On Monday, February 24th, Minister of Agriculture Armands Krauze participated in the European Union (EU) Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting in Brussels. The ministers discussed the situation in the EU agricultural and food markets, including import restrictions on Russia and Belarus, and sought the best ways to strengthen rural areas. During the meeting, the minister met also with European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen.
During their meeting, Armands Krauze and Christophe Hansen discussed budget issues for the next period. The Minister of Agriculture emphasized that the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) must continue as a separate policy with funding no less than the current level. The CAP should be simplified, but sustainability requirements must remain proportionate.
Minister of Agriculture Armands Krauze stated: “Direct payments and income support are the foundation for ensuring the industry’s stability and development. However, it is crucial to strengthen the rural development component of the common policy as an irreplaceable support for the viability of rural areas. This support is particularly needed in regions bordering Russia and Belarus to maintain economic activity in the Eastern regions. It is also strategically important for the security of the entire European Union. The Commission must continue its work on simplifying the Common Agricultural Policy, and we have also worked on a specific list of simplification proposals—both for the current period and for the policy beyond 2027. This list was submitted to the Commissioner for Agriculture, while a broader set of my proposals including other sectors was sent to Commissioner Dombrovskis.”
At the Council meeting, Latvia supported the European Commission’s (EC) recent proposal to increase import tariffs on agricultural and food products, as well as certain fertilizers from Russia and Belarus. In the future, the tariff increase should definitely include fish products and the widest possible range of fertilizers. At the same time, it is necessary to compensate farmers for the increased production costs resulting from these higher tariffs.
Latvia also urged the EC to find ways to improve the situation in the agricultural market. The Commission should take active steps to lift Russia’s transit ban on animal-origin products and to encourage third countries to recognize the regional differences for EU imports. This would restore exports from member states unaffected by foot-and-mouth disease, reduce financial losses for exporters, and halt the ongoing decline in pork prices in EU member states.
Furthermore, the increasing import of cheap, but counterfeit, honey from third countries into the EU is driving down the price of EU-produced honey, distorting the single market. The influx of low-cost Chinese honey forces local beekeepers in all member states to sell honey below cost. To preserve beekeeping in the EU, Latvia urged the EC to implement measures protecting the market from low-cost counterfeit honey.
During discussions on strengthening rural areas, Latvia also emphasized that rural communities and local residents must be involved in this process—both in planning and in implementing measures.