Crisis sees bloc rethink on strategy for crops

The European Union's sustainable food strategy is to be reviewed because of widespread opposition across Europe's food and agriculture sector and also of the ongoing economic impact from the Ukraine conflict, with French President Emmanuel Macron saying it was based on a pre-Ukraine crisis world.

In addition to the widely publicized dependence of much of Europe on Russian energy supplies, the conflict in Ukraine has also sent the cost of fertilizer and crops such as maize soaring at the moment. Half of the maize used in the EU comes from Ukraine.

The Farming Life website called Ukraine the breadbasket of Europe and said it is the world's largest producer of sunflower oil and the fourth-largest producer of potatoes, exporting crops to the EU.

Supply disruptions

In light of the disruption these supply lines will face, Europe needs to review its approach to agriculture, with widespread complaints about the proposed new policy coming from Spain and Italy and France, where Macron is running for reelection.

Two years ago, it was agreed that there should be a new bloc-wide approach to farming, to get carbon emissions down to net-zero by the year 2050. But the urgency of the new situation means this may have to change, with EU agriculture ministers meeting on Monday to discuss this.

French agriculture minister Julien Denormandie said it has led some countries to question the transition to a new EU farming policy, but that did not mean it should not happen.

"There is a desire to make sure that the objectives we have in our public policy are consistent with the need for food security," an EU diplomat told the Financial Times.

The EU food strategy, known as Farm to Fork, is part of the European Green Deal and was billed as "aiming to make food systems fair, healthy and environmentally friendly".

"Food systems cannot be resilient to crises… if they are not sustainable," stated the official description of the policy.

One of the most controversial innovations suggested by Pekka Pesonen, secretary-general of the EU farmers' lobby group Copa Cogeca, is to boost productivity in an emission-friendly way by allowing gene editing of plants and animals.

However, pressure groups are calling on him to resist being steered too far away from his values. "Watering down the Farm to Fork strategy and its policies will maintain Europe's dependence on nonrenewable energy sources like fossil fuels, and will go against what is needed right now to secure food for all," said a letter from the Food Policy Coalition.

Agencies contributed to this story.