Brussels proposes farming overhaul

A battle for the future of European farming will begin today when the European Commission proposes the most far-reaching reforms in more than four decades of the Common Agricultural Policy.

The plans, expected to be published this afternoon, wouldoverhaul the CAP, which costs about €44bn (£28bn) a year – roughly half of the EU budget.

The proposed reforms recommend an end to one of the guiding principles of the CAP, that subsidies made through direct payments to farmers should be linked to their levels of production. They would, instead, be geared more towards raising environmental standards, food safety and animal welfare.

The plan would also put a ceiling of €300,000 a year on direct payments, ending seven-figure subsidies for the biggest industrial farmers. And it would impose cuts of 5 per cent in subsidies for soybeans and grains such as wheat and corn.

The mid-term review comes at a sensitive time because the 15 member states, are debating what level of subsidy to extend to the 10 countries expected to join the EU in 2004. Franz Fischler, the EU agriculture commissioner, is pushing for more cash to be paid through funds that reward farmers for their attention to rural development.

Europe'scitizens "are ready to support our farmers ... under the condition that they get environment, food safety and quality or animal welfare in exchange", he says.

The reforms are certain to be opposed by countries that gain most from the CAP, including France and Ireland. Farmers also fear the start of a move away from subsidies.