Luis Planas stresses the strategic role of the agri-food sector in the European Union to ensure the future of the countryside

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, at the summer courses at the University of Malaga

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, has assured that the agri-food sector plays a strategic role in the new European legislature that will begin in the coming weeks. The future of rural areas depends, among other things, on a competitive, sustainable and profitable agri-food sector that takes into account generational renewal.

In fact, one of the main challenges facing the European Union (EU), according to Planas, is climate change and the achievement of sustainable food systems. In the coming years, the EU will be discussing how to increase food production while respecting the environment. On Spain's contribution to this debate, Luis Planas mentioned a key initiative for this legislature, the national food strategy to be launched this July. "It will integrate all social, economic and environmental elements to achieve quality, affordable, safe and healthy food production," Planas said.

Luis Planas today gave a master class at the summer courses of the University of Malaga under the title "Europe and the rural environment: the new European legislature" where he also addressed the challenge of competitiveness as another of the main challenges for Europe. Innovation is a key tool for combining competitiveness and sustainability. In fact, "quality, innovation and differentiation make Spain an agri-food power", according to Planas, who mentioned the 2506 research projects currently underway in the country's agri-food sector.

Another major challenge for the new Commission will be the financing of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Farmers' efforts towards different models, adapted to environmental requirements, require increased financial resources. Planas stressed that "from 2027 onwards we need significant support for the future of the primary sector". A sector that should have a budget commensurate with its strategic level. In the European Union, there are 9.1 million farms employing 8.7 million people and nearly 300,000 agri-food industries employing another 4.6 million citizens.

Luis Planas also referred to the ageing and depopulation of Europe and its rural areas. Some 83% of the EU's territory is considered rural, but it is home to only 30% of the population, with some 137 million inhabitants, most of whom are over 50 years of age. The inclusion of women and young people is essential to ensure the future of the sector. Generational replacement is a priority, as 9% of farmers and livestock farmers in Spain are under 40 years old. Therefore, rural development, said Luis Planas, must be understood in an integrated manner, taking into account various economic, social and environmental aspects.

Non official translation