With geopolitical tensions in the Middle East lasting, farmers and agri-cooperatives across the EU are facing mounting pressure on costs, markets, and supply chains, adding to an already fragile situation. While agriculture Ministers gathered under the Cypriot Presidency of Minister Panayiotou to discuss agri-climate risk management, Copa and Cogeca stressed that this debate cannot be disconnected from the current geopolitical crisis. Since Russia invaded Ukraine, fertiliser prices have remained structurally high. The Middle East crisis is now driving new increases in energy, fuel, feed, packaging, and logistics costs, further undermining farm viability.
Massimiliano Giansanti, Copa President, warned: "Without agriculture, there is no stability. Farmers are being crushed from all sides by high costs, weak markets, and external shocks. If Europe fails to act now, the consequences will not only severely hit European farms but also every consumer. A food crisis is on the horizon, and we cannot afford to wait."
Copa and Cogeca acknowledge the initial EU responses, such as the Temporary Crisis Energy Framework and AccelerateEU plan, but insist these measures are far from being sufficient. The EU must act now and look to the future to secure the sector's continued production and guarantee food security and stability. The EU Fertilisers Action Plan, due on 19 May, must be bold and comprehensive, delivering immediate, medium, and long-term solutions.
Agriculture is a strategic pillar of Europe's security and resilience. "If we expect farmers and cooperatives to manage growing climate and market risks, we must equip them properly. Preventing a food crisis requires decisive action today, massive long-term investment and a regulatory framework that strengthens, not weakens, EU farming sector competitiveness and resilience", Lennart Nilsson, Cogeca President, concluded. "Europe must act with vigour, ambition, and unity, or risk paying a far higher price tomorrow."
For more information:
Patrick Pagani 
Copa-Cogeca
Email: [email protected]
www.copa-cogeca.eu
Maëlle Mabecque
Copa-Cogeca
Tel: +32 484 20 33 49
Email: [email protected]
