Takáč: Slovakia is not satisfied with the proposal for the financing of the future EU agricultural policy

Brussels – Slovakia is dissatisfied with the amount allocated by the European Commission for the agricultural sector in the EU’s long-term budget after 2027, as well as with the shape of the common agricultural policy. This was stated on Monday in an interview with TASR by the Minister of Agriculture of the Slovak Republic, Richard Takáč (Smer-SD), after the meeting of the EU Council for Agriculture in Brussels.

Richard Takáč emphasized that when member states compare funding for farmers with the current programming period, most of them find that it is less money. “Slovakia has 900 million euros less in the proposal for the agricultural part, almost a billion,” he pointed out. He admitted that it will be a kind of “stacking” of finances, as there are other packages from which farmers can draw.

There is also a new proposal for the common agricultural policy, which is linked to the budget, as this proposal anticipates the merging of all funds of the common agri-policy into a large agricultural super fund. According to Takáč, the ministers do not agree with this. They wish to maintain a separate budget for farmers, to keep both the first and second pillars, and criticize that the new agri-policy seems to have forgotten about food producers and allocates 62% less funding for fisheries and also restricts the school program for providing dairy products, fruits, and vegetables. They want more money, simplification, less bureaucracy, and fair conditions for all European farmers.

According to him, Monday’s discussions were mainly about the future long-term budget and agricultural policy, with most ministers criticizing the setting of agri-policy funding and its new form.

“This cannot be praised. We see that some EU representatives are ideologically incomprehensibly trying to allocate more money for armaments and less for agriculture and food production. But the Union must do everything to ensure that we are food self-sufficient. The new proposal for the common agricultural policy is the worst for Slovakia. If it is set up this way, we will suffer the most,” he stated.

Takáč added that these goals need to be addressed now, not relying on the fact that there are still two years until negotiations on the future long-term budget. He believes that 2026 will be the year that sets the first frameworks, and some outlines may be established at the EU summit in December. “In these weeks and months, the basic cards are being dealt, the first ones that indicate where we will go and in what way,” he explained.

Member states have already expressed their dissatisfaction. Slovakia, along with the capping of direct payments, considers 100,000 euros per final user to be insufficient, especially when the country has historically larger land areas for farming purposes. He added that his ministry wants to address the situation at multiple levels, in cooperation with other countries and through meetings with Slovak MEPs.

“Slovakia will set its red lines, and I believe that through discussions we will reach a point where we can take steps in the new financial framework and new agricultural policy to ensure that we are food self-sufficient, secure, and that European agriculture, food production, and forestry are more resilient in relation to third countries,” he conveyed. (September 22)

“The new proposal for the common agricultural policy is the worst for Slovakia. If it is set up this way, we will suffer the most.” Richard Takáč