MEP Maria Walsh will join a Youth Policy Dialogue event next week with Commissioner for Agriculture Christophe Hansen, bringing together young farmers to help shape the future of EU generational renewal policy.
MEP Walsh is the European Parliament’s lead negotiator on Generational Renewal in Agriculture. She wrote the Parliament’s Report on Generational Renewal which calls for 10% of the future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to be dedicated to generational renewal, alongside improved access to land and finance, stronger farm succession supports and greater assistance for women in farming.
The Youth Policy Dialogue, taking place on Thursday 17 September, will focus on the challenges facing the next generation of livestock farmers and the practical solutions needed at both EU and national level to support generational renewal.
Young farmers will have the opportunity to put their experiences directly to Commissioner Hansen, with discussions focusing on access to land and finance, competitiveness and sustainability, and the particular challenges and opportunities facing different rural regions across Ireland.
MEP Maria Walsh, a full member of the Agriculture Committee, said:
“Generational renewal is one of the biggest challenges facing European agriculture – ultimately it is a question of who will farm our land and produce our food in the decades ahead.
“As Parliament’s lead negotiator on generational renewal, I want young farmers to be at the heart of this conversation, not simply an agenda point in Brussels without having their voices heard. That is why I am delighted to bring young farmers together with Commissioner Hansen in Dublin to put their experiences, concerns and ideas directly to the Commission.
“We need to move beyond talking about generational renewal and deliver practical solutions. Whether it is access to land and finance, farm succession, competitiveness, sustainability or making rural communities places where young people can build a future, we need policies that work on the ground.
“Ireland has a huge amount to contribute to this debate, particularly when it comes to the future of our livestock sector. I want the voices of young Irish farmers to feed directly into the European debate and into the policies that will shape the next generation of farming.”
European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Christophe Hansen said:
“Listening to young farmers and rural youth has been a priority for me from the start of my mandate. Their hopes, concerns and ideas matter, because they are the people who will shape the future of European agriculture and our rural communities.
“Ireland is a particularly relevant place for this dialogue, with livestock farming at the heart of so many farms and rural communities. I look forward to hearing directly from the next generation and to taking those voices with us as we put our Livestock Strategy and Generational Renewal Strategy into practice.”