Access to farmland at prices which reflect the potential value of the agricultural yield has become a serious challenge for the sustainability of the sector in Europe. In a small country like the Maltese Islands, land is a scarce, non-renewable resource and competition for land use is even more intense.
It is for this reason that the ministry for agriculture, fisheries and animal rights has expressed its full agreement and support for local agricultural institutions and the Chamber of Architects over the ever-increasing need to protect agricultural land.
Conventional agriculture is land-intensive and controlling the acquisition and ownership of agricultural land is a priority for European policymakers. The model of farming promoted by the Common Agricultural Policy is based on a multi-functional agriculture, characterised primarily by small- to medium-sized family and cooperative farms.
Although the amount of land used for agriculture in the EU has remained relatively stable, there has been a growing concentration of ownership, with 80 per cent of farms having the use of only 12 per cent of farmland.
In 2017, the European Parliament decreed that agricultural land should not be exchanged on an open market like other ordinary items of merchandise. Access to farmland impacted on a fundamental human right for healthy and sufficient food and a key element of the ecosystem which is vital for humans.
The European Parliament acknowledged the responsibility of member states to intervene in the market for privately owned agricultural land as it was a ‘public asset’ subject to social obligations. It added that public interest justifies market intervention, provided it is not discriminatory and respects the fundamental freedoms of all citizens. Member states were encouraged to shape land-market-regulation policies in such a way to curb the rise in farmland prices and rents through an authorisation procedure.
Unlike most other EU countries, Malta’s challenge is not increased ‘concentration’ of farmland but increased competition from other economic sectors for land use, as well as the growing trend of using agricultural land for recreational purposes.
About a quarter of arable land is privately owned and most of it is leased to farmers. Both the Knights of Malta and the British administration encouraged the offering of land to farmers under long-term leases to encourage local food production. It is estimated that some 7,500 local farmers work on agricultural land acquired from the private sector and at the time had an indefinite right of renewal on unchanged terms granted through the Agricultural Leases Act (Cap 199).
In 2020, the Maltese Constitutional Court decided that such a right of renewal was unconstitutional and breached the fundamental rights of landlords. The ministry for agriculture, fisheries and animal protection soon after launched a comprehensive reform to ensure that a new legal system be introduced which is equitable to all parties.
The other objectives of this ongoing reform are to reduce land speculation, ensure that agricultural land is used for its intended purpose, protect rural areas and generally sustain agriculture given its strategic importance to our society.
7,500 farmers work on land acquired from the private sector- Anton Refalo
In 2022, a White Paper entitled ‘Reform in the Acquisition and Ownership of Farmland’ was launched with the primary purpose that agricultural land is valued for its use and not according to the land market in general. Subsequently, a legal notice, ‘Valuation of Agricultural Land Regulations’ (LN 60 of 2023), was published to establish a standard valuation method that applies to all valuations of the open-market value of agricultural land.
The legal notice provides a methodology for increases in such leases and authorises the minister responsible for agriculture to establish and publish by means of a notice in The Malta Government Gazette the ‘base value’ of one tumolo of agricultural land. This is to be revised every five years. This methodology incorporates a common set of parameters in arriving at the ‘base value’ and is determined on the average net income yields resulting from the use of agricultural land.
In 2023, the Maltese Constitutional Court decreed that the recent changes in legislation that made it possible to increase the rent for arable land every eight years but limited it no more than 1.5 per cent to two per cent (if it included a farm), meant that there is now proportionality between the public interest and those of the landowners.
That same year, our parliament legislated the Agricultural Act with the objective of having a consolidated legislation which encompasses the various legislations in force relating to the agricultural sector and for the provision of sustainable management of the agricultural sector. This act empowered the minister to take any action deemed necessary to safeguard the proper use of agricultural land.
The Aġenzija Riżorsi Agrikoli Malta has been set up for this purpose. Its primary objective is to ensure that agricultural land continues to be cultivated and farmed by genuine farmers. The agency will strengthen control over the acquisition and possession of arable land and will keep a register on the ownership and use of land, including that leased to farmers and that farmed by the owner.
Also, this year, a legal framework was introduced which provides for the annual classification of agricultural holdings enlisting farmers according to their activity and the value of their production.
The ministry for agriculture, fisheries and animal rights reiterates its commitment to ensure the protection and proper use of agricultural land. It is envisaged that Budget 2025 will include new measures to build on what has been already achieved in this area.
Anton Refalo is the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights.