Farm to Fork Strategy - the key role of farmers and rural areas
3.2.2020
Question for oral answer O-000013/2020
to the Commission
Rule 136
Norbert Lins
on behalf of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development
On 12 December 2019, the Commission published its communication on the European Green Deal (COM(2019)0640), including a roadmap, both of which mention the Farm to Fork Strategy.
In the communication, the Commission sets out an ambitious and far-reaching plan to make the European Agriculture and Food System the global standard in sustainability. This plan covers policies relevant to agriculture and rural areas that are currently under revision, including the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), the Forestry Strategy, the EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and measures to address the main drivers of biodiversity loss.
Parliament fully supports this plan and highlights the fact that the current EU legislative and policy framework governing the European agriculture and food system from production, processing and marketing to consumption delivers high-quality products and services while providing high safety levels for humans, animals and nature. It must continue to ensure a fair income for farmers and workers in vibrant rural communities, while also fostering sustainability in agricultural production and forest management, which are both central to the wider bioeconomy.
How will the Commission ensure that these goals are reached while fully respecting the diversity of agriculture and food systems in the EU, keeping at its core the people who live and work in rural areas, including farmers and those involved in processing and marketing their produce, while also taking into account future challenges?
How will the Commission ensure the competitiveness of EU producers in the EU and the international market and fair returns for farmers in the context of additional requirements under new and revised policies, bearing in mind that economic and environmental sustainability go hand in hand and that the sector will require further financial resources in order to fulfil the new requirements?
How will the Commission ensure that new and revised policies will be applied in a consistent and coherent way and without delay, and will safeguard the achievements of the past while fostering increased sustainability, notably with regard to the CAP?
How will the Commission ensure that all actors in the food supply chain from the producer/farmer to the consumer/citizen are aware of their role in fostering increased sustainability and empower them to take informed decisions in line with their preferred choices without being misled?
Submitted: 03/02/2020
Lapses: 04/05/2020