Brussels in brief - Agreement reached on Farm Sustainability Data Network

​The European Commission first proposed the set-up of the network in June last year in a bid to better reflect the goals of the EU’s flagship policy for sustainable food, the Farm to Fork Strategy, and use data to make EU food systems more climate and environmentally friendly.

The network will be able to collect environmental and social data in addition to the microeconomic and accountancy data already being gathered. Under the compromise agreement, participating in the data collection process will not be mandatory for farmers, but member states should develop incentives to encourage them to do so. Meanwhile, farmers who do participate cannot be penalised based on any information collected this way.

Further aid package of €330 million announced for farmers

The European Commission has announced a new aid package of €330 million to support farmers with the impact of “adverse climatic conditions”. This is in addition to the previously approved €100 million for farmers in the EU ‘frontline’ member states bordering Ukraine (Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia) to help alleviate the logistical bottlenecks caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The latest package will be allocated between the remaining 22 member states.