29th June Agri Committee

The Green Hand will follow closely the Agri Committee Meeting taking place on the 29th June at the European Parliament in Brussels. This meeting should be quite interesting for Malta as it will cover the Common Agriculture Policy for the period from 2028 to 2034, the increase in fertiliser prices and the general budget for the financial year 2027.

The CAP programmation for 2028 and 2034 is very important for the European agricultural sector and Malta because this will determine the level of support that farmers will get during this period of time. Besides a strong budget and the fact that the CAP should remain a distinct European policy, what farmers need is simplification, predictability, effectiveness and transparency. 75% of the budget should therefore be allocated to income support and a specific minimum budget should be dedicated to young farmers while Malta and Gozo should explore further potential EU funding opportunities.

The Middle East crisis impacted fertiliser prices in the last months. This has, as a main consequence, affected the cash-flow of Maltese farms. Exceptional and temporary liquidity support, and direct payment allocations flexibility would thus be more than welcome to support their treasuries in the coming months, especially when we know the importance of inputs such as fertiliser in agriculture and food production.

Last but not least, the general budget for the next financial year. Fair remuneration, market stability and risk preparedness, particularly when it comes to agricultural inputs such as phytosanitary products and fertilisers, are at the top of the list for Malta. At the end of the day Maltese farmers have to become, and above all remain, competitive and this could be enabled by a better use of promotion programmes.

Follow us to find out about the outcomes of this meeting!