Debašu stenogramma

Otrdiena, 2016. gada 13. decembris - Strasbūra

17. KLP instrumenti cenu svārstīguma mazināšanai lauksaimniecības tirgos (debates)

  Der Präsident. – Als nächster Punkt der Tagesordnung folgt die Aussprache über den Bericht über GAP-Instrumente zur Verringerung der Preisschwankungen auf den Agrarmärkten von Angélique Delahaye im Namen des Ausschusses für Landwirtschaft und ländliche Entwicklung (2016/2034(INI)) (A8-0339/2016).

  Angélique Delahaye, rapporteure. – Monsieur le Président, Monsieur le Commissaire, chers collègues, je tiens tout d’abord à remercier les rapporteurs fictifs, leur bureau, les conseillers politiques et, bien sûr, le secrétariat, pour leur travail et la préparation en plénière de ce vote.

Il s’agit de mon premier rapport en tant que parlementaire européen et c’est un honneur pour moi d’avoir été rapporteure sur ce texte tant attendu par les agriculteurs européens. Face à la violence de la crise et à la désespérance du monde agricole, il était en effet urgent de se saisir de la question de la volatilité. Les représentants élus des peuples européens ne peuvent pas rester silencieux quand l’agriculture se meurt.

L’ambition de mon mandat de député européen a été de porter d’abord des solutions aux agriculteurs européens. Nous le savons, chez les agriculteurs, l’Europe est vue plus comme une source de problèmes que comme une solution. C’est fort logiquement qu’il nous revient, en tant que députés, d’apporter des réponses.

Demain, ce sera l’occasion, pour ce Parlement, de montrer aux agriculteurs européens que l’Europe est utile pour eux et que les députés européens sont conscients de leur situation. Non, nous ne sommes pas hors sol. Non, nous ne sommes pas déconnectés des réalités. Non, nous n’acceptons pas passivement le déclin de l’agriculture européenne. Au contraire, nous sommes en relation continue avec le monde agricole, auquel j’appartiens, comme d’autres députés ici. Nous sommes conscients de la catastrophe qui nous menace. Oui, nous sommes conscients des suicides des agriculteurs au quotidien. Oui, nous connaissons la désespérance des agriculteurs. Oui, nous sommes indignés que les personnes travaillant à nourrir leurs concitoyens meurent dans l’indifférence générale.

Je ne suis pas venue au Parlement pour me croiser les bras et assister, impuissante, à la mort de notre agriculture. Ce n’est pas ma conception de la politique. Je suis ici pour me battre, me battre pour l’agriculture, car, oui, chers collègues, il s’agit d’un véritable combat à mener. C’est dans cet esprit que je vous propose le vote de mon rapport sur les outils de la PAC pour lutter contre la volatilité des prix. Mon objectif est simple: amener la Commission à nous faire des propositions pour lutter contre la volatilité des prix.

Les grands axes de mon rapport sont les suivants: le renforcement de la contractualisation entre les différents acteurs de la chaîne alimentaire, l’orientation de la PAC vers des outils de gestion de risque, la création d’observatoires de prix et le renforcement de ceux existant pour rendre les marchés plus transparents et, enfin, l’amélioration des outils de gestion de crise pour pouvoir répondre plus rapidement et plus efficacement aux situations d’urgence vécues par les agriculteurs. Ces orientations ont été largement soutenues par mes collègues députés à la commission agriculture. Je tiens ici, une fois de plus, à remercier les rapporteurs fictifs pour l’esprit de conciliation et de respect dans lequel nous sommes arrivés à ces compromis.

À cet instant, l’adoption de ce rapport coïncide avec un alignement des planètes. En effet, le rapport de la task force remis à la Commission européenne sur les marchés agricoles, publié le 14 novembre dernier, arrive aux mêmes conclusions que les nôtres. Le rapport sur la volatilité des prix adopté au Comité des régions, la semaine dernière, fait les mêmes propositions. C’est l’occasion pour porter haut et fort la voix du Parlement.

C’est, encore une fois, un immense honneur pour moi, agricultrice, d’avoir été rapporteure d’un sujet si important dans un moment comme celui-ci. À la lecture des deux rapports, je suis amenée à vous proposer les deux amendements de plénière suivants, pour lesquels je compte sur votre soutien. Le premier sur la mise en place d’un cadre législatif pour lutter contre les pratiques commerciales déloyales, le second sur la prévalence de la PAC sur le droit de la concurrence européen, l’un et l’autre étant sources de volatilité des prix. Ils ont donc toute leur place dans ce rapport.

Enfin, la semaine dernière, le président Juncker et vous-même, Monsieur le Commissaire, avez annoncé l’adoption, avant la fin de l’année 2017, d’une communication sur l’avenir de la politique agricole commune. Nous ne pouvons que nous réjouir de voir la Commission enfin se mettre au travail sur cette question. Je formule le souhait, peut-être ambitieux, mais pas irréaliste, que ce rapport puisse servir de base de réflexion pour les propositions à venir de la Commission, en vue de la prochaine politique à l’horizon 2020. Je suis heureuse et fière de prendre part à ce chantier européen de premier plan.

Je compte donc sur vous, chers collègues, pour soutenir mon rapport, demain, afin qu’il pèse sur les propositions à venir de la Commission. La partie la plus importante du travail est devant nous, le plus dur reste à faire.

PRÉSIDENCE DE MME Sylvie GUILLAUME
Vice-présidente

  Phil Hogan, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, I wish first of all to thank Ms Delahaye and the shadow rapporteurs for all the work that they have done in producing this report, as well as Mr Ali for the opinion provided on behalf of the Committee on Budgets. I would like to congratulate you, Ms Delahaye, on achieving your first parliamentary report.

This report comes at a very good time, when the Commission is preparing a communication for adoption next year on the modernisation and simplification of the CAP, as announced by President Juncker at the Agricultural Outlook conference last week. I have identified three principles which I believe should guide the new CAP: market resilience, more sustainable agricultural production and progress on generational renewal. The issues that are raised in this report go to the heart of the debate about the future of the CAP by asking how best to deal with risks and crises in agriculture and reflecting on the whole range of public policy instruments that are currently available. I want to assure Ms Delahaye that we will fight together for farmers’ livelihoods and that we are on the same political page in this regard.

I fully agree with the central thesis of this report that we need to maintain sustainable agricultural production in Europe, and for this we need to seek efficient ways to ensure farmers can cope with risks and crises. We all know that risks and crises are inherent in agricultural production, and farmers have consistently demonstrated resilience in the face of adversity. Despite this resilience in the market orientation of the CAP, there continues to be clear justification for a formal public intervention, either at the level of the Member States or of the European Union, in order to support our farmers. Several interventions by farmers and stakeholders at last week’s European Union Agricultural Outlook conference demonstrated the importance of this message.

The report quite rightly acknowledges that the CAP has evolved over time and in line with the needs of European farmers and society, and in response to the challenges of the day. However, during the past two years we have experienced particular difficulties in the dairy, pig—meat and fruit and vegetable sectors in particular. Thankfully, we are now seeing a recovery in those markets, not least as a consequence of the robust actions that have been taken by the European Commission. In response to the crisis in various sectors, we have deployed virtually the full toolkit that is available under the Common Market Organisation and mobilised in excess of EUR 1.5 billion extra resources. If we take the example of the mill sector, as many as 24 regulations have been adopted between September 2014 and September 2016. These measures adopted included the opening, extension and enhancement of private storage aid schemes, the extension of public intervention periods and fixed price ceilings, the granting of targeted aid for our livestock farmers, the authorisation of collective agreements on the planning of milk production, and even the introduction of a milk production reduction scheme. We will also remember that we managed to find synergies between the migration and agricultural policies to make sure that milk is distributed to school children in Syria.

