The New Food Equation: Security Meets Sustainability

On 1–2 October, the EU media outlet Politico hosted the Competitive Europe Summit in Brussels, where politicians, journalists, and experts discussed Europe’s competitiveness — touching on economic security, defense, artificial intelligence, and climate change. Among the several panels, one focused on food security: The New Food Equation: Security Meets Sustainability.

Recognising the key role farmers play in society

Dacian Cioloș, former Prime Minister of Romania and former European Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, pointed out the discrepancy between the European Commission’s rhetoric and its actual policy proposals. He warned that this gap risks destabilizing markets and alienating farmers.

According to Cioloș, the EU’s vision for agriculture must be translated into a concrete budgetary proposal — one that gives farmers clarity and dignity. He called for greater incentives for innovation and digitalisation, fairer systems for farmer payments across Member States, and long-term planning that aligns trade policy with climate and energy goals.

He also highlighted several vulnerabilities in European agriculture:

• Market fragility due to climate change, with private insurance companies unwilling to cover climate-related risks.
• Generational turnover, as younger people hesitate to take over farms given the uncertainty of the business.

To address these, Cioloș stressed the need for stable incomes, access to new markets, and a pragmatic approach — including fact-based support for Ukraine’s small and medium-sized farmers after the war.

Linking funds to concrete green transition plans

Marco Contiero, Director for EU Agriculture Policy at Greenpeace, recognised that some recent policy proposals show promise — particularly the CAP post-2027 proposal, which includes a mechanism for farmers to create approved transition plans toward more sustainable or environmentally friendly practices. However, he warned that much of the budget still goes to farmers regardless of environmental performance, while mandatory green measures receive only a small share of funding.

On the broader question of resilience, Contiero emphasised that Europe needs farming systems capable of resisting droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events. “If your system is resilient, your plants will be too,” he said — adding that too few people are discussing this aspect of the debate, particularly in the context of new genomic techniques (NGTs).

The debate, however, failed to address the future of food systems in the EU. As the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, underlined in her State of the European Union address in September, energy security is closely linked to the deployment of home-grown energy. Similarly, the EU still needs an agricultural policy that fosters local, home-grown food production.