Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2 : The European Union (EU) Common Agricultural Policy is a matter reserved exclusively for the European Community. Under Article 33, TEC (new Article III-123), its aims are to ensure reasonable prices for Europe's consumers and fain incomes for farmers, in particular by establishing common agricultural market organizations and by applying the principles of single prices, financial solidarity and Community preference. The CAP is one of the most important EU policies (agricultural expenditure accounts for some 45 per cent of the Community budget). Policy is decided by qualified majority vote in the Council after Consultation with the European Parliament. At the outset the CAP enabled the Community to become self-sufficient in a very short time. However, it came to be increasingly costly because European prices were too high by comparison with world market prices. A series of reforms in 1992 corrected the situation by cutting guaranteed farm prices, with compensatory premiums for inputs, and by introducing a series of "flanking measures". With a view to enlargement, a new reform package was adopted in 1999 for the period 2000-06. Under the approach proposed by the European Commission in its Agenda 2000 in July 1997, it reinforced the changes made in 1992 and puts the emphasis on food safety, environmental objectives and sustainable agriculture. Moreover, it has endeavored to increase the competitiveness of Community agricultural products, to simplify agricultural legislation and how it is implemented, to strengthen the EU position at the 1999 World Trade Organization negotiations (Millennium Round), and lastly to stabilize agriculture expenditure. In this spirit, changes have already been made in the common organization of the market in wine, arable crops, beef and veal, and milk. The proposed reduction in intervention prices has been offset by an increase in aid to farmers and accompanied by a genuine integrated rural development policy. See: Agenda 2000; World Trade Organization (WTO)
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