There are also other instruments available to help market actors to become more resilient and sustainable by their own means. I am referring here to the significant progress in market transparency that has been made over the past two years, with dashboards being developed for the main agricultural products, and observatories being established for milk, pigmeat, beef and veal to give market signals to our farmers and our agribusinesses.

Building on the work of the Milk Market Observatory, these have been a good success in terms of providing accurate and timely information to all of our operators so that they can make market-led and good decisions. The experience has also raised some questions, of course, about the effectiveness of the toolkit available. Our responsibility as policymakers is to create an adequate framework to help the farming sector to successfully deal with risks and crises by enhancing its resilience.

In my view, there are a number of questions we need to ask ourselves: do the existing tools allow us to act where needed, and to do so quickly enough? Should farmers have greater built-in measures to help them in times of crisis on the basis of a risk management approach? And do producers and processors have the ability to diversify their markets, or to find new markets in times of market loss? These are questions, perhaps, that indicate to us the existing tools are not perfect. So we have to continually look at the variety of instruments at our disposal in order to try and improve them. One of those ways is through the provision of a basic income support in order to help farmers within an effective safety net. This will continue as an essential element of any new CAP through a system of direct payments, something which Ms Delahaye’s report calls for.

You will by now be familiar with report of the Agri-Market Taskforce whose recommendations have been well received. Several of these recommendations, for instance those on market transparency, the improved functioning of producer organisations, as well as risk management, go hand in hand with the concerns that have been expressed in this report. I welcome and look forward to the hearing which the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development will hold next month on the Agri-Market Taskforce report. The recommendations contained in Ms Delahaye’s report will form part of the debate on the future of the CAP, particularly in relation to the adequacy of the existing risk and crisis management tools. In addressing the adequacy and use of these tools, we should consider any obstacles which prevent or discourage their use.

This report, then, is a valuable contribution to the debate and I acknowledge the emphasis which the report places on the importance of a common policy. In this context of preparing a new CAP which aims to modernise and simplify the policy, I can assure the House that my services will examine this report very carefully and ensure that appropriate account is taken of it and its recommendations.

  Nedzhmi Ali, rapporteur for the opinion of the Committee on Budgets. – Madam President, Commissioner Hogan, dear colleagues, the volatile prices in the agricultural market can have a strong negative impact on the food security of consumers, incomes of farmers and the well-being of entire countries. This volatility can be caused by a combination of the economic and natural factors and can be intensified by the broad political and legislative environment and speculation on agricultural products.

In order to overcome the negative consequences of the price volatility in this important sector of the economy, some measures could be introduced as follows: firstly, rural development programmes should be used more broadly to contribute towards insurance, mutual funds and income stabilisation schemes for farmers. Secondly, improving synergies between the CAP and other EU policies, in particular regarding energy, water supply, land use, biodiversity and ecosystems, as well as development of remote and mountainous areas.

Thirdly, the creation of a system to protect the farmers’ incomes through the use of risk management tools. And last but not least, better monitoring the significant price volatility of agricultural products by improving the European food price monitoring tools and using the information to make an adequate and timely response.

  Herbert Dorfmann, im Namen der PPE-Fraktion. – Frau Präsidentin! In der Tat ist Volatilität der Preise eines der ganz zentralen Probleme, die Bauern haben, und je mehr wir Marktinstrumente aus der GAP herausnehmen, wie zum Beispiel Quoten, umso größer wird logisch auch die Gefahr für Volatilität. Das haben wir auch in den letzten Monaten und Jahren ganz deutlich erlebt. Wenn man in die Zukunft schaut, ist es relativ leicht absehbar, dass auf den Märkten die Volatilität nicht abnehmen, sondern zunehmen wird.

Deswegen gebe ich Ihnen, Herr Kommissar, völlig Recht, dass wir Instrumente brauchen, um diese Volatilität zu bekämpfen. Ein Instrument – Sie haben es auch angesprochen – könnten Versicherungen sein und Fonds auf Gegenseitigkeit. Und da haben wir in der Tat heute in der Gemeinsamen Agrarpolitik schon Instrumente in der zweiten Säule der Gemeinsamen Agrarpolitik. Ich komme aus einem Land und einer Region, wo es wahrscheinlich die höchste Dichte an Versicherungsverträgen in der gesamten Europäischen Union gibt. Wenn ich mir die Komplexität ansehe, die Schwierigkeit der Regeln, die wir geschaffen haben, die Bürokratie, die wir geschaffen haben, da wird mir zum Teil regelrecht schlecht. Wir geben Hunderte von Millionen pro Jahr aus, um Versicherungsverträge zu unterstützen, und ernten gleichzeitig sehr oft eine Nichtakzeptanz der Bauern. Ich gebe Ihnen, Herrn Kommissar, völlig Recht: Wir müssen uns die Instrumente, die wir haben, anschauen und schauen, wo sie verbessert werden können, wo sie entbürokratisiert werden können und wo sie leichter zugänglich gemacht werden können.

  Nicola Caputo, a nome del gruppo S&D. – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, grazie Commissario per la disponibilità e grazie anche all'onorevole Delahaye per la disponibilità al confronto che abbiamo avuto in queste settimane di lavoro.

La volatilità dei prezzi dei prodotti agricoli è una delle cause principali della drammatica situazione in cui versa l'agricoltura europea e le previsioni non sono rassicuranti. La globalizzazione, l'instabilità e la sofisticazione dei mercati agricoli, la crescente variabilità dell'offerta per effetto dell'instabilità climatica, l'aumento dei rischi sanitari e il fragile equilibrio della filiera alimentare continueranno a incidere negativamente sull'esposizione degli agricoltori alla volatilità dei prezzi.

È necessario adottare una politica più incisiva, con strumenti mirati volti a garantire una produzione agricola sostenibile, accompagnata da prezzi equi e remunerativi in grado di attenuare gli effetti negativi sugli agricoltori dell'esposizione alla volatilità dei prezzi. È utile evidenziare che, mentre l'Unione europea riduce il sostegno strategico all'agricoltura, i suoi concorrenti sul mercato mondiale, gli Stati Uniti, il Brasile, la Cina, introducono sostegni finanziari pubblici significativi e crescenti per sviluppare nuovi modelli di politica sui rischi e per fornire strumenti in grado di proteggere i loro agricoltori dagli effetti negativi della volatilità dei prezzi.

Se vogliamo tutelare la nostra agricoltura dobbiamo modificare l'approccio tradizionale. Il potere negoziale dei produttori va rafforzato nella filiera alimentare mediante contratti scritti standard, trasparenti, equilibrati e negoziati collettivamente, allo scopo di contrastare le pratiche commerciali sleali, promuovere la competitività e assicurare la stabilità dei redditi.

Per tutelare le imprese agricole in una PAC orientata al mercato è necessario sviluppare ulteriormente gli strumenti di gestione del rischio climatico, sanitario ed economico, gli strumenti di stabilizzazione del reddito, i meccanismi di accantonamento individuale, i fondi di mutualità e gli strumenti di stabilizzazione del reddito. Bisogna fare di più anche in termini di sensibilizzazione e formazione, relativamente agli strumenti esistenti di gestione del rischio.

Invito la Commissione ad adottare, in stretta cooperazione con le autorità nazionali e le associazioni di agricoltori, un piano di sensibilizzazione degli strumenti di gestione del rischio disponibili, nel quadro del secondo pilastro della PAC. Gli aiuti anticiclici costituiscono una vera novità della proposta di risoluzione che discutiamo, essi intervengono a sostegno del reddito degli agricoltori quando annate sfavorevoli comprimono il loro reddito e costituiscono uno strumento chiave e innovativo per la policy europea che, spero, la Commissione europea possa valutare adeguatamente, prevedendo maggiore flessibilità nei bilanci annuali o meccanismi finanziari in grado di consentire all'agricoltore europeo di ricevere la differenza tra un prezzo obiettivo ed il prezzo effettivamente ricevuto dal mercato.

