What is still common in the Common Agricultural Policy?

Abstract

On 4 September 2024, the European Commission published the results of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Agriculture (European Commission, 2024). This was followed on 19 February 2025 by the Communication A Vision on Agriculture and Food (European Commission, 2025), which announced the agricultural policy guidelines of the second Von der Leyen Commission and the new Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen. Finally, on 16 July 2025, the proposal for the Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034[1] and the legislative proposal for the European Agricultural Policy 2028-2034[2] were published simultaneously.

There are two major changes. The first concerns the budget, in which, as announced, agricultural, cohesion and regional policies are merged and financed (together with other minor policies) with a single allocation, undergoing a significant overall cut. The second is the entrusting of National and Regional Partnership Plans to Member States with the task of ensuring coherence and joint programming between 14 different European Funds, while respecting their specificities[3]. Among these funds are the two agricultural ones: the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) for direct payments and market measures and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)

Considering the proposals for the seven-year period 2028-2034, this article aims to summarise the historical evolution of CAP expenditure. For further details, please refer to the recently published volume European Agricultural Policy. History and Analysis (Sotte & Brunori eds., 2025).