A ghost is haunting Europe. It’s agriculture, or rather, what’s left of the sector in the proposed EU budget for 2028-2034.
Against a seven-year budget that the European Commission, led by Ursula von der Leyen, envisions reaching €2 trillion, compared to the current €1.2 trillion, the share reserved for agricultural policies would be limited to €300 billion, over 20 percent less than the €380 billion envisaged by the current CAP.
These figures are far from the volume of investments proposed in the Draghi Report, presented just a few months ago and already shelved by the Commission. These figures make EU agriculture little more than a minor player, given that its share of the current budget will rise from over 32 percent to 16.5 percent in the next one.
This is a sign of a shift in priorities that is effectively penalizing the primary sector, traditionally strategic and currently already weakened by US tariffs, to support new areas of spending, with defense and the announced European rearmament plan taking center stage.
It’s no coincidence that in France, Germany, and Spain, industry organizations have already accused the Commission of wanting to make agriculture pay the costs of the Union’s renewed military vocation. The return of tractors to the streets will likely not be long in coming.
Title: 2028-2024 Budget: EU Agriculture from protagonist to participant
Translation with Google