Anche l'accesso al credito per gli agricoltori va agevolato, si deve favorire un maggiore ricorso agli strumenti finanziari, eventualmente con l'intervento della BEI, che potrebbe partecipare alla messa a punto di un meccanismo di garanzia dei crediti per gli agricoltori europei. Gli agricoltori europei non possono più aspettare, né continuare a pagare lo scotto di periodi prolungati di prezzi bassi. È giunto il momento di difendere gli agricoltori europei dalla volatilità dei prezzi, rafforzando il loro ruolo nella filiera alimentare al fine di garantire che ricevano il giusto compenso per i loro prodotti.

  Julie Girling, on behalf of the ECR Group. – Madam President, I would like to thank the Commissioner for being with us. I have been in this Parliament since 2009. Not so long, compared to some of you, but it seems longer sometimes and I cannot remember any point during this time when we have not been talking about at least one sector of agriculture being in crisis. Price volatility has a big impact on agriculture, and it can lend itself to exacerbating these crises. As an industry, it is very difficult to take collective action to hedge or insure against the effects of volatility. The agricultural industry is made up of a myriad of players. Unlike many other strategic industries, it does not have the structure to act together.

Traditionally, the CAP has attempted to deal with this problem by market intervention measures and, as CAP has been reformed, more emphasis and more budget has been given to direct payments to support farmers’ decoupled incomes, in some way trying to use that as a mechanism for riding volatility. But has this worked? I suggest not, as we have these continuing crises. This report lays out a number of tools that can be used, but frankly, I do not see that any of them are new. Price intervention – not new; crisis reserve – not new; risk management tools and mutual funds in pillar 2 – that is not new, and the encouragement of producer organisations is not new either. That is not because we are all very dull people who cannot think of new things; it is because we really have tried most of the options available to us. These already exist. The report calls on further development of these tools and this is welcome, but what else can we do? There is no level playing field as Member States have huge flexibility in how they apply pillar 2 support, but I do not think we should take that flexibility away. They also have huge differences in how much pillar 2 support they actually get.

In order to redress these imbalances, the answer is not necessarily more money as suggested in a number of places in this report, but perhaps a complete review and reallocation of the CAP funding based on today’s data and designed to tackle today’s problems, including price volatility. If we continue to work on a historic basis, we will be doing European agriculture a disservice, giving no incentive to move forward. My group believes that the best way to help farmers ride the rollercoaster of price volatility is to increase their efficiency and encourage their profitability.

  Ivan Jakovčić, u ime kluba ALDE. – Gospođo predsjednice, prije 30 godina, za vrijeme studija, učili su nas da su upravo poljoprivredni proizvodi podložni daleko najvećoj nestabilnosti. Mogu razumjeti da je to bilo prije 30, 40, 50, 100 godina, ali ipak ne mogu razumjeti kako i dan danas još uvijek moramo o tome govoriti. Danas kada imamo sva saznanja, kad imamo sve moguće mehanizme na raspolaganju, mi i danas opet pričamo o istoj temi koju smo svi zajedno učili prije 30 godina, barem oni koji se bave ekonomijom ili poljoprivredom.

Dakle, ono što Vam želim reći, gospodine povjereniče, je činjenica da mi moramo za našu poljoprivredu učiniti još više, učiniti još puno, puno više. I nemojmo zaboraviti da su zemlje kao što su Sjedinjene Američke Države, kao što su Kina ili Brazil odlučile ozbiljno ulagati u poljoprivredu. S izborom gospodina Trumpa koji se želi posvetiti prvenstveno svojoj državi, barem tako kaže, može se očekivati da će politika SAD-a biti još više usmjerena k podršci industrije i poljoprivrede u Americi. Prema tome, imat ćemo i te kako o čemu raspravljati narednih godina, ako svojski ne podržimo našu poljoprivredu.

Ali tu nije samo pitanje nas unutar Europske unije, odnosno nas na nivou Europske unije, nego želim govoriti o zemljama članicama, ali želim govoriti i o regionalnim i lokalnim vlastima, o svim mehanizmima koju su nam na raspolaganju jer nisu nam na raspolaganju samo mehanizmi kojima Vi upravljate, gospodine povjereniče, ili Europska komisija. Na raspolaganju nam je mnogo mehanizama i mnogo alata. I zato želim govoriti o problemima s kojima se suočavamo u ovom trenutku kada govorimo o potrebi zaštite naše poljoprivrede i pogotovo kada govorimo o onome što je upravo sada ponuđeno od strane gospođe izvjestiteljice, a to je novi amandman koji želi jasno govoriti o nepoštenim trgovačkim praksama. Od polja do trgovine imamo previše nepoštenja prema našim poljoprivrednicima i zato Vas pozivam da zaista učinite sve da naša poljoprivreda dobije odgovarajuću zaštitu.

  Luke Ming Flanagan, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group. – Madam President, the fundamental reason for the volatility in agricultural markets is the globalisation of our food supply, and allowing speculation on world commodity markets to dictate prices to the detriment of the primary producer. Using financial instruments in CAP for managing price risks, rather than reducing and addressing the causes of price volatility, ignores the reality. The financialisation of our food supply, where you have highly organised financial institutions with access to information exerting control over fragmented producers, the level of support they get and therefore food supply, is another step along the road of locking farmers into a treadmill of debt and below—cost production. It is the normalisation of a form of slavery for the farmers.

Farmers themselves have to realise that the best long-term solution to price volatility would be product diversification, and for them to focus on what the market required and not to buy into the spin of the vested interests and to engage in a race to the bottom for the benefits of multinationals. Trade agreements such as CETA, TTIP and Mercosur further increase problems by exposing farmers on both sides of the Atlantic to increased pressures that they simply cannot bear. When we hear of the positives, we hear about positives for the agri-food industry. This does not necessarily mean positives for the farmer. Whether these trade agreements will bring difficulties in a financial sense or in a mental health sense because of extra competition, it is not going to be worth it. On basic income we need that, not just in farming but in a lot of different sectors. Mechanisation will make sure of that.

  Bronis Ropė, Verts/ALE frakcijos vardu. – Klimato kaita, globalizacija, rinkų nestabilumas, nesąžininga verslo praktika – tai tik kelios kainų svyravimų priežastys, su kuriomis susidursime ir ateityje. Esant šioms sąlygoms, mes privalome siekti, kad mažiausi, ypač šeimos, ūkiai išliktų, nes jie užtikrina darbo vietų kūrimą nutolusiuose regionuose, palaiko kaimo gyvybingumą.

Kaip žinia, tiesioginės išmokos yra prognozuojama ir fiksuota ūkio pajamų dalis, kuri ypač svarbi krizių metu. Tiesioginės išmokos leidžia ūkininkui planuoti šią pajamų dalį, ūkininkas tiksliai žino, kada ir kiek, kokių išmokų gaus, tačiau dabar esantys tiesioginių išmokų netolygumai iškreipia rinką. Apgailestauju, kad pranešime nebuvo atsižvelgta į esminę Biudžeto komiteto pastabą, jog, siekiant užtikrinti vienodas konkurencijos sąlygas bendrojoje rinkoje ir tvarų žemės ūkio išteklių naudojimą Europos Sąjungos mastu, būtina suvienodinti tiesiogines išmokas tarp valstybių narių. Gamybos kaštai visoje Europoje yra panašūs. Tai ar ne laikas parodyti, kad Europos Sąjunga yra solidari ir vienodai vertina kiekvieno savo ūkininko darbą, nesvarbu kur jis dirbtų?

Kitas svarbus pasiūlymas – ūkininkų švietimas. Vengiant krizių, svarbu ūkininkus šviesti, kaip išvengti, sumažinti krizių poveikį, kaip tinkamai pasirinkti priemones ir neeikvoti resursų, o užtikrinti darnų ūkininkavimą.

  John Stuart Agnew, on behalf of the EFDD Group. – Madam President, volatility is a fact of life in farming and we have seen this work to positive effect quite recently. The sugar beet price is going up; all the surplus beet that farmers produce in the UK this season will be paid for at the full price. Next year there is going to be a higher price. For milk, the price is going up. It does work that way around.

