The Presidents and Vice-Presidents of Copa and Cogeca met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to take stock of the situation as the 2019-2024 mandate nears its end and to discuss the strategic repositioning of agriculture at the center of European policies based on the organization's manifesto for the European elections, the Copa-Cogeca press center reports.

Present at the meeting were COPA President Christiane Lambert, COGECA President Lennart Nilsson, COPA Vice-President Massimiliano Giansanti, COGECA Vice-President Christian Hoegh-Andersen, and Deputy Secretary-General of Copa-Cogeca Patrick Pagani.

The topics discussed during this hour-long meeting were numerous, as agricultural issues and strategic dialogue have been on the agenda for this end-of-term for the European Commission.

The President of the European Commission paid great attention during the meeting to the presentation of the challenges facing agricultural communities, reaffirming at the same time the importance of farmers' work for collective food security, Europe's sovereignty, and our ability to make necessary transitions.

Ursula von der Leyen also reaffirmed the need to stop the polarization between agriculture and the environment in order to move forward. A vision shared by Copa and Cogeca, at the center of the strategic dialogue, in which we actively participate from its launch.

A highlight of the meeting was the presentation of Copa and Cogeca's electoral manifesto for the EU, outlining 7 key priorities for the next mandate of the European Commission.

Representatives of Copa and Cogeca called for a real revision of the agricultural budget to align environmental, geopolitical, and financial ambitions following an assessment of the overall impact of current agricultural policies at the beginning of the next mandate, as well as feasibility studies on new proposals.

It was also emphasized the increasing need for coherence between the EU's trade policy and its ambitions for the internal market, as well as the institutional need for a European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Areas with the role of Vice President and a strengthening of civil dialogue groups. (Photo: Dreamstime)