Strategic Dialogue Report Shapes Future EU Agricultural Policy

The final report of the Strategic Dialogue on the future of EU agriculture (SDA) was officially delivered Sept. 4 to European Commission by President Ursula von der Leyen. This marks a crucial milestone in shaping a new EU agri-food policy that prioritizes innovation and competitiveness as key drivers of both economic and environmental sustainability, according to a Euroseeds press release.

Launched by President von der Leyen in January, the SDA has facilitated intensive discussions over the past six months. Chaired by Professor Peter Strohschneider, the dialogue engaged representatives from 30 diverse organizations, including financial institutions, farmer groups, industries, and NGOs. The resulting report, over 100 pages long, reflects the wide range of perspectives and opinions from the group.

During a joint press conference, President von der Leyen emphasized the report’s significance as a foundation for the “vision for agriculture” she first announced during the early days of her Commission. This vision aims to chart a new course for EU agricultural policy, balancing the needs of sustainability with economic growth, the release notes.

“It is obvious that not all participants share all the views expressed and all the recommendations put forward in this report. It is very much a compromise text that contains a lot of language offering different angles for interpretation,” Garlich von Essen, Secretary and CEO of Euroseeds, commented following the press conference.

Euroseeds was represented on the SDA by its President Michael Gohn and provided both its general views to the discussions and its specific expertise in relation to the potential of plant breeding and other innovative technologies for a better future for Europe’s agriculture.

The report itself is more than one hundred pages long and the breadth of views and differences of opinion are clearly noticeable. This reflects the very diverse composition of the group which was made up by the representatives of 30 different stakeholder organisations encompassing financial institutions, farmer organisations, industries and NGOs.

“There was clear agreement that agriculture and food are of strategic importance for Europe,” von Essen said.

“This is an important achievement of the SDA itself and sets a new baseline for the EU. But we also must acknowledge that quite diverging views remain on what policy choices Europe should make in re-shaping its approach to agriculture. As Euroseeds, we remain convinced that new technologies, innovative products and services hold much potential to enable a truly competitive and sustainable European agri-food sector. Freeing that potential will require concrete policy choices and consequent regulatory action during this new Commission term. We hope that today marks the start of a transition that we expect to become much more concrete in the ‘Vision for Agriculture’ announced by President von der Leyen.”