Position Paper on the post-2027 Common Agricultural Policy and the future of Agriculture and Food

Agriculture is not only a society's most important and strategic sector but also the cradle of civilisation and the guarantor of food security and political stability. The ability to produce sufficient, high quality and affordable food is also central to the EU's strategic autonomy and resilience. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), established in 1962, and anchored in Article 39 of TFEU, is a cornerstone of European integration serving as a vital tool in supporting agricultural productivity, ensuring fair standards of living for farmers, and stabilising markets. Its contribution to providing affordable food for citizens across the Union and strengthening rural cohesion has never been more essential.

Today, European agriculture is confronted with a convergence of successive and overlapping crises, including mounting geopolitical and economic uncertainties, the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, the climate and biodiversity crises, inflationary pressures, and a decline in both farmers and farms. Farmers are the first victims of these multiple and mounting crises, often having to shoulder the burdens while most of them are rarely reaping the benefits. At the same time, farmers are also vital in contributing to driving the transition towards a fairer, more resilient, and sustainable farming model. Their incomes and those of agricultural workers continue to lag behind national averages. The 2024 EU-wide farmers protests were a sharp reminder that without farmers, there is neither food security nor a sustainable future.

To transform the challenges into opportunities, the next CAP must offer tailored, targeted, and simplified support, while shifting from control-based oversight to a trust-based partnership and better balancing between obligations and incentives. Yet, simplification must not result in deregulation. Support to active farmers, especially young people, women, and those in remote or disadvantaged areas, should be prioritised. Income support must remain a central feature of the policy, accompanied by capping and degressivity and a gradual shift away from the area-based payment model, while sustainability schemes and rural development tools should be equipped with greater funding and flexibility. Moreover, social conditionality and fair working conditions must be embedded across CAP instruments, recognising the dignity of all those who contribute to the EU food system.

Read the full paper below.