European Union: EU Commission Officially Submits Legal CAP Reform Proposals for 2014-2020

On October 12, 2011, the EU Commission unveiled its proposals for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Reform to be implemented in the 2014-2020 period. The proposals reflect a consensus of what the important issues are to all CAP stakeholders and how the Commission intends to address them. These proposals will be debated over the next year and implemented in 2014.

Past CAP reforms have had important implications for U.S. agriculture in trade and World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, and this coming reform is no exception. While these proposals may not be adopted as currently written, they will serve as the basis for the debate that will determine the extent of the final reforms.

The EU Commission publication Legal proposals for the CAP after 2013 identifies the issues under consideration and provides quantitative and qualitative impact assessments of the proposed reforms.

See the following publications for ERS analysis of the existing CAP regime:

• The EU Sugar Policy Regime and Implications of Reform (July 2008)
• Market-Led Growth vs. Government-Facilitated Growth: Development of the U.S. and EU Organic Agricultural Sectors (August 2005)
• CAP Reform of 2003-04 (August 2004)