EU farmers to benefit from simplified CAP rules

More than nine million EU farmers are set to benefit from simplified rules under the current Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) period.

The provisional agreement was reached by members of the European Parliament and the Danish presidency of the council on Monday (10 November) and aims to alleviate some of the administrative and regulatory burdens on farmers.

The deal is expected to provide more flexibility for farmers to maintain land in good agricultural and environmental condition, limit inspections to no more than once a year, and offer higher maximum levels of financial support for some farmers.

See also: Analysis: Post-Brexit farm support – how is Defra spending the money?

Pending approval from both the council and parliament, it could come into force as soon as 1 January 2026.

“The European Parliament has shown that it’s possible to make the CAP fairer, clearer, and closer to the people who work the land every day,” said spokesman Andre Rodrigues.

Mr Rodrigues added that this agreement brings more support for farmers, more efficient rules for national authorities, and clearer environmental guidance.

This, he said, would encourage good practices “instead of being punished by confusion or red tape”.

Environmental requirements

To safeguard biodiversity and avoid farmers having to plough their land every five to seven years, which is costly and time-consuming, the MEPs agreed that land classified as “arable” on 1 January 2026 will keep that status even if it hasn’t been recently ploughed, tilled, or reseeded.

Farmers certified as “organic” will also be automatically considered compliant with several requirements to maintain land in good agricultural and environmental condition for the parts of their holdings that are organic and in-conversion to organic.

With regard to inspections, MEPs successfully defended the “once-only” principle proposed by the EU Commission, whereby farmers should not have to undergo more than one official on-the-spot check in any given year.

The support ceiling for small farmers is also set to be raised to an annual payment of up to €3,000 (£2,649) rather than the €2,500 (£2,207) proposed by the commission.

There is also a new one-off payment for business development of up to €75,000 (£66,219), up from the proposed €50,000 (£44,146).

A positive step

NFU deputy president David Exwood said that while the preliminary agreement on CAP simplification will not directly impact farmers in England and Wales, it represents a positive step for many farmers across Europe.

“It also highlights the importance of giving farmers the time to focus on what they do best – caring for the land and producing food. We hope our government takes note of these developments,” he said.