Ahead of a meeting of his European Union peers in Brussels on Monday, István Nagy, Minister of Agriculture, highlighted the importance of a farmer-focused, farmer-friendly common agricultural policy in the period after 2027.
Minister Nagy, who is chairing the Agriculture and Fisheries Council as Hungary holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, said the text approved by the Council acknowledged the need to boost farming productivity while ensuring living standards for farmers, stabilising markets and guaranteeing affordable prices for consumers.
He said a discussion of fishing opportunities in the Mediterranean and Black Seas would takes place at the meeting, adding that quotas established on the basis of scientific results were "extraordinarily low".
Reports will also be delivered on a forest monitoring framework, biomass-based development and the BIOEAST initiative for cooperation on food security and agricultural sustainability in Central and Eastern Europe, he said. The ministers will also hear the results of a European apiculture sector conference, he added.
The two-day Agriculture and Fisheries Council meeting will be the last during Hungary's EU presidency.