As of: February 29, 2024, 2:52 p.m
By: Stefan Schmid
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The obligation to set aside agricultural land is suspended.
The farmers' association rejoices, the WWF speaks of a “slap in the face” for biodiversity.
Berlin/Brussels – Cem Özdemir, Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture, was under enormous pressure.
Until the last day, he sought a compromise to abolish the obligation to set aside agricultural land.
In the end, he and his party colleague from the Greens, Steffi Lemke, failed with their compromise proposal.
A failure for the Greens - and a triumph for the German Farmers' Association and probably also the FDP.
Areas for species protection are no longer available: Özdemir gives in
According to the GLÖZ-8 standard, four percent of arable land in the European Union must be reserved for fallow or other uncultivated agricultural elements.
However, the EU Commission has made an exception possible for the current year 2024.
The member states had to submit the decision as to whether they would like to make use of this exemption to the Commission by Thursday (February 29th), 11:59 p.m.
Özdemir didn't wait until the last minute.
Around twelve hours before the deadline, he informed Brussels that Germany would implement the exemption.
This means that farmers can use their agricultural land up to the last hectare.
Instead of the previous four hectares of mandatory fallow land, they are now allowed to grow protein plants and catch crops there, although the use of plant protection products is not permitted.
Steffi Lemke and Cem Özdemir failed with their compromise proposal on the EU species protection area.
© IMAGO / photo library
Conservationists criticize the decision, while the farmers' association cheers
By fully accepting the EU exemption, Özdemir is meeting the demands of the German Farmers' Association.
Joachim Rukwied, President of the association, welcomed the decision in a statement: "The federal government has understood that we farmers will not accept any further disadvantage and thus a weakening of competitiveness." He also expects that "equality of competition" will be taken into account in future political decisions .
Environmentalists, on the other hand, were critical of the decision.
In an initial press release, the WWF described the decision as a “slap in the face to the protection of biodiversity”.
Michael Berger, agricultural officer at the WWF, is of the opinion that the traffic light government is “running after the populists” and “playing with tomorrow’s food security”.
He demands from Özdemir “that the protection of biodiversity be supported significantly more extensively through voluntary measures within the CAP.” CAP means the “EU Common Agricultural Policy”.
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The Greens' compromise proposal probably failed because of the FDP
The unrestricted implementation of the EU Commission's offer in Germany can be seen as a defeat for Steffi Lemke, the Environment Minister.
Together with Özdemir, she had drawn up a compromise proposal that also envisaged the abolition of the four percent compulsory fallow rate.
At the same time, however, funds should be raised for additional environmental services, three new eco-regulations should be introduced from 2025 and the area bonus of 150 euros per hectare should be slightly reduced.
The proposal probably failed because of the coalition partner FDP, while the SPD is said to have been satisfied with the compromise.
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