commission allows all EU farmers to opt out of this requirement and still be eligible for basic direct CAP support.

What does the Commission’s proposal provide?

Instead of keeping land fallow or unproductive on 4% of their arable land, EU farmers growing nitrogen-fixing crops (such as lentils, peas or fava beans) and/or minor crops on 7% of their arable land they will be considered to meet the requirement. Side crops are plants that grow between two main crops. These crops can serve as fodder for animals or as green manure. The use of nitrogen-fixing crops and cover crops provides a number of environmental benefits for soil health, including soil biodiversity. Crops must be grown without plant protection products to maintain the environmental ambition of the CAP.

The Commission’s proposal is carefully calibrated to strike the right balance between providing adequate relief to farmers facing numerous crises, on the one hand, and protection of biodiversity and soil quality, on the other hand, the Commission points out.