Agroforestry and Simplification of the CAP

Policy Briefing #70 v2 considers the impact of the removal of the GAEC8 landscape feature area targets by the 14/5/24 CAP Simplification Regulation (2024/1468).  In principle, the replacement of the “stick” approach in the original GAEC8, with the “carrot” of additional eco-scheme funding was commendable.  However, broad-brush country-level statistics (R.34, R14.4, I.21) cannot demonstrate that the carrot is working.  The principle of “collect data once but use many times” could demonstrate an effect, but cannot happen until MS follow the guidance of the Strategic Dialogue for Agriculture and  “prioritise and work towards a transparent data governance model with clear rules on data ownership, interoperability and ethical use”.  

Almost 20 years after entry into force of the EU INSPIRE Directive (2007/2/EC), many Member States or regions are still withholding access to IACS parcel-level data on policy measures and indicators.  This geospatial data is needed to prove the effectiveness, or not, of specific interventions. The carrot of small eco-scheme payments for woody landscape features is unlikely to be sufficient at a time when some MS still refer to landscape feature trees as “unproductive” and prohibit farmers from feeding their branches to livestock! 

Alternative sources of finance are crucial and the role of productive woody landscape features in carbon-farming will soon become vital for farmers throughout Europe, especially when combined with price-premia for their biodiversity benefits. This optimistic future should be possible with a new, data-driven, and low-bureaucracy approach to CAP simplification.

EURAF has submitted a proposal to DGAGRI showing how CAP ecoschemes, investment measures and agri-environment measures can be combined and simplified as a "starter pack" to help establish a voluntarily-certified agroforestry carbon farming scheme in all Member States.

The final section gives a list of 19 conclusions and recommendations related to simplification of the CAP and related legislation.

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