Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman has been elected as a vice-president of Copa, the European umbrella group of farming organisations.
The president’s committee met today (Friday, September 27) in a plenary session in Brussels, where a new president was also elected.
On his election, Gorman said: “So many decisions are made in Brussels. As well as having our own IFA office in Brussels, being part of Copa allows us to influence overall EU agricultural policy”.
The IFA president said the next common agricultural policy (CAP) will be significant in terms of the future of Irish agriculture.
“We will work with Copa to have a strong input in how the CAP is designed. Supporting food production has to come front and centre, and climate ambition has to be funded outside of this,” Gorman said.
Copa also elected Massimiliano Giansanti from Italy as president to suceed Christiane Lambert from France.
Copa president
Giansanti has been the President of Confagricoltura since 2017 and a Vice-President of Copa since 2020.
On his election, Giansanti said: “My presidency will focus on five key priorities: a strong CAP with an adequate budget, a fairer food chain, a coherent trade policy, a new approach to the Green Deal, and a strong emphasis on innovation.
“These priorities all have a common goal: to strengthen the income, competitiveness and attractiveness of our agriculture.”
Giansanti will be supported by the following vice presidents: Nikolaus Berlakovich (LKÖ, Austria); Søren Søndergard (DAFC, Denmark); Franck Sander (FNSEA, France); Pedro Barato (ASAJA, Spain); and Jan Doležal (AKCR, Czech Republic).
Outgoing Copa President, Christiane Lambert said: “I know Massimiliano Giansanti very well, having worked closely with him, and I am confident that under his leadership, alongside the new team, COPA will continue to be a strong advocate for European farmers”.
Gorman said he is “looking forward” to working with the new president, and described the IFA’s membership and role in Copa as “important”.