The European Commission published its communication on the Farm to Fork Strategy on May 20, 2020. Initially expected for March 2020, this strategy addressing the issue of sustainability along the food production value chain, was delayed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Among the main proposals of the Strategy are the new sustainability targets fixed by the European Commission like:
- Reducing by 50% the use of chemical pesticides by 2030
- Reducing by 20% the use of fertilisers by 2030
- Reaching 25% of the EU’s agricultural land under organic farming by 2030
Euromontana welcomes this proposal, which is more balanced than the previous leaked versions that were only focusing on a transition towards plant-based diets without recognising that sustainable livestock production exists (such as grazing livestock in mountain areas producing sustainable meat and dairy products. Other measures will be of great interest for mountain farming, such as the review of the EU promotion policy to explore ways to better promote sustainable livestock production.
Yet, the impact study on how the Farm to Fork Strategy will affect the post-2020 CAP is still unpublished, and the European Commission’ process to assess the Strategic Plans of Member States remains unclear.
More details on the proposed measures in the Farm to Fork Strategy and the detailed calendar can be found in our updated article (for members only).
27 May 2020
