HAMBURG, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Germany and France will prepare a joint position on proposals to reform the European Union’s farm policy, German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt said on Monday.
The European Union is planning a reform package for its huge farm support programme after 2020, especially difficult as the decision by net financial contributor Britain to leave the EU will mean the bloc faces a major funding gap for farm subsidies.
This has led to fears the EU might have to consider cuts to its huge programme of financial support for farmers.
Schmidt said he had met French agriculture minister Stéphane Travert at the weekend during the Green Week food trade fair in Berlin and agreed to prepare a joint German/French position on EU farm reform.
The EU’s common agricultural policy is important for securing food supplies and the policy must give European farmers a long-term perspective, Schmidt said. (Reporting by Michael Hogan, editing by Adrian Croft)
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