Nature - Agriculture Minister issues caution over weakening set standards.
Tobias Goldschmidt, the Environmental Minister of Schleswig-Holstein, has issued a warning against weakening environmental regulations in agriculture. He emphasized that any supposed easing for farming should not hinder the shift towards eco-friendly, organic farming. He spoke to the German Press Agency before the Environmental Minister Conference in Rhineland-Palatinate on Wednesday. The Schleswig-Holstein government has proposed a motion for the conference to reinforce the need for increased protection of the natural foundations of human existence.
During the spring, the environmental standards of EU agricultural subsidies were fiercely contested and ultimately abandoned due to farmers' protests. With the ongoing negotiations on a Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) from 2023 at the European level, the achieved accord has been unexpectedly revealed by the EU.
If Germany were to implement these new regulations, according to the minister, it would set back environmental and climate protection standards by a decade. Moreover, the requirement for farmers to possess four percent of fallow land has been repealed, while they can once again grow crops like corn exhaustively on the same plot. However, monocultures are detrimental to the environment, the minister indicated.
Consequently, Goldschmidt urges financial motivations for farmers to allocate at least four percent of their agriculturally productive land for biodiversity conservation. Moreover, the EU's agricultural subsidy framework needs to be revamped. The minister suggests income-driven social commitments for farmers, ensuring their income as well as the sustainability of biodiversity, the atmosphere, and the soil.
"The EU agricultural subsidy is misconceived as an unrestricted income source for agriculture," Goldschmidt clarified. However, under these conditions, it no longer justifies its purpose. Instead, the funds should be directed toward accommodating climate change, replenishing nature, and safeguarding the environment. The present agricultural subsidy system has become antiquated, he added.
