Martine Hansen, Minister for Agriculture, Food and Viticulture, attended the Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting in Brussels on Monday 27 May 2024.
The ministers discussed the sector's response to the current agricultural crisis. Martine Hansen reiterated that the administrative simplification of the Common Agricultural Policy should be based on the pragmatic 'need to have' approach, rather than the 'nice to have' approach. The Minister spoke out against the compulsory use of geo-referenced photos and the recurrent adjustments to the CAP's annual performance framework, which are excessively time-consuming for administrations. With a view to improving risk management, Martine Hansen suggests a number of preventive measures, such as innovative production and crop rotation techniques that are resilient to extreme weather conditions, integrated management of crop and livestock disease alerts, and better water management. The Minister points out that Luxembourg encourages and financially supports farmers who take out insurance against insurable risks, but with natural disasters becoming increasingly frequent, the agricultural reserve will have to play a crucial role in European solidarity.
The Council also analysed the situation on the agricultural markets. While prices for agricultural products have stabilised, production costs are squeezing farmers' margins. 'The agricultural sector remains the weakest link in the food chain. We need to strengthen the position of farmers in our food chain by diversifying agricultural production, increasing the supply of plant proteins, innovating and improving strategic autonomy in nitrogen fertilisers', Martine Hansen points out.
Heavy rain in Luxembourg and drought in Cyprus... recent adverse weather conditions are likely to have an impact on certain agricultural yields, depending on the region. According to Martine Hansen, it is too early to assess the situation for arable crops, but it is clear that the abundance of rain has delayed winter and spring sowings, as well as the first cuts of forage in some regions. Late frosts and bad weather had an impact on vineyards and some fruit crops, and an impact assessment is currently being carried out among producers in the Grand Duchy.
During the debates on origin labelling for agricultural products, Martine Hansen argued in favour of voluntary origin labelling or regional labelling to meet consumer demand for local food. In Luxembourg, cross-border trade in limited volumes - particularly of milk - is common practice, and compulsory origin labelling based on the name of the country would pose a problem for Luxembourg's agriculture and agri-food sector.
Finally, during the discussions on the importance of animal welfare in the agenda of the next European Commission, Martine Hansen called for a high level of animal welfare standards in European agriculture. Luxembourg is in favour of limiting the maximum duration of animal transports in Europe, banning exports of live animals to slaughterhouses in third countries and stricter regulation of the trade in dogs and cats.
Press release from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Viticulture