LUXEMBOURG: Agricultural policy not headed for “revolution” – Fischler

Franz Fischler, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, is paying a visit to Luxembourg today [Monday] and tomorrow in order to discuss with the Luxembourg Government the Commission proposals for the mid-term review of the common agricultural policy (CAP). At a press conference, Fischler said that the Commission was not intending to being about a "revolution" of agricultural policy. "Both the agricultural budget and the goals of the CAP have been left untouched. The mid-term review will have a positive impact on Luxembourg in several respects: farmers' incomes and the future of farms will be safeguarded. We are helping farmers to produce for the market instead of intervention stocks. Farmers in Luxembourg will benefit in particular from the reinforcement of rural development policy since the country's farmland is located almost exclusively in less-favoured areas. And we are taking account of the interests of the many small farmers by fully exempting them from modulation. But the citizens of Luxembourg will also acquire greater confidence in agricultural policy since we intend to promote quality rather than quantity in future."