IFA & ICOS Join Forces in Fight for CAP Budget
IFA and ICOS will stage a ‘flash action’ at the EU Commission offices in Dublin next Tues (May 20th) to warn the Commission against stripping away the CAP budget in favour of a single fund approach to the EU budget under the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).
The event will coincide with a flash action organised by COPA COGECA in Brussels to highlight the importance of the CAP budget. Similar protests will take place in other EU countries at the same time.
The EU Commission is holding a budget conference in Brussels on the day, and the action is timed to happen when the conference is underway.
IFA President Francie Gorman will attend the flash action in Brussels in his capacity as Vice-President of COPA.
He said it’s vital that a strong message is sent to the EU Commission that the funding model and structure of the CAP is critical for the development of the farming and food sector in Ireland.
“Everybody is aware that the geopolitical landscape is changing, but food security has to remain at the core of what the Commission does,” he said.
“All the signs are that the Commission is still hell bent on a single fund structure which, if approved, would be the beginning of the end of CAP as we know it. This approach will undermine the security CAP brings to millions of farm families around Europe.”
The IFA Deputy President Alice Doyle and the ICOS President Edward Carr will lead the action in Dublin. IFA is the Irish member of COPA the European farmer representative body while ICOS is the Irish member of COGECA the European co-operatives representative body.
The President of ICOS Edward Carr said CAP is the foundation of a sustainable and competitive farming and agri-food sector in Ireland and Europe.
It plays a vital role in maintaining farm incomes, supporting rural communities and driving progress on climate and environmental goals across the EU.
“What we need is a strong, practical and properly and fully resourced CAP; one that cuts red tape and empowers farmers to focus on producing food not paperwork. Farming in Ireland and across the EU is struggling to attract young farmers. The Commission must not risk accelerating the generational renewal crisis. Rather than potentially seeking mechanisms to undermine and defund CAP, the European Commission must stand by its farming citizens, underpin food security and protect this essential policy.”
Farmers will assemble at the EU Commission offices on Mount St, Dublin 2 (D02 W710) at 9.30am.
