MEPs on the European Parliament's agriculture committee have agreed a stance against tightening of emissions permit rules for farms across the EU.

In a meeting this week, the committee voted in favour of an opinion on possible revisions to the Industrial Emission Directive (IED).

The current version of the IED came into effect around this time two years ago; after much debate at EU level, the IED expanded to cover more pig and poultry farm, but farm organisations were successful in keeping cattle farms out of its scope.

The IED sets thresholds on livestock units on a holding; above that number, the farm needs an emissions permit to do business.

It was agreed that, by the end of 2026, the European Commission will publish a report with "solutions" to more comprehensively address the emissions from the rearing of livestock, in particular cattle.

This left open the possibility that cattle farming could subsequently be brought under the scope of the IED eventually through a new legislative proposal from the commission.

The commission now appears to be formulating possible changes to the IED; changes that have drawn the ire of the parliament's agriculture committee.

The committee's stance got the backing of EU farm organisation Copa Cogeca, which said that the committee's position confirms the view that the scope of livestock activities covered by the IED was not appropriate in a directive meant to target "large industrial polluters".

Copa also said that the committee's opinion supported its own position of calling for simplification of the IED as it applied to livestock farming; and highlights the problems that the commission's revisions "would cause on the ground".

The committee supported returning to the IED's original thresholds for poultry and pig farming of 40,000 for poultry, 2,000 for pigs (excluding sows), and 750 for sows.

The committee also backed a simplified registration procedure; digital processing; and removing "duplication" of information already provided by farmers under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Copa Cogeca called on the parliament's environment committee to take account of the agriculture committee's opinion and follow suit.

"Livestock farming should not be treated as an industrial activity by default, and simplification must protect the viability, competitiveness and diversity of European farms," Copa said.

The farm organisation warned that, if left unchanged at the end of the legislative process, the newly-revised IED would "impose disproportionate administrative, financial and investment requirements on family farms and other small and medium-sized operators".