Food for thought? Time to act! Key take-aways from the EU Strategic Dialogue

🚜 Anger, frustration, and burning wheels in front of the EU Parliament. The successful take-over of the protest & public discussion by destructive farming lobbies and right-wing parties. We all still remember these loud (and smelly) weeks of farmers’ protests in Brussels, the Netherlands, and beyond.

But as we stood in solidarity with those peaceful protestors asking for a sustainable & fair change of the current system, the next step was truly disappointing for all of us: shortly before the EU elections, environmental rules of the current agricultural policy were rolled back. And we asked ourselves: what would we be getting into in the coming five years, the new EU term?

🌊 But now the tides seem to have turned. Yesterday, the results of the “Strategic Dialogue on the future of EU Agriculture” were published. The dialogue consisted of 29 diverse (and often opposed) organisations and discussed for 8 months behind closed doors (and without leaks!). Decisions had to be made in consensus – which make the recommendations even more impactful.

So how does the dialogue propose that we get out of this mess?

Some key take-aways from the report:

1. (Finally) change the CAP & reach social justice: we need to fundamentally change the way we spend public money of the Common Agriculture Policy. That means strongly giving money to farmers for environmental services, as well as paying income support only targeted to the farmers who need it most! (p. 42)

2. Bye bye UTP’s! Farmers need to be able to make a living from the products they produce. Unfair trading practises need to be fought against. (p. 37)

3. End unsustainable trade (offs): the EU should ensure greater coherence between its trade and sustainability policies. And the process/purpose itself of negotiating trade deals on agriculture should be reviewed & changed. (p. 47)

4. Go (more) sustainable, healthy & plant-based! Recognizing the current trend of eating more plant-based products, citizens should be supported in this journey, through a review of current food labelling/marketing to children (including sugar), reforming public procurement to favour sustainability over the lowest price, and introducing tax reductions (at the national level) on more sustainable products. (p. 54)

⛔️ Unfortunately, the dialogue could not agree to clearly point out the need to reduce livestock numbers throughout Europe. Rather, the EU Commission should develop a strategy on the role of animal farming in general. More, there is also a focus on (not-defined) tech-fixes to reduce livestock emissions, and an ask for “long-term solutions” for areas which have a high concentration of livestock and environmental pollution.

5. Fight food waste! The EU should strongly fight against food insecurity and food loss & waste. For this, there should also be a focus on local food waste prevention programmes and “food waste hotspots”. Further, an EU Commission’s appointed body including all relevant Commission services should be introduced to coordinate future work on this topic. (p. 69)

6. Bioeconomy, but right? While highlighting the role that biomass will play also in the future, the risks of the bioeconomy (for example, when producing bioenergy from food or plants, as highlighted in our report on biomethane production) are underlined. Such risks also exist for countries outside the EU that supply us with biomass. The report further mentions the necessity to respect the “waste hierarchy” (so that the best use of a resource is ensured). (p. 67)

7. Work harder for gender equality and diversity: unequal access to land, childcare, financing, services, technology, and unsecure LGBTQIA+ rights stand in the way of reaching gender equality and diversity in agriculture and also rural areas! (p. 80)

⚠️ Let’s hope that all these specific recommendations will actually lead the way for the coming years – we have never been closer to making that much needed change!

So the results of the strategic dialogue are not only food for thought. Now is the time to act and implement! 🚀