Farming – Image by Siggy Nowak on Pixabay
(BRUSSELS) – European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen launched a Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture Thursday, a new forum on the future of the EU’s farming and food system.
The Strategic Dialogue is mandated with addressing challenges and opportunities raised by participants in the Dialogue, such as a fair standard of living for farmers and rural communities, supporting agriculture within the boundaries of our planet and its ecosystems, exploiting the huge opportunities offered by knowledge and technological innovation, and promoting a thriving future for the EU’s food system in a competitive world.
The forum’s chair is the experienced Professor Peter Strohschneider, former chair of Germany’s ‘Commission for the Future of Agriculture’. “The Strategic Dialogue aims to bring together agriculture and the preservation of nature so that they go hand in hand,” he said: “I’m convinced that it is possible to reasonably balance the economic, ecological, and social aspects of the entire food system in a way that takes into account the wide variety of this field. I am very much looking forward to working together with all participants in the Strategic Dialogue.”
The Strategic Dialogue is bringing together key stakeholders from across the whole agri-food chain, including farmers, co-operatives, agri-food businesses, and rural communities; as well as non-governmental organisations and civil society representatives, financial institutions and academia. A series of thematic meetings will be organised after the launch meeting, taking place in the first half of 2024.
The EU Council and European Parliament will be involved in the process and Professor Strohschneider will regularly inform and exchange views with both institutions on the Dialogue.
By combining different perspectives, the Dialogue aims to foster the creation of new solutions and to bring about a common vision for the future of the EU agriculture and food sector by summer 2024. The chair, working in collaboration with the Dialogue participants, will define the precise format of the conclusions.
Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture - guide
Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture: Home Page
