November 21, 2007
Of fairways and farmers
Mariann Fischer Boel is pretty upset. The farming commissioner, not afraid of using agricultural language, saw Tuesday’s outline of a modernising "health check" overshadowed by a row other why money was going to golf courses and town councils.
The “stupid” observations, made in a report the week before by the Court of Auditors, the financial watchdog, and flamed up by the “sensational press”, were overblown, she told reporters. On Wednesday she had not calmed down much. She told the European parliament’s budgetary control committee: "It is not possible to receive an EU farm subsidy for a golf course. Only areas used for agricultural activity are eligible. Of course, it is possible that golf clubs, railway companies etc may also own adjoining or nearby land which is used for farming. On this land, the subsidies can of course be paid as long as the conditions are met."
The truth is, that now payment for production has been replaced with payment for landholding, farming can mean simply keeping it in a condition to be farmed.
However, this shift in 2003 has also help cut fraud and mismanagement in the 45bn a year common agricultural policy, a message the Dane was keen to highlight. The error rate is close to the 2 per cent that would allow the auditors to clear the accounts for the first time in more than a decade.
“The picture is generally positive for agriculture,” she said. She then said that further reforms such as simplifying bureaucracy would reduce errors still further.
However, there is a cloud to this silver lining. As more payment switches from farming to environmental measures and developing new rural businesses there is more scope for fraud. The 5 per cent of money paid out for rural development had an 11 per cent error rate. Ms Fischer Boel wants to progressively raise rural development spending from 2010-13 to 13 per cent of the total.
Ms Fischer Boel believes farmers should stand on their own two feet, making the most of global market opportunities. She favours lots of imports of basic commodities, with high value-added products such as fine wine or cheese being exported.
However, she may also encounter a different vision of the CAP among MEPs who will have equal say with member states over it from 2009 under the EU reform treaty. They could well lobby for more funds from the central budget, since farming interests are well represented.
The Socialist group, the second largest in parliament, has just issued its position paper on the CAP. “Guaranteeing food security still remains a strategic and principal objective of common agriculture policy,” it says. “As a net importer of agricultural/food products, Europe must pursue this objective of supplying its citizens from the point of view of both quantity and quality.”
It talks of a “world food balance”.
While it backs shifting payments from purely production to green measures, it says farmers will need to be paid to produce, especially as they must meet rigorous sanitary requirements, for a long, long time to come.
Europe is still the reserve of the best and finest natural and organic seeds for vegetables,fruits,grains,trees,weeds,etc., this is a natural continental treasure, and the private efforts in France,Germany and others in Europe to preserve an ample supply of these precious organic natural seeds must be matched by the EU-Brussels, here Commissioner Fischer has a truly important job,and every European Agriculture Minister must be there,we cannot end up with a monopoly of genetically modified seeds controlled by the usual 3 or 4 bio-techs and farmers and consumers paying royalties every crop and no natural alternatives,that’s a crime against the tradition and values of Europe and mankind, and that makes desalination plants all over Europe and water re-distribution a must.
2) like in Indonesia ,USA and other countries,important trees like teak,mahogany,giant redwoods,etc., are going to be re-planted in volume, the EU must be there too preserving its own legacy,all these magnificent trees growing strong again represent success of our human race, to let them go away would be an insult to the “Landlord”, a total failure,here the youth must be involved….the youth needs to learn the basics about the Rule of Law and Democratic Rights as well as how to plant a huge oak tree,and how an hydrogen fuel-cell , http://www.fuelcells.org/ , a turbine and solar panel works, http://www.solardecathlon.org/ , the mix.
3) since U.S. Defense Secretary Gates is insisting in launching a serious diplomatic campaign in the Middle East in paralel with Secretary Rice Annapolis-Peace initiative, could we study how to help Lebanon,Palestine,Syria,Jordan and Israel launch and expand their own agricultural industry, AVOIDING USELESS COMPETITION WITH EUROPE AND THE USA, because after all, most of the food consumed in the EU and USA must come from within,safety first !…… and in the case of Israel the goods from the occupied territories do not pay taxes when they enter the EU, this is disturbing unless the Palestinian goods get the same treatment,and since water is a huge problem,desalination plants are a must,this could be another channel to re-start the peace and insisting on disciplined work ahead of violence and no more settlements in occupied territories in exchange for peace and trade , and here the EU and USA must demand that Saudi Arabia,UAE,Kuwait,etc., help financially since so much of the oil price hike is due to the Middle East tension, time to show solidarity in hard times after racking-in so many billions….all in all,farming decisions are at the center of the action, and organic natural foods are still the best choice for the human
Posted by: blogger | November 28th, 2007 at 6:18 pm | Report this commentrace,the youth must make sure of that , running for office if necessary.