The ‘health check’ of the Common Agricultural Policy is one of the four priorities of the French EU Presidency, together with the climate-energy package, immigration and defence, the French agriculture minister confirmed, on 23 June. It remains one of the top four issues in spite of the likely postponement of co-decision on agriculture as a result of Ireland’s non-ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. The absence of co-decision on 1 January 2009 nevertheless “reduces the pressure” on this negotiation, acknowledged the EU’s agriculture commissioner the same day.

Be that as it may, Michel Barnier noted that the French Presidency has “two operational Agriculture Councils” during which to wrap up the health check, on 15 July and 29 September. He hopes to present a first draft compromise in October with the aim of reaching an agreement in November. In addition to the health check, France intends to launch debate on the future of the CAP after 2013. “In today’s global context, with food shortages in parts of the world and surging prices for certain products, we have to identify certain common principles for the future CAP: the correction of global food imbalances, the environment, territorial balance, food quality, etc”, said State Secretary for European Affairs Jean-Pierre Jouyet. Barnier does not know whether the 27 member states will manage to adopt common conclusions or whether there will simply be Presidency conclusions on the subject.

Among the important agricultural issues to be addressed under French leadership, the agriculture minister mentioned: the revision of rules on the import of agri-food products; an attempt to work out a political agreement by year’s end on the regulation on market release of plant protection products; the search for solutions to encourage farmers to form producers’ organisations; the revision of rules for European food aid; and the launch of a programme for distributing fruit in schools.

The important dates for agriculture over the next six months include a major conference entitled ‘Who will feed the planet?’, to be held on 3 July. The EU’s agriculture (and fisheries) ministers will meet on 15 July in Brussels and again on 29 September. Their traditional informal meeting will take place from 21 to 23 September in Annecy, the region from which French Minister Michel Barnier hails. The agriculture ministers will meet again on 17 and 18 November, and possibly again on the 28th, in Brussels, in the hope of coming to an agreement on the health check.

The absence of co-decision on 1 January 2009 “reduces the pressure”