The European Commission today (Friday, June 12) revealed details of a major support package to help farmers battling the fertiliser crisis, with a potential new €1.5 billion in financial aid.

The commission has also proposed new Common Agricultural Policy flexibilities to speed up access to supports.

The European Commission aims to provide financial relief to help farmers who need to buy fertilisers by providing an immediate package of €540 million.

Member states will be able to top this up by up to 200% of national funds - which would bring the total available financial support to a potential total of €1.5 billion.

Earlier this week the EU Budget Commissioner, Piotr Serafin, outlined the commission's proposal to increase the agricultural reserve for 2026 by €300 million.

"We also propose to reinforce the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund by €140 million," the commissioner said.

Fertiliser aid

In addition to this the commission is also proposing "targeted adjustments" to CAP which would let member states provide farmers with faster and more flexible support to access fertilisers.

These measures include:

a new liquidity scheme under rural development for crisis support:
the option for member states to pay direct payments to farmers earlier:
and the possibility for member states to adjust their direct payment budget for calendar year 2027.

CAP

Under the commission's proposals to support farmers secure fertiliser the new liquidity scheme can be co-financed up to 65% from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and include unused funds that may otherwise be lost.

Member states may also add national financing of up to 200%. 

The commission has detailed that "to ensure rapid delivery and minimise administrative burdens" support can be paid as a fixed amount per hectare and implemented through the CAP Strategic Plans.

Specifically in relation to advanced direct payments to farmers, member states will also have the possibility to provide them before October, 16 "with an increased rate of advances, helping them to improve cashflow," according to the commission.

The proposal published today also sets out that member states would have further flexibility to deal with the impact of the high fertiliser prices, by "adjusting their allocations for direct payments" for calendar year 2027.

The commission's proposed targeted CAP legislative amendments will now be sent to the European Parliament and the Council for their approval.

The agricultural reserve proposal with overall financial relief of €540 million will be submitted for a vote to member states in the Committee on the Common Organisation of the Markets.

If agreed it could be in place by end of July.

EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, Christophe Hansen, said today that support must reach farmers who need to buy fertilisers for the next sowing season and "secure their future harvests".

"I count on the co-legislators to treat them as a matter of urgency so that this support can be delivered without delay.

"Now is the time to choose our food security, our strategic autonomy and our competitiveness. Europe is standing firmly by the side of its farmers and taking decisive action to safeguard the foundations of our food production," the commissioner said.