In October farmers sowed a wheat crop. In that month they had the opportunity to sell that crop for GBP 130 a tonne for the following November, 13 months later. They had that opportunity because of a futures market. They could also, by using a futures market, have bought an option to have sold their crop for GBP 130 per tonne; that would cost them GBP 7 per tonne. In other words, they were guaranteed a rock bottom price of GBP 123 per tonne. If the price was higher than that they could take it. But futures depend on speculation: one-third speculators, one-third producers, and one-third users of the commodity; it has to be in that ratio. But the EU, through its MiFID legislation, is trying to get rid of the speculators. It is trying to de-speculate. If you de-speculate the futures market then you do not have a futures market and so the farmers cannot benefit.

Things sort themselves out. The potato futures market collapsed 20 or 30 years ago because it was over-speculated; this can happen. Of course we have another tool and the Commissioner did mention it: the annual farm payment, whatever you like to call it. In poor years, well, this is your prop – what you lean on. In good years, it is a chance to re-invest in your business. So the combination of futures markets and the single farm payment should keep most farmers going along pretty nicely. Remember, farmers are businessmen, they are in there to take risks and make a good profit. They are not the employees of the state working on nationalised land.

  Angelo Ciocca, a nome del gruppo ENF. – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, il mestiere dell'agricoltore è un mestiere fatto di passione, fatiche, sacrifici e maestria e questi palazzi, purtroppo, non hanno ancora imparato a rispettare questo mestiere. Il rispetto dell'attività agricola non può e non deve essere uno slogan elettorale, ma deve concretizzarsi dentro gli atti di questi palazzi europei, deve concretizzarsi dentro la PAC, deve concretizzarsi nelle regole sul mercato interno.

Nel nome, purtroppo, del libero mercato avete disintegrato la nostra agricoltura. A non governare le importazioni, anzi le invasioni di prodotto a basso costo e a bassa qualità, si calpestano gli sforzi dei nostri agricoltori, sforzi di eroi agricoltori che custodiscono l'ambiente, seminano il prodotto, lo irrigano, lo curano, lo raccolgono, lo stoccano e provano a commercializzarlo. Pensate che poi alla fine devono fare i conti – è assurdo, se pensiamo che proprio quest'anno coltivare un ettaro di riso vuol dire ricavare quattro quintali di riso, vuol dire ricavare duecento euro e averne spesi centonovanta, vuol dire avere un margine presunto, potenziale di due euro, due euro e cinquanta, tre euro al quintale.

Riflettiamo, riflettiamo colleghi, e soprattutto agiamo prima che sia troppo tardi.

  Daniel Buda (PPE). – Doamnă președintă, fermierii din întreaga Uniune Europeană deplâng faptul că veniturile lor sunt în scădere, iar suprafețele exploatate cunosc o diminuare accentuată. În tot acest timp, costurile de producție au crescut considerabil, determinând creșterea prețurilor, cu un impact greu de suportat atât pentru producătorii agricoli, cât și pentru consumatori. În aceste condiții, volatilitatea prețurilor se manifestă extrem de sever în sectorul agricol, care este vulnerabil în fața fluctuațiilor de pe piețele interne și externe, a tendințelor de consum la nivel global, dar și a schimbărilor climatice. Producătorii agricoli gestionează cu greu aceste efecte, iar autoritățile publice naționale, din păcate, nu fac uz de instrumente eficiente în vederea reglării dezechilibrelor de pe piețe.

Apreciem, astfel, că se impune consolidarea procesului de înființare și dezvoltare a organizațiilor de producători și a asociațiilor în sectoarele agricole, în vederea creării propriilor capacități de producție, de procesare, de depozitare, dar și de desfacere. Trebuie crescută, de asemenea, puterea de negociere la stabilirea contractelor pe termen mediu și lung, dar și facilitarea aprovizionării supermarketurilor din ceea ce numim lanțul scurt de aprovizionare. La nivelul Uniunii Europene, este importantă înființarea unei unități de prognoză, care să previzioneze producția pe sectoare și capacitățile de absorbție a pieței, astfel încât fermierii să își poată corela în mod eficient cererea cu oferta. Dezvoltarea fondurilor mutuale în agricultură și a instrumentelor de asigurare a producției constituie un sprijin real pentru fermieri în vederea prevenirii volatilității prețurilor, dar și a combaterii pagubelor în acest sector.

  Paolo De Castro (S&D). – Signora Presidente, Commissario, onorevoli colleghi, il crollo dei prezzi di molti prodotti agricoli, accompagnato dall'estrema volatilità che negli ultimi anni determina oscillazioni sempre più ampie, imprevedibili e purtroppo, spesso, al ribasso dei prezzi stessi, sta ponendo seri rischi alla sostenibilità di un settore vitale per l'economia europea quale il settore agroalimentare.

Se infatti la volatilità dei prezzi è un fenomeno che ha sempre caratterizzato i mercati agricoli, le attuali dimensioni, e ancor di più quelle che si potranno raggiungere in prospettiva, richiedono uno sforzo comune al fine di garantire una produzione agricola in grado di rispondere alla sfida globale della sicurezza alimentare, assicurando allo stesso tempo redditi stabili e adeguati ai nostri agricoltori.

Le misure previste dalla scorsa riforma della politica agricola comune per contrastare la variabilità dei mercati si sono infatti rivelate insufficienti, come dimostrato dalla crisi che ha colpito il settore lattiero-caseario. Tra l'altro, l'introduzione di un complesso impianto di adempimenti burocratici ha di fatto mortificato il potenziale che questi strumenti avrebbero potuto avere nel tutelare le imprese agricole europee dai rischi di mercato.

Il fatto che l'Income Stabilization Tool, considerato uno degli strumenti più innovativi introdotti dalla scorsa riforma, sia stato applicato solo in tre paesi dell'Unione conferma la necessità di intervenire al più presto, al fine di rendere le attuali misure più semplici, più efficaci, più efficienti, oltre che maggiormente fruibili da tutti gli Stati membri.

Voglio quindi ringraziare la relatrice Angélique Delahaye per il testo che ci apprestiamo a votare, testo che rappresenta un'ottima base di partenza, offrendo importanti spunti non solo a breve termine, con interventi che potranno essere inclusi già nell'ambito del pacchetto omnibus, ma anche a lungo termine, aprendo una riflessione più articolata sull'utilizzo di aiuti anticiclici a difesa dei redditi degli agricoltori, in un'ottica di complementarietà tra iniziative volte alla gestione da un lato dei rischi e dall'altro delle crisi di mercato.

  Jan Huitema (ALDE). – Ons landbouwbeleid is meer en meer marktgericht. Boeren willen hun eigen broek kunnen ophouden. Geef ze daarvoor dan ook de mogelijkheden. Hardwerkende agrarische ondernemers moeten handvaten krijgen voor een eerlijke marktwerking langs de gehele keten. Daarom is het zo ontzettend belangrijk dat de wetgever duidelijkheid geeft over de bestaande mogelijkheden voor boeren en tuinders om zich te kunnen organiseren. Zo kunnen ze gezamenlijk een vuist maken in de keten.

Anders dan grote bedrijven hebben individuele boeren en tuinders namelijk geen leger van juristen om tussen de ingewikkelde regels door te zien waar mogelijkheden liggen. Daarnaast zouden boeren en tuinders meer mogelijkheden moeten hebben om bedrijfsrisico's zoals lage prijzen of slechte weersomstandigheden te kunnen afdekken. De volgende stap is dan wel dat lidstaten ervoor zorgen dat deze risico-instrumenten goed werken en dat boeren en tuinders er daadwerkelijk gebruik van kunnen maken.

