In the Czech Republic, agro-barons are no longer wanted. A real revolution is ahead in the country: EU subsidies for large companies will decrease, and for smaller companies will increase. And the most European money will be for organic farming, he said.Deutsche Welle“.
Endless fields, huge companies, rich barons – Czech agriculture is a special case. There is no other country in the European Union (EU) where such a large part of agricultural subsidies goes to so few large concerns.
In the Czech Republic, the average area of arable land of companies is about 130 hectares and is eight times higher than the EU average. And is there a desire for change? Towards smaller agricultural companies and more environmental protection? There is no mention of these things in the Czech Republic so far.
A fairer distribution of subsidies
The new liberal-conservative government of Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who came to power in December, plans to change that. It is planning an agrarian and environmental turnaround so that the Czech Republic becomes part of the European agricultural policy reform process again.
It is envisaged that there will be a ceiling on subsidies received by farms. The government intends to encourage smaller companies, especially if they develop or switch to organic farming.
Other goals in the program are related to the promotion of biodiversity, care for the environment and support for local and regional food producers. This new government strategy was unveiled in mid-January 2022, but will take effect in 2023.
Unlike many other European countries, including Germany, the new Czech coalition of five very different parties has a consensus on the need for a turnaround in agricultural policy. The reason for this can be reduced to one name: Andrei Babish. The former prime minister is a billionaire who made his fortune mainly from agriculture and food production.
His holding company Agrofert manages 116,000 hectares in the Czech Republic and is one of the largest recipients of European subsidies. Between 2014 and 2021, when Babis was first finance minister and then prime minister, agricultural giants in the Czech Republic received more and more agricultural subsidies – in contrast to trends in other EU countries. And most European money flowed into Agrofert’s coffers.
Compared to small companies, large concerns received significantly higher annual allowances per hectare of arable land. As a result, the number of small farms has been steadily declining in recent years. This development has provoked a number of criticisms in the Czech Republic itself, and the EP has repeatedly criticized Babis’ agrarian policy. And he is still on trial for fraud with European subsidies.
From 2023 onwards, agricultural subsidies for large concerns will decrease. Until now, they received 80 euros more per hectare than small companies. This ratio will be reversed in the future: subsidies for large concerns will be reduced to 11,100 kroner (444 euros) per hectare per year, and for small ones will increase to 13,400 kroner (536 euros). Organic farmers will receive as much as 800 euros per hectare per year.
For the Czech Republic, this development is a revolution. According to agricultural expert Peter Havel, this is a reform that focuses on the quality of food and organic farming, rather than the amount of food produced.
Havel said the government’s measures would radically change the appearance of the fields – instead of the endless areas of rapeseed and wheat that now predominate in the Czech Republic, more and more other crops will emerge – such as vegetables, poppies or hops.
Smaller farms welcome the reform. “Finally, a trend is being corrected where the majority of subsidies have gone to larger agricultural companies and holdings over the last eight years. This was unusual for the EU,” said Petr Steffl, vice-president of the Union of Private Farmers. .
Consumer attitudes in the Czech Republic are changing
However, large agricultural concerns are protesting against the reforms. There have been several protests in Prague and other cities, where farmers have blocked tractors with their tractors. The protests were organized by the Czech Agrarian Chamber, which represents mainly the interests of major concerns.
However, the government in Prague has no intention of backing down. Including because a large part of the Czechs are pushing for changes in agriculture, as shown not only by the polls, but also by the behavior of Czechs in shopping.
In almost every major city there are already markets for producers who offer local products. The volume of direct sales from food producers is also increasing, and the trade in organic food is particularly booming, despite the fact that they are more expensive than industrially produced ones.
However, expert Peter Havel is aware that rapid change is not possible. “Czech agriculture has a long way to go until it reaches the Western European level,” he said.
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