Local farmers need to become more politically active and get involved in decisions that impact Malta’s food security and their future, an expert on the EU’s common agricultural policy has urged.
“In Bulgaria, farmers realised they needed to unite to fight for their interests,” said former Bulgarian MEP Petya Stavreva, who now chairs the United Agrarians political party in her country.
“Over the years they have registered their own political parties to participate in policymaking on a national and European level.”
She was speaking to Times of Malta ahead of the deadline for EU countries to submit their proposals for a new common agricultural policy. She is a frequent visitor to Malta and often meets stakeholders in the agriculture sector.
In June, European negotiators agreed on the need to reform the policy, aiming to foster a sustainable sector that can support the livelihoods of farmers and healthy food for society.
Member states have until the end of the year to submit their policy proposals for 2023-2027, and the European Commission will then have six months to assess and approve plans.
Under the proposals, EU countries will have to dedicate at least 10 per cent of direct payments to better address the needs of small and medium-sized farms such as those run by families in Malta. They will also have to invest at least three per cent of their budget in young farmers.
Stavreva is optimistic that the focus on young farmers and small farms will make the Maltese agricultural sector sustainable in the long run.
“In the past, member states needed to abide by a blanket framework imposed by the European Union, but now every country has the opportunity to develop its own plan for rural development and tailormade subsidies for farmers.”
Each country has its own needs. In Bulgaria, for example, rose farmers were among the hardest hit by COVID. Demand for rose oil dropped and the prices for rose flowers plummeted to less than €1 per kilo.
Many farmers left them to rot in fields as it was not worth harvesting them.
But the farmers were protected by a recently enacted law that they themselves had pushed for, Stavreva noted, and they eventually received subsidies to remain afloat.
“Protecting farmers is a matter of national security. Many – especially those complaining about farmers receiving subsidies – don’t realise that the funds that farmers receive go into improving the quality of the food that lands on their table.”
Fellow activist Mario Gerada, from the conservation NGO Nadir, noted that until COVID hit, people would laugh at those raising the alarm over food security in Malta. Thankfully, respect for farmers had grown over the past 20 months as people realised they could no longer rely on imported food, he said.
However, many farmers here still felt marginalised.
“Environmental NGOs and the Għaqda Bdiewa Maltin are doing an excellent job in raising awareness about farmers’ hardships, including access to land. However, farmers themselves also need to safeguard their own interests and land by becoming more politically literate,” he said.
“This means that rather than be completely dependent on government entities to speak on their behalf, they understand better what’s being negotiated between Malta and Brussels and influence that process to ensure that decisions are tailormade for Maltese farmers.”