Daartoe heb ik ook amendementen ingediend. Simpele, duidelijke en heldere regels zorgen ervoor dat de markt een eerlijke uitkomst biedt voor iedereen. Daar moeten we met z'n allen naar blijven streven.

  Matt Carthy (GUE/NGL). – Madam President, less than a month ago we saw the publication of the Agricultural Markets Task Force report on enhancing the position of farmers in the supply chain. That report correctly cited farmers as the main shock—absorbers in volatile markets. Now before Parliament we have a report that denies exactly that.

The control by corporate market forces over agricultural prices is the main source of volatility, yet this report would see the problem being the solution: mutual funds, private insurance schemes and increased competitiveness on third markets are all cited as tools to stabilise farming incomes and reduce farm debt. Farmers, who are price takers and not price makers, stand to be swallowed up by a system that pushes private institutions to deal with the agricultural crisis. I believe that if we support this report we will be doing a huge disservice to our farmers and to the communities that depend on them.

  Maria Heubuch (Verts/ALE). – Frau Präsidentin! Mit gewissen Preisschwankungen haben wir auf den Höfen immer schon leben können, wenn wir im Schnitt der Jahre Gewinne machen. Aber jetzt haben wir es mit volatilen Märkten zu tun, die wir so nicht mehr akzeptieren dürfen. Wir müssen jetzt über die Ursachen reden. Klimawandel und damit verbundene Ernteschwankungen wurden schon angesprochen – also widerstandsfähige Anbaumethoden.

Aber wir müssen auch über die Arbeitsweise unserer Märkte reden. Wir müssen darüber reden, wie wir Angebot und Nachfrage in Einklang bringen können. Ich bin davon überzeugt, dass unsere aggressive Exportstrategie hier sehr viel Schaden anrichtet. Unzuverlässige Drittmärkte sind Teil des Problems. Lebensmittelspekulation spielt da hinein. 2009, 2010 wurden die Lebensmittel vom Markt genommen, um sie dann nach der Preissteigerung mit dem großen Geschäft wieder am Markt zu platzieren. Und Biotreibstoffe spielen den Spekulationen noch in die Hände.

Wenn wir dem allem nur Risikomanagement entgegensetzen, Versicherungsinstrumente, wo das wenige Geld der zweiten Säule hineinläuft, dann werden die Versicherungen am Ende gewinnen, aber mit Sicherheit nicht die Bäuerinnen und Bauern.

  Michel Dantin (PPE). – Madame la Présidente, merci Monsieur le Commissaire pour votre présence. Je voudrais d’abord remercier ma collègue Angélique Delahaye pour ce rapport sur ce sujet de la volatilité.

Il y a quatre ans, lorsque nous préparions la réforme de la PAC, la pensée qui avait le vent en poupe, c’était de dire qu’il n’y aurait plus de crise, parce que tous les cours mondiaux étaient en tendance haussière.

Nous n’étions pas très nombreux à réclamer des outils, et force est de constater que vous avez été bien heureux, Monsieur le Commissaire, de pouvoir utiliser les quelques-uns qui ont été mis à votre disposition. Ils ne vont pas assez loin, nous le savons aujourd’hui. Il nous faut donc, comme cela a été dit, nous servir de l’omnibus pour parfaire la copie et redonner aux agriculteurs des outils de gestion des marchés.

La volatilité, c’est d’abord le fruit de l’obscurantisme. La volatilité, ça touche aussi bien l’amont que l’aval de l’agriculture et, au final, l’agriculteur, parce qu’il est isolé, en est la victime.

Il nous faut donc résolument non seulement trouver des outils, mais aussi accompagner les agriculteurs dans une meilleure organisation, leur donner des contrats qui, sur la durée, leur garantiront un débouché, un revenu, et qui permettront aux industriels d’avoir aussi une garantie d’approvisionnement, parce qu’on parle toujours des crises quand elles sont au détriment de l’agriculteur, mais nous avons connu dans un passé récent, des crises qui étaient aux détriments de l’aval, et l’aval sera bien heureux d’avoir des contrats qui assurent les choses dans la durée.

Il faut se poser la question, Monsieur le Commissaire, de savoir pourquoi, dans la plupart des pays européens, les organisations de producteurs ne sont pas plus fortes.

  Marc Tarabella (S&D). – Madame la Présidente, je vais essayer d’être original dans ce débat, d’abord pour dire que, dans la grisaille ambiante où les aides agricoles ne tiennent pas du tout compte de la réalité économique des agriculteurs, par rapport au fait que la Commission reste évidemment dans un carcan budgétaire dans lequel elle doit évoluer, que le Conseil fait du surplace, à l’image d’Antonio Maspes – dont je rappelle la mémoire, qui était un cycliste sur piste sept fois champion du monde et qui était le spécialiste du surplace; il est resté d’ailleurs une fois 32 minutes dans un championnat du monde avant de gagner la finale en faisant du surplace –, le Parlement, et le rapport de Mme Delahaye, est sans doute un éclair dans la grisaille, grâce notamment à Nicolas Caputo, qui a pu obtenir des compromis qui font en sorte que les aides contracycliques sont enfin sur le tapis.

Il est vrai que les aides contracycliques permettent de tenir compte de la réalité économique des agriculteurs, pour les aider au mieux et au plus juste. Mais, évidemment, cela pose une difficulté – d’ailleurs, je parle sous la surveillance de Jean Arthuis, qui va s’exprimer après moi –, cela pose un problème budgétaire, car évidemment, il n’est plus question de parler en annuités au niveau du budget agricole, puisque les aides contracycliques peuvent être différentes d’une année à l’autre. Mais elles sont intéressantes, Madame la Présidente, ces aides contracycliques, et j’aimerais que Monsieur le Commissaire puisse nous dire son avis par rapport à l’idée d’avoir des aides contracycliques à l’avenir.

  Jean Arthuis (ALDE). – Madame la Présidente, à mon tour je veux saluer les propositions de Mme Delahaye, notamment l’institution de systèmes assurantiels.

L’angoisse et le désespoir affectent le monde paysan et plus particulièrement les éleveurs. Les mutations de la PAC ont fait disparaître les instruments de régulation sur la promesse d’exportations dynamiques et lucratives.

Dans ce contexte nouveau, les volumes produits ont progressé, alors que le déclin d’une partie des débouchés extérieurs a précipité la chute des prix. Dès lors, nombre de producteurs de lait et de viande vendent à perte. Nous mesurons l’urgence de nous donner des instruments de protection intelligents pour prévenir et régler les situations de crise.

L’angélisme de l’Union ne peut ériger l’autodésarmement commercial en dogme et faire de l’agriculture la variable d’ajustement des accords de libre-échange.

Il en va de même du droit de la concurrence et de la prohibition des ententes. Sachons nous montrer pragmatiques et osons instituer des mécanismes européens d’équilibrage de l’offre et de la demande, sans nostalgie excessive pour les quotas.

Il me paraît judicieux de confier aux associations regroupant les producteurs, les AOP, la charge de réguler selon le niveau des prix les volumes livrés sur la base d’engagements définis au plan européen.

Monsieur le Commissaire, il est temps que l’Europe sorte de son obsession du toujours moins cher et réconcilie enfin les producteurs et les consommateurs.

  Maria Lidia Senra Rodríguez (GUE/NGL). – Senhora Presidente, este relatório tenta buscar instrumentos na PAC para reduzir a volatilidade dos preços nos mercados agrícolas, mas esquece que a volatilidade dos preços é uma consequência da própria PAC, que, quando prioriza a exportação, liberaliza os mercados agrícolas, desregulamenta as produções e destrói qualquer possibilidade de permitir uma renda decente para os agricultores e as agricultoras através dos preços dos seus produtos.

As propostas que neste relatório se fazem não vão além de instrumentos para a gestão da crise e dos riscos e, ademais, pretendem financiar alguns destes instrumentos, transferindo parte do dinheiro que hoje recebem os agricultores e as agricultoras para outros setores como, por exemplo, as seguradoras. Isto parece-nos totalmente inaceitável.

