EU 'must make this target mandatory' to tackle generational crisis - Walsh
Funding targets within the European Commission’s new Strategy for Generational Renewal in Agriculture must be made mandatory if young farmers are to have hope for the future, a Fine Gael MEP has said.
The strategy, published today by European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, proposes to double the share of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funding for young farmers from 3% to 6%.
However, unlike the current requirement, this new target is non-binding, raising concerns that national governments can ignore it if they so choose.
According to Midlands-North West MEP Maria Walsh, the average age of Irish farmers stands at 58 years, while only 4% are aged under 35.
Walsh, who is a full member of the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee, said: “Aspirational doesn’t mean much if it’s not written into law.
"Moving from a mandatory 3% level of funding to a non-binding 6% is welcome but doesn’t go far enough; we need binding commitments over mere aspirations.
“If the EU is serious about tackling the generational crisis in farming, it must make this target mandatory.
"Without binding commitments, we risk another decade of empty promises while more family farms disappear."
Generational renewal
The MEP also highlighted that the crisis facing Ireland’s young farmers "goes beyond agriculture" and stressed that this is about the future of our rural communities.
She added: "Every time a family farm closes, a young person is forced to leave, a local school loses pupils, and a village loses jobs."
Walsh noted that every member state had been tasked to come up with their own Generational Renewal Strategy, which she referred to as "a welcome and practical proposal" from the Commission.
"Thanks to the foresightedness of my colleague Minister Martin Heydon, Ireland is already ahead of nearly every other EU country on this," she added.
"Last month, the minister published a set of recommendations to strengthen generational renewal - ideas which I know influenced what we’re seeing from the Commission today.
“However, good intentions won’t keep young people in farming without predictability and long-term security in the next CAP reform.
"Young farmers aren’t asking for handouts - they’re asking for a fair shot. To plan and invest, they need clear rules, stable policies and access to affordable land. You can’t build a future on shifting ground.
“We have the strategy, now we need the structure. If the EU truly wants to double the number of young farmers by 2040, that ambition needs to be reflected in binding funding, not just words on a page," the MEP said.
