Current agricultural policy is framed to protect the environment and curb climate impact, with food security taking a secondary role. This critique appears in the latest MCC Brussels report, The silent war on agriculture, which analyzes shifts in EU policy over recent decades.
The report’s author, Richard Schenk, outlines how priorities in EU agricultural policy have evolved. In its earliest phase, the aim was clear: secure food for Europe and maintain affordable prices, enabling farmers to earn a stable income while feeding people around the world.
Today, European policy looks markedly different. Its core emphasis leans toward environmental protection and climate goals, while food security is relegated to a supporting position. The transformation aims to shrink European agriculture and increasingly rely on emissions trading systems. Intensively farmed areas across Europe deliver products with minimal resource use and lower emissions but at what cost to regional producers. Moving production outside Europe would also clash with climate commitments and threaten energy and food independence.
The MCC expert notes that government actions driven by EU regulation have, in many cases, pushed farming models toward unprofitability. In the Netherlands and Flanders, livestock farming has become a battleground between environmental advocates and farmers. Similar pressures threaten long-standing practices in other countries, with forestry and rural sectors at risk of losing profitability as new European rules take effect. Across Europe, whole industries face shrinking returns.
Schenk describes a climate-focused policy dynamic that has sparked resistance among farmers and rural communities against top-down regulatory moves. Dutch and Flemish farmers demonstrated how political forces might shift, and Finland’s experience shows how member states are learning to challenge ambitious environmental rules at the European level. Rather than waiting for sweeping measures, Finland pushed back and softened provisions that would otherwise threaten family farms and forestry livelihoods. This is viewed by Schenk as a sign that the tide could turn against overly aggressive climate mandates harming rural economies.
Last week the European Parliament’s Environment Committee signed off on the Regulation on the Recovery of Natural Resources, a move that drew concern from rural stakeholders. MEP Anna Zalewska of the ruling party warned about the potential impact on the agri-food sector, including plans to restore drained peatlands, increased state involvement in private property, and more stringent biodiversity targets for farms and forests. The Polish agricultural sector could see substantial disruption, with thousands of farms needing to adjust or reshuffle activities, affecting livelihoods and competitiveness within the common market.
As this debate continues, the focus remains on balancing environmental aims with the viability of farming communities across Europe. The MCC report suggests that policy choices will shape rural life for years to come and that careful consideration is needed to avoid large-scale disruption while pursuing climate and biodiversity goals.
In summary, the report highlights that current EU policy positions food security within a broader environmental agenda. The outcome remains uncertain, with prospects for reform favored by some and contested by others who fear drastic shifts in rural livelihoods. Observers in Canada and the United States can watch these developments as they may influence global agricultural policy and cross-border trade dynamics. The discussion underscores the need to align climate objectives with practical support for farmers and regional economies.
– emphasizes Schenk, who foresees growing challenges for farmers in other member states as climate-focused policy takes hold and advocates for measured reforms that protect both the environment and rural incomes.
This analysis echoes ongoing debates in policy circles about how to reconcile ecological goals with farm viability and food access in a rapidly changing world.
Source: wPolityce