Mas, na verdade, se querem reduzir a volatilidade, Senhor Hogan, a Comissão, o Conselho e o Parlamento devem implementar uma política agrícola comum pública que priorize o mercado interno, que se dote dos instrumentos necessários para regular a produção dos mercados, que equilibre a oferta e a procura e que dote o setor agrário de um quadro da negociação coletiva sério, que permita acordos de preços mínimos que cubram custos de produção e que remunerem o trabalho em todos os setores, e que, além disso, devolva às organizações agrárias – de que se dotaram os agricultores e as agricultoras – o seu papel negociador.

  Franc Bogovič (PPE). – Najprej čestitke kolegici Delahaye za odlično pripravljeno poročilo, za sodelovanje tudi s Komisijo na tem akutnem problemu.

Nepoštene prakse v prehranski verigi so zagotovo eden od ključnih problemov, s katerim se danes soočamo, in na koncu prinašajo dobičke špekulantom in težke čase poštenim, delovnim kmetom.

Zato predlagam, da tudi v Evropi napišemo na izdelke ali je fair trade. Ni dovolj, da o poštenih trgovinah govorimo samo o kavi, ki prihaja iz drugih kontinentov, vprašajmo se tudi, če so evropski izdelki, ko je, ne vem, mleko kupljeno po 19 centov, 20 centov ali pa kateri koli drugi izdelek, po principu poštene trgovine.

Drugo pomembno sporočilo iz tega poročila je, da se morajo tudi kmetje povezati in nastopiti učinkoviteje in na ta način tudi postaviti boljšo pozicijo na tem določenem trgu Najbrž bo potrebno tudi v bodoči skupni kmetijski politiki nameniti več sredstev za te ukrepe, kot jih imamo danes.

Veliko polagam tudi na to, da bi, kar je že dejal komisar, da moramo podpreti mlade kmete. Ti mladi kmetje bodo pripeljali v kmetijstvo pa tudi v trženje teh kmetijskih izdelkov nove prijeme, ustvarili bodo tudi nove priložnosti za delovna mesta na podeželju, uporabljali sodobne tehnologije, digitalne platforme, vzpostavili tudi smart villages – pametne vasi – na katerih se bodo pojavljala nova delovna mesta.

Skleniti moramo partnerstvo med kmetom in potrošnikom in takrat bo šlo tudi vsem nam boje.

  Michela Giuffrida (S&D). – Signora Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, la crisi di questi ultimi anni ha messo in evidenza tutti i limiti della politica agricola comune e, in particolare, la sua incapacità di affrontare con sistemi efficaci la volatilità dei prezzi, permettendo agli agricoltori di fronteggiare l'oscillazione dei prezzi. Il risultato è stato che molte aziende, troppe aziende sono state costrette a chiudere.

In questo momento quindi noi sappiamo quali siano le priorità da modificare, non sono più sufficienti misure dal carattere emergenziale, una tantum, è necessario creare un sistema stabile a tutela dei nostri agricoltori, è necessario favorire l'aggregazione per avere maggiore potere contrattuale nei confronti della grande distribuzione. Favorire le organizzazioni di produttori non è sufficiente, bisogna incidere sulla crescita dimensionale delle OP.

Per far fronte alla volatilità dei prezzi e avere maggiore stabilità del reddito, gli agricoltori devono avere accesso a strumenti finanziari agevolati, in questo la BEI dovrebbe giocare un ruolo fondamentale. Il sistema di credito all'agricoltura deve essere agevolato, gli agricoltori devono poter contare su un sistema bancario che conceda prestiti, dia valore ai terreni, in modo da poter avviare investimenti, riforme strutturali e innovazione tecnologica che permettano agli agricoltori di fronteggiare finalmente la crisi.

  Jasenko Selimovic (ALDE). – Madam President, increased price volatility since 2007 has changed the rules of the game. Farmers are often confronted with a volatility which becomes problematic, where price movements are large and unpredictable. In addition, the current fragmentation of the agricultural sector brings some actors to the chain that abuse their market power and create unfair trading practices.

Unfortunately, during these periods of falling prices, farmers represent the main shock absorber for the entire industry and see their margins shrink rapidly. In this context, I firmly believe in a fairer functioning of the food supply chain. We must pay attention to the process by which food is produced, processed, transported and sold to the consumers. It is crucial to reinforce the weak bargaining position of farmers and change the role of the producer organisation and cooperatives.

Let me conclude by expressing that we must invest even further in the potential of the instrument to deal with price volatility. Farmers do deserve to get a fair price for their products.

  Miguel Viegas (GUE/NGL). – Senhora Presidente, como é dito, e bem, a volatilidade consiste num processo complexo, com muitas causas.

Contudo, não devemos misturar essas as causas, porque senão estamos a aplicar os instrumentos errados para combater esta volatilidade.

A febre pode ser originada por um vírus ou por uma bactéria. O tratamento para ser eficiente implica sempre um diagnóstico correto. No caso concreto, temo que se estejam a misturar de forma deliberada a aleatoriedade do clima com a especulação financeira e a manipulação de preços por parte das grandes multinacionais e da grande distribuição.

Procurar imputar às alterações climáticas a causa maior da crescente volatilidade dos preços é procurar impor ou acentuar uma reforma da PAC cada vez mais orientada para os mercados e agravar ainda mais as causas desta instabilidade.

O que está aqui em causa não é, naturalmente, a estabilidade dos agricultores. O que está aqui em causa é o abandono definitivo de uma lógica de apoio direto ao rendimento – este, sim, estável – por uma lógica de seguros ao rendimento, copiando o modelo norte—americano.

A volatilidade dos preços combate-se com instrumentos públicos de regulação e não com instrumentos financeiros.

  Norbert Lins (PPE). – Herr Kommissar, Frau Präsidentin, liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen! Ich kann mich vielen meiner Vorredner nur anschließen.

Ich teile aber ausdrücklich nicht die Ansicht der Kollegin von den Grünen, dass die Europäische Union eine aggressive Exportstrategie fahren würde, sondern die Europäische Union fährt eine maßvolle Exportstrategie, und das kann dazu beitragen, dass wir eben nicht nur von einem Markt abhängig sind, nicht nur von unserem Heimatmarkt, sondern dass wir auch eine bessere Wertschöpfung auf anderen Märkten generieren können.

Nein, wir müssen die Stellung der Landwirte in der Lebensmittelkette stärken. Bisher stellen sie eindeutig das schwächste Glied in der Kette dar. Preisschwankungen in Märkten sind nichts Ungewöhnliches. Der Agrarsektor ist hierbei aus verschiedenen ökonomischen, natürlichen und politischen Gründen besonders extremen Schwankungen ausgeliefert. Momentan ist es so, dass der Großteil der Marktpartner und Lebensmitteleinzelhändler die Verantwortung für die heimische Landwirtschaft nicht erkennt und übernimmt.

Unfaire Handelspraktiken dürfen aber nicht einfach hingenommen werden. Hier besteht Handlungsbedarf in Form eines legislativen Texts, um die Verhandlungsmacht der Landwirte zu stärken. Es geht darum, für die, die täglich sichere und qualitativ hochwertige Lebensmittel erzeugen – nämlich die Landwirte – eine sichere Lebens- und Arbeitsgrundlage zu schaffen.

  Tibor Szanyi (S&D). – Elnök Asszony, gratulálok jómagam is a jelentés elkészítéséhez, és külön köszönettel tartozom Nicola Caputo úrnak, aki tényleg hallatlan nagy munkával fogta össze azokat a szocialista javaslatokat, amelyek nagyrészt ugye meg is jelennek ebben az anyagban. És hát nem csak a mi politikai csoportunk, hanem számos bizottság is nagyon fontos, értékes hozzájárulásokat tehetett.

