ECVC alerts on deep contradictions of Hansen’s Vision

Morgan Ody, farmer and member of ECVC coordinating committee starts by pointing the need for concrete steps forward: “The vision does not go far enough. The Unfair Trading Practices directive requires bold moves. The Commission should listen to the thousands of farmers who have taken to the streets and stop bowing to the demands of retailers and distributors. A fast-track procedure is needed to forbid the purchase below production costs. The survival of hundreds of thousands of farms in the European Union is at stake.”

Andoni Garcia, farmer and also member of ECVC coordination committee adds: “there are deep contradictions between the promises for fairer prices on one hand and, on the other hand the push for digitalization and to increasingly liberalise global markets. Among many other issues, export and import-oriented agriculture will push prices low and technologization and digitalization push costs up. The Vision is contradictory and risks being detrimental to farmers.”

Vitor Rodrigues, from ECVC coordinating committee adds: “Some announcements on the CAP are going in the right direction: capping, degressivity, and a particular attention to mixed farms, to farms in areas with natural constraints, and to young and new farmers. The CAP indeed needs to be fairer and that can only happen through fair prices and market regulation. We expect even bolder proposals, notably on the CMO and the AFCO which should be fully functional.”

Vitor Rodrigues also warns that: “The Commission should also not have fallen in the trap of carbon farming and nature crediting. They are, by no means, useful to climate mitigation, to address the current biodiversity collapse, or a safe source of income for farmers. However, they are extremely efficient as private corporations greenwashing mechanism and pollution free-pass.”

Alessandra Turco, farmer and member of ECVC Coordinating Committee, complements: "The Vision identifies biotechnology applications in agriculture as a solution to make plants more resilient to climate change, and ensure food sustainability and security. However, there are no GMOs on the market or in development that have such characteristics. In reality, the deregulation of GMOs (plants and micro-organisms) obtained by new genomic techniques (NTGs) will only have the effect of imposing patented GMOs on farmers, preventing them from using their own seeds, which are much better adapted to their cultivation and climate conditions."

Paola Laini, farm worker, member of ECVC Youth and of ECVC Coordinating Committee concludes: “During the latest youth dialogue, we discussed how generational renewal requires strong public policies to ensure decent prices and access to land for young people. New technologies cannot be a priority as they will deepen the climate crisis, reduce farm autonomy and make installation even more difficult. We hope that the Commission will reorient its proposal in order to get out of this technological pressure and set the issues of prices and land as priorities in the most awaited Generation Renewal strategy. We remain firmly committed to participate in the elaboration of the strategy.”

ECVC will continue to work across all institutions and with its allies to strengthen a legislative development of this Vision which would respond to the needs of small and medium-sized farmers, the incorporation of youth and the challenges faced by European society. A lot of work needs to be done to eliminate the risks and contradictions of the Vision.