EU farming lobby groups, alongside Belgian national organizations, are set to protest in the streets of Brussels next Tuesday against a proposed plan to merge the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) into a megafund to be managed on a national level.
Scheduled for May 20, the demonstration is being organized by Copa and Cogeca, which have expressed strong opposition to the "dissolution of the CAP into a single fund" and any further moves toward renationalization. In a statement released on Tuesday, the organizations called for a "pan-European flash action," with similar protests anticipated at the national level within Belgium.
The protest is backed by farmers' organizations from Walloon (FWA/UAW) and Flemish (BoerenBond) groups, highlighting a unified front against the proposed reforms.
Tensions within the EU farming sector have been escalating in recent weeks, particularly in anticipation of the initial debate regarding the post-2027 budget, which will involve discussions with Ursula von der Leyen and her commissioners. This debate is scheduled to take place tomorrow.
A senior official from the European Commission announced on Monday that the reform of the CAP is expected to be introduced on July 16, either in conjunction with the main EU budget proposal or shortly thereafter.
In their statement, the organizations asserted that the proposed changes are "another idea farmers cannot accept," especially in the absence of clarity regarding resources, governance, and proper consultation with the agricultural sector.
