Briefing
The Junta de Castilla y León and the farming organisations based in the region called on Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) to make the implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) more flexible in the short term. They cite “increased production costs” and an expected difficult starting position for the upcoming sowing campaign, which makes planning crop rotations and sowing windows more difficult.
The regional government notes that it has already introduced its own measures, including reducing the area required to be rotated and counting Fallow land following the cultivation of Legumes. At the same time, the organisations are calling on the Ministry to provide legal clarity or more precise guidance nationwide, so that these adjustments do not apply only at regional level.
Specifically, they are calling for a more pragmatic interpretation of the Crop rotation requirement, recognition of fallow land following legumes, and greater flexibility with regard to Eco-schemes, so that farms can respond at short notice to price movements, pest pressure or weather risks without losing aid. Representatives such as Valentín García (UCCL) and David Garrido (Alianza UPA-COAG) stressed that the great diversity of agricultural land in Castile and León requires differentiated rules. At the same time, they pointed out that the aim is not to suspend environmental requirements entirely, but to strike a balance between flexibility for farms and environmental objectives.
At the time of the regional statement, Agriculture Minister Luis Planas had not issued an official nationwide response; the Junta urged him to “take the initiative”, as regional minister Joaquín Antonio Pino put it. Pino also criticised the forthcoming digital farm logbook and called for the rules to be applied in a practical, less bureaucratic way.
If the Ministry issues guidance at short notice, farmers in Castile and León could make more precise decisions on crop types and sowing dates in line with agronomic and economic realities, without jeopardising their eligibility for support under the Common Agricultural Policy.
Editor: Phillipe Schmidt-Araguin (Article created with AI assistance).