Napnál világosabb: a mezőgazdasági termelők szinte megőrülnek a szélsőséges áringadozásoktól, tán jobban félnek ettől, mint az időjárás megannyi kihívásaitól. És úgy gondolom, hogy ha ez a Parlament ezzel a jelentéssel hozzá tud járulni ahhoz, hogy ők stabilabb árkörnyezetben élhessék meg az életüket, azzal már nagyot tettünk az élelmiszerbiztonság és az élelmezésbiztonság felé, ami egyébként a közös mezőgazdasági politikának nem elfelejtett célja.

Úgy érzem, hogy az itt felsorakozott, vagy felsorakoztatott eszközök nélkül rendkívül törékeny maradna a KAP, és én javaslom egyúttal, hogy ezeket az intézkedéseket nevezzük mezőgazdasági stabilizátoroknak.

  Ricardo Serrão Santos (S&D). – Senhora Presidente, Senhor Comissário, o relatório é estratégico, na medida em que aponta para um leque de possíveis caminhos para enfrentar a volatilidade dos preços agrícolas, num momento em que é evidente a insuficiência dos meios de que dispomos para lhe fazer face. A crise no setor leiteiro a que assistimos nos últimos dois anos e meio, referida aqui pelo Sr. Comissário, é prova disso.

Se não reforçarmos os meios, colocaremos em sério risco a sustentabilidade da atividade agrícola na Europa, sobretudo em zonas onde ela mais contribui para a fixação da população, como é o caso dos Açores. Aqui, as consequências das crises agrícolas podem ter um impacto amplificado pelo carácter de ultraperiferia, incluindo custos de produção agravados, e pelo peso da agricultura na economia local.

Solicitamos, por isso, que se tenham em conta indicadores específicos relativos às regiões ultraperiféricas para acionar medidas em caso de crise no setor agrícola, de maneira a garantir um nível sustentável de rendimento aos agricultores destas regiões.

Interventions à la demande

  Marijana Petir (PPE). – Gospođo predsjednice, gospodine povjereniče, nestabilnost cijena na tržištima poljoprivrednih proizvoda jedan je od uzroka nesigurnosti poljoprivrednika te utječe na njihovu sposobnost proizvodnje i otvaranje radnih mjesta. Pritisnuti visokim troškovima proizvodnje zbog nestabilnosti cijena repromaterijala i energije, ovisno o kretanjima na globalnom tržištu, nezaštićeni su od većine rizika proizvodnje, a dosadašnje mjere i sredstva iz proračuna za poljoprivredu ne čine se dovoljnima da te rizike uspješno ublaže. Prihodi koji im trebaju jamčiti pristojan život nestaju. To obeshrabruje njihova ulaganja u modernizaciju, inovacije, sprječava ulazak mladih poljoprivrednika u posao i generacijsku obnovu ruralnih prostora.

Obiteljska poljoprivredna gospodarstva najranjivija su karika u lancu opskrbe hranom. Upravo zato treba zakonodavstvom na europskoj razini suzbiti nepoštenu trgovačku praksu te postaviti zakonske okvire za provođenje mjera poput kolektivnog ugovaranja dužih rokova ugovora, stabilnih cijena poljoprivrednih proizvoda, razumnih rokova isplate i drugih uvjeta povezanih s proizvodnjom, a usmjerenih na uravnoteženo raspoređivanje rizika proizvodnje duž cijeloga lanca opskrbe hranom.

(Fin des interventions à la demande)

  Phil Hogan, Member of the Commission. – Madam President, I thank all the people that responded to this very important debate. As you know, the common agricultural policy that was agreed in 2013 by the co-legislators reiterated in support of the market orientation of that policy. This is what the Council and the European Parliament decided, and, in any policy which is dependent on the market, price volatility is an inevitable feature. The last two years have tested the adequacy or otherwise of the measures, and we need – as several speakers have said here this evening – to work together to ensure that farmers are provided with the appropriate tools to deal with price volatility, and we need to learn and look at the market experience of the past two years in relation to what tools we require.

In my opening remarks, I said that we must work at removing obstacles to the use of these market tools in the present CAP. If, as Mr Dorfmann or Mr De Castro suggest, it is because of red tape, then we must make the policy simpler. Simplification is something that I very much support, and I will do everything possible to reduce red tape in the agricultural sector, as I am already doing.

Of course it may also be – as Ms Girling said – that we have used all the tools that are available. If that is the case, we need collectively to be more imaginative and see if there are other proposals that we can make in this regard. Next year’s communication provides an opportunity for this House and for the Council, and I am committed to working constructively with all stakeholders to help our farmers in this regard.

A number of speakers have referred to the need to ensure sustainable production, and I want to agree with Mr Ropė when he identifies small farmers as being central to the future of sustainable agricultural production and sustainable rural communities in Europe. We need to ensure that farmers, who are our boots on the ground in the context of implementing environment and climate action, continue to be the custodians of our policy in our rural areas, and also the custodians of our rural environment.

Mr De Castro also referred to the need to remove obstacles to such tools as the Income Stabilisation Mechanism, and you and all Members of the House will get an opportunity to assist me in a proposal in this regard in the Omnibus Regulation which is coming before the House in 2017. So I urge you to adopt this regulation, as Mr Dantin noted, to help farmers to get easier access to the income stabilisation tool and to get easier access to credit through the reforms that I am making and the changes in the financial instruments.

Despite any differences which may exist in this House and between our respective institutions, there is clear agreement across the board on the need to strengthen the position of farmers in the food chain and to tackle the issue of unfair trading practices. I agree with what Mr Tarabella said in this regard. I would also remind the House that the Council adopted Council conclusions yesterday, which, along with the overwhelming vote of this Parliament, are making a very important statement and contribution towards the need for the Commission to come forward with proposals in the work programme of 2017 to try to deal with this issue of the position of the farmer in the food chain.

I should also say that, despite the support that farmers get from the European Union and our national governments to co-finance programmes, most farmers would like to get their income from the market. That means having access to the market, and getting a fair return from the market. So we need fair trade, not always free trade, and farmers are benefitting from well negotiated free trade agreements and access to third—country markets. We are making good progress in this regard, and I am confident that this trend will continue. We cannot continue to have farmers’ production in storage at the expense of the European Union taxpayer all the time. We have to find outlets for that, internally and externally.

In terms of achieving a fair return, I welcome the report of the Agricultural Markets Task Force. The Commission is currently considering those recommendations very carefully, and this will inform the proposal I will make in 2017. I would like to remind Mr Serrão Santos, that farmers in the Azores under the POSEI scheme are getting at up to EUR 250 extra per cow in the dairy sector if they wish to utilise that, in addition to voluntary coupled support from the Portuguese Government. These are instruments that are already available and which are being utilised by your regional government and your national government in Portugal in order to assist your dairy farmers.

Finally, I would like once again to express my appreciation to Ms Delahaye and the shadow rapporteurs for the work done in producing this report. This will serve as very important information and recommendations to me in the context of the work programme for 2017 and the legislative proposals and measures that we will bring forward in the context of the position of the farmer in the food chain.

  Angélique Delahaye, rapporteure. – Madame la Présidente, Monsieur le Commissaire, chers collègues, pour ceux qui sont encore dans l’hémicycle, je voudrais dire à M. Flanagan que je partage son point de vue sur les conséquences de la mondialisation, tout autant que je partage le point de vue de M. Agnew sur le rôle et la place des agriculteurs en tant qu’entrepreneurs et non pas en tant que salariés d’une administration centrale.

Beaucoup de choses ont été dites dans cet hémicycle, mais nous sommes au stade des constats, et ce rapport que nous avons coconstruit avec les rapporteurs et l’ensemble des groupes, pour ceux qui ont souhaité y participer, va plus loin. J’espère que c’est ce que nous en retiendrons. En tous les cas, Monsieur Hogan, j’ai l’intention de regarder de très près les propositions que vous nous ferez et je vous remercie de prendre en compte les propositions qui seront votées par ce Parlement, à l’instar de ce rapport.

