Agenda Landbouwraad Mei 2005: omvang subsidies, aardappelmeel (en)

The Agriculture & Fisheries Council will meet in Brussels on Monday 30 (starting at 11 a.m.) and Tuesday 31 May, under the Presidency of Mr Fernand Boden, Minister for Agriculture, Viticulture and Rural Development of Luxembourg.

No Fisheries points are on the agenda.

Tuesday 31 May will be devoted to trilateral meetings between the Presidency, the Commission and all delegations on the rural development Regulation. These meetings will serve to explore possibilities for compromising on a number of core issues and to take note of the remaining key points some Member States still want to make. The idea is to have a final discussion and adoption of the Regulation in the June Council. The basis for the discussion in June will be a compromise paper to be prepared after the trilateral meetings.

The Agriculture points on the May agenda are:

Financing of the CAP

On 14 July 2004, the Commission adopted a proposal for a Council Regulation on the financing of the common agricultural policy (see COM(2004) 489 ). The purpose of the proposal is to establish a single legal framework for financing the common agricultural policy. To that end, this proposal sets up two funds: a European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) (or FEAGA) and a European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (or FEADER).

This draft regulation creates the legal bases for financing the different measures covered by those two funds, including the technical assistance necessary for the establishment and monitoring of the CAP. The financing of some measures under the CAP involves shared management between the Commission and the MS. It seemed appropriate, therefore, to specify the terms of the Commission's responsibilities for implementing the general EU budget and to clarify the MS' cooperation obligations.

The Council is expected to reach a political agreement on this Regulation.

Risk and crisis management in agriculture

On 9 March 2005, the Commission adopted a communication that reports on risk and crisis management tools available in the Member States and at EU level ( IP/05/274 ). The document also looks at possible new measures to help farmers in the European Union manage risk and to provide an improved response to crises in the agricultural sector. Three options - agricultural insurance, mutual funds and an income crisis tool - are presented for discussion.

Recent reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) encourage European farmers to be more market orientated. However, crises caused by natural disasters, livestock diseases or plant pests, or economic circumstances, may endanger a farm's viability or even affect the economic stability of an entire rural area.

The Council will have a discussion on the report and will adopt Presidency conclusions.
For details, see on the internet at:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/agriculture/publi/communications/risk/index_en.htm

Potato starch production quota

A Council Regulation of 1994 establishes a quota system for potato starch products. Current quotas are fixed until the end of 2004/2005 marketing year (30 June 2005). The Regulation also foresees a report from the Commission on the allocation of quotas, accompanied with the appropriate proposals

Together with this report, the Commission adopted on 6 December 2004 a proposal for a Council Regulation extending the current quotas to the marketing years 2005/06 and 2006/07 (see IP/04/1441 and COM(2004) 772 ). The underlying argument for the proposed status quo lies in the fact that it is too early to assess the effects of the reform of the CAP and of enlargement of the EU, on the potato starch sector. A correct assessment of the initial effects of these aspects will only be possible within two years.

The Council is expected to adopt this Regulation.

AOB

• Use of fur and pelt production of animals, mainly dogs and cats, which have undergone acute suffering.
• Biofuels
• Approval procedure for new