Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon has said there is a "balance we're going to have to strike" when it comes to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

This week, the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen told EU agriculture ministers that the CAP must show it is a "policy of the future" to secure funding.

He also told the meeting that, in his view, the current trend in negotiations on the next CAP is too focused on flexibility for member states, and not focused enough on the "commonality" of the policy across the EU.

Responding to the comments on flexibility and commonality, Minister Heydon told Agriland that "the concern being expressed by Commissioner Hansen, I kind of share as well".

"We have to get a balance right between that flexibility of member states - or what's called subsidiarity - but not undermining the strength of us all being part of a common market and also all working to a relatively similar set of rules," Minister Heydon said.

"What I've talked about in terms of flexibility really is about me having enough ability to design interventions that are appropriate for the Irish farming system, and take due recognition of the fact that Ireland farms differently to many other European countries.

"We all have our own way of farming to an extent."

'Delicate' negotiations

He said there will be "very delicate negotiations" in the coming months.

"We have to balance that Ireland can have rules that are more appropriate to the Irish farming system than Slovenia or Slovakia or wherever, but that similarly we all don't have a renationalisation of the CAP and that every country goes back to doing its own thing.

"That would be bad for our farmers too.

"It nearly sounds contradictory to say we want to protect the common market but you also need flexibility.

"There's a sweet spot in the middle there that we have to get to and I look forward to working with Commissioner Hansen and all my colleagues in the AgriFish Council to deliver that."

Presidency

Minister Heydon has previously said that Ireland will use its presidency of the Council of the EU to try to secure increased funding for the CAP.

Ireland will hold the presidency of the council from July 1 to December 31, and during that time the EU budget from 2028 to 2034 - and therefore the CAP budget for the same period - will be top of the agenda.

During the six months of Ireland's presidency, Minister Heydon will chair the monthly meetings of agriculture ministers.

Bioeconomy

The minister was speaking at an event in Co. Tipperary today (Thursday, June 25) launching the "first of its kind" National Biorefinery Pilot Plant and BioScaleUp bioeconomy initiative.

The launch forms part of a wider programme of bioeconomy events in 2026, leading towards Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2026.

This will focus on the hosting of the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2026 in the Convention Centre Dublin in October as part of Ireland’s Presidency of the EU Council.