Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon has reiterated Government’s calls for adequate levels of funding to be allocated to the next CAP as he entered a meeting with farm ministers across the EU on Monday.

The post-2027 CAP features on the agenda in Brussels as “it will continue to be” for the foreseeable future, Minister Heydon said.

“Ireland has been consistently very clear that what we need here is a CAP that is sufficiently flexible, fair, properly funded and that provides the flexibility to member states to be able to deliver on sustainability in all its forms – economic, social and environmental,” he said.

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The minister stated that he is to continue his one-one-one meetings with agriculture ministers from member states to assess their priorities for the coming months as Ireland is due to take the reins of the EU presidency.

“During the Irish presidency, we will play a crucial role in shaping the future CAP,” he continued.

“I look forward to hearing from my colleagues around the table on their priorities.

“This is important to farm families in Ireland and the wider agri food sector, as it underpins the sustainability and competitiveness of the sector.”

Fair trade

Also on the agenda will be a European Commission report on unfair trading practices as the legislation underpinning the rules is up for review.

“The Commission will also present its report evaluating the unfair trading practices directive. Ireland will continue to engage with Irish farming and food business stakeholders, and with the Agri Food Regulator as the implementation body for the directive, before finalising our position on the review.”

The UTP discussions will come just two months after the Commission reported that there were 4,500 investigations into alleged breaches over recent years, with “about one third” of investigations closed between 2021 and 2024 having found an infringement.