  La Présidente. – Le débat est clos.

Le vote aura lieu demain.

Déclarations écrites (article 162)

  Krzysztof Hetman (PPE), na piśmie. – Sytuacja ekonomiczna europejskich gospodarstw rolnych jest niestety dość daleka od stabilizacji. Wynika to w dużej mierze ze specyfiki tego sektora, który jak żaden inny zależny jest od czynników naturalnych, a te są trudne do przewidzenia. Do tego dochodzą kwestie zmian w obrocie międzynarodowym i popytu na lokalnym rynku. To wszystko wpływa na dużą zmienność cen, która ma negatywne konsekwencje zarówno dla producentów żywności, jak i konsumentów.

Dlatego też potrzebujemy skutecznych środków, które doprowadzą do maksymalnego zmniejszenia wahań cenowych. Podzielam opinię sprawozdawczyni, że wsparcie w zakresie zarządzania ryzykiem, oferowane obecnie przez WPR w ramach drugiego filara, jest niewystarczające. Instrumenty zarządzania ryzykiem muszą zostać zrewidowane i – tam gdzie to zasadne – rozbudowane. Należy także dążyć do jak największej przejrzystości rynku. Nadrzędnym celem tych działań powinno być zagwarantowanie godnego poziomu dochodów dla rolników i stworzenie stabilnego rynku dóbr dla konsumentów.

  Elisabeth Köstinger (PPE), schriftlich. – Die anhaltend schwierige Situation auf den Agrarmärkten sorgt mittlerweile für massive Verwerfungen. Ich begrüße diese richtungsweisende Parlamentsresolution, die die Absicherung bäuerlicher Betriebseinkommen zur höchsten Priorität macht. Landwirte müssen endlich wieder kalkulieren können und über den Produktpreis ein Einkommen erzielen. Aktuell sehen wir vor allem eine reine Gewinnmaximierung der Handelskonzerne und ihrer Lobby. Ein Beispiel ist der kontinuierlich steigende Milchpreis in Europa, der nicht oder nur Monate zeitverzögert an die bäuerlichen Erzeuger weitergegeben wird. Der Totalausverkauf und Unterbietungswettbewerb auf Kosten der Landwirte müssen endlich ein Ende haben. Durch konkrete Maßnahmen zur Stärkung landwirtschaftlicher Organisationen, die Einführung von Beobachtungsstellen für europäische Agrarpreise und die Schaffung eines neuen gesetzlichen Rahmens, der die Schutzmechanismen der gemeinsamen Agrarpolitik über das Wettbewerbsrecht stellt, kann die Stellung der Landwirte in der Lebensmittelkette wieder gestärkt werden. Ich fordere daher die Europäische Kommission auf, rasch und unbürokratisch die Vorschläge zu liefern, um das Preisdumping endlich zu beenden. Diese Parlamentsresolution ist ein starkes Zeichen zur Unterstützung der bäuerlichen Familienbetriebe. Wir stehen mit aller Kraft hinter den Landwirten. Qualitäts-Lebensmittel haben ihren Preis. Preisdumping hingegen ist allein Türöffner für Massenproduktion und Einheitslebensmittel!

  Νότης Μαριάς ( ECR), γραπτώς. – Η ΕΕ αποτελεί τον μεγαλύτερο εισαγωγέα και εξαγωγέα γεωργικών προϊόντων διατροφής στον κόσμο. Οι δυνατότητες όμως χρήσης των προγραμμάτων αγροτικής ανάπτυξης της ΚΓΠ για ενίσχυση των συστημάτων ασφάλισης, αμοιβαίων κεφαλαίων και σταθεροποίησης των εισοδημάτων των αγροτών δεν έχουν επιφέρει τα επιθυμητά αποτελέσματα. Επιπλέον, η απελευθέρωση των αγορών με την κατάργηση των δασμών από τρίτες χώρες, δημιουργεί προβλήματα τόσο στην αγροτική παραγωγή όσο και στους ευρωπαίους αγρότες. Ταυτόχρονα, η άρνηση της ΕΕ να άρει τις κυρώσεις κατά της Ρωσίας, έχει πλήξει τους αγρότες της ευρωπαϊκού Νότου και όχι μόνο. Ειδικότερα για την Ελλάδα, τα προβλήματα στον αγροτικό κόσμο είναι διογκωμένα εξαιτίας της φορομπηχτικής πολιτικής που επιβάλλει η τρόικα. Η αύξηση στον φόρο του αγροτικού πετρελαίου, η εκμηδένιση των επιδοτήσεων αλλά και οι κατασχέσεις των λιγοστών επιδοτήσεων από την κυβέρνηση, έχουν οδηγήσει σε αδιέξοδο τους αγρότες της χώρας μου. Η πολιτική λιτότητας που εφαρμόζεται υπονομεύει τις επενδύσεις, τον εκσυγχρονισμό και αποθαρρύνει τους νέους να ασχοληθούν με τον γεωργικό τομέα. Τέλος, πρέπει να υπάρξει ενίσχυση των μέσων στήριξης των γεωργικών εισοδημάτων στις περιοχές οι οποίες πλήττονται από σοβαρές φυσικές καταστροφές.

  Daciana Octavia Sârbu (S&D), în scris. – Este tot mai clar faptul că instrumentele din cadrul pilonului al doilea din PAC nu sunt suficiente pentru combaterea volatilității prețurilor produselor agricole. Referitor la instrumentele PAC actuale, cele mai recente date disponibile arată că au fost utilizate de către douăsprezece state membre pentru a contracara volatilitatea prețurilor. În total, au fost alocate 2,7 miliarde EUR din cheltuielile publice (dintre care 1,7 miliarde EUR provin din fondurile de dezvoltare rurală). Din păcate, deși au crescut în comparație cu fondurile alocate sistemului anterior al PAC, aceste cheltuieli reprezintă în continuare doar 0,4 % din cheltuielile PAC și mai puțin de 2% din cheltuielile din cadrul celui de-al doilea pilon. Comisia Europeană ar trebui ca, la viitoarea reformă a PAC, să acorde o atenție deosebită instrumentelor de piață și să asigure venituri constante și decente pentru agricultori.

  Valdemar Tomaševski (ECR), raštu. –Ūkio rinką visada charakterizavo nestabilumas ir kainų kitimai. Pastarųjų metų bėgyje dėl greitai vykstančių didelių pokyčių paklausos, pateikimo ir kainų srityse tai tapo struktūrine žemės ūkio ypatybe Europos, bet tai pat ir pasauliniame lygmenyje. Tam yra daug priežasčių. Klimato pokyčiai ir kenkėjai žemės ūkyje daro neigiamą įtaką žemės ūkio produkcijos kiekiui, o tai tiesiogiai veikia kainas. Todėl turi padidėti Europos Sąjungos atsakomybė prisidedant prie maisto saugos suteikimo Europoje. Europos ūkininkai, ypač iš naujai įstojusių valstybių, taip pat ir iš Lietuvos, yra vis labiau veikiami rizikų, nepriklausomų nuo jų. Todėl ES turėtų padidinti savo pagalbą ūkininkams šiose valstybėse. ES turėtų garantuoti stabilumą žemės ūkio sektoriuje, nes kainų svyravimas sukelia aukšto lygio neapibrėžtumą gamintojų ir vartotojų tarpe. Mažose kainose gamintojai įžvelgia riziką savo pelnui ir investiciniams gebėjimams, o didelės maisto produktų kainos sukelia sunkumų įsigyjant pagrindinius maisto produktus, kas veda prie krizinės situacijos. Reikia suteikti valstybėms narėms papildomus įrankius ir garantuoti pagalbą kalbant apie pasėlių, gyvūnų ir augalų draudimus, investicinius fondus ir naują pajamų stabilizavimo priemonę. Tokiu būdu bus galima likviduoti nusistovėjusį nestabilumą žemės ūkio sektoriuje.