Time for farmers and nature to thrive - position paper

Posted on May, 26 2025

Future EU agricultural policies should support a just transition, social equity and environmental sustainability.
Europe is facing escalating climate shocks that threaten food production and expose the fragility of the current food system. These extreme weather events already cause €28.3 billion of annual average loss, a figure projected to rise to €40 billion by mid-century. While farmers bear the brunt of these impacts, science shows that intensive agriculture is a major contributor to biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution. 

In this paper, BirdLife Europe, the EEB, Greenpeace, and WWF argue that the current Common Agricultural Policy lacks legitimacy and should be replaced with a Common Agricultural, Food, and Land Stewardship Policy. This new policy would focus on a just transition and a more effective performance framework and repurpose agricultural funds in support of social equity, environmental sustainability, and a just transition. The organisations also advocate for a minimum of €35 billion annually to be allocated through the Multiannual financial framework (MFF) and national budgets for measures that protect, maintain, and restore nature.
The Common Agricultural Policy has largely failed farmers, who continue to leave the sector en masse.
© © James Morgan / WWF