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Copa-Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen insisted "We are pleased to see that some of our demands were taken on board by Parliaments’ Agriculture Committee last January and urge the full set of MEPs to support them in their vote at plenary session next week. In particular, we are pressing for increased flexibility vis a vis measures to further green the CAP and more incentives for farmers to achieve green growth. We have serious concerns that the EU will be the only state that will be cutting back on its agricultural potential at a time when there are major worries about food security. World food demand is expected to rise by 70% by 2050 and market volatility is on the increase. That is why the EU Commission proposals to reduce the amount of land in production by as much as 7%, with no clear environmental benefit, makes no sense and must be revised in the vote by Parliament next week".

In addition, Copa-Cogeca opposes any transfers of funds from the first to the second pillar of the CAP which has been proposed. The first pillar of the CAP will be more important than ever if the EU is to ensure food security, stability and sustainability. We are also concerned that member states will be able to give very different levels of funds to different measures which could cause serious distortions of competition between member states. We meanwhile welcome the Agriculture Committee move to reinforce farmers position in the food chain by strengthening producer organisations and cooperatives to enable farmers to get a better return from the market and urge the full set to MEPs to support this. Efficient measures to manage the market and to help farmers and cooperatives deal with the extreme market volatility are vital under the new CAP. We also urge MEPs to vote in favour of regulating the EU wine production potential.

Farmers across Europe are united in their call for a strong CAP, in response to societys demands for safe, secure, sustainably produced high quality food supplies at affordable prices. Agriculture is vital for ensuring growth and employment in rural areas, with nearly 40 million jobs provided by the agri-food sector. Without the CAP, it is clear that a vast number of jobs would be lost.  It represents good value for money.