President Macron intended the speech as his contribution to European reform, to make the EU more attractive to its citizens in the wake of Brexit.

“European agricultural policy must allow farmers to make a living off their income by protecting them from market uncertainty and major crises, and help them evolve towards a more sustainable agriculture,” he said. “There will always be several agricultural models in Europe and I wish that each country may accompany this transformation according to its ambition and preferences.”

On income protection, President Macron said that the CAP should focus on insulating farmers from international market volatility whenever it “threatens Europe’s food sovereignty”.

European food safety force

Regarding national independence in the implementation of the CAP, he called for “greater flexibility at country level to organise regions and industries, reduce bureaucracy and leave to the local level the support to sectors where collective decisions need to be made on the ground”.

Following the recent contaminated egg scandal, President Macron called for the establishment of a “European investigation and control force to combat fraud” on food safety.

He also touched on the glyphosate debate, cautioning against the influence of both “political engagement” and “industrial interests” on scientific decisions regarding the authorisation of pesticides. He called on scientists to offer “alternatives” when chemicals are proven to pose risks.

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