The Regional Secretary for Agriculture and Forestry stated today on the island of São Miguel that the Azores are counting on everyone to defend a better proposal for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the 2021-2027 period that will be capable of responding to the challenges of the sector and continue to develop Azorean agriculture. 

“We are at a crucial stage in the negotiation of the future CAP for the 2021-2027 period and in the definition of POSEI financial envelope. For that reason, the visit of MEP Isabel Carvalhais to the Azores, at this stage, is timely and very important inasmuch as it will enable her to contact directly with farmers and their representative organisations. Furthermore, it will be an opportunity to verify the growth path that has been achieved and identify what still needs to be done, which is fundamental for the defence of the interests of Azorean farmers and agriculture in Brussels,” stressed João Ponte.

The Regional Secretary, who accompanied Isabel Carvalhais on a visit to a dairy farm in the process of conversion to organic production, stressed that “Community funds are and will be fundamental to continue developing the sector in an Outermost Region such as the Azores, with high production costs."

According to João Ponte, "POSEI has been an essential financial tool to compensate farmers for the extra production costs, stimulate the growth of production, encourage the increase of quality schemes, maintain the agricultural activity of smaller producers as well as to boost the quality and value of agricultural productions."

“We are working hard to increase the POSEI allocation, both at national and European level, given the importance of this programme for the sustainable development of agriculture in the Region,” said João Ponte. In this regard, he considered that the current POSEI allocation, which has remained the same, it is insufficient to meet the growth of agricultural production and offset the increase in production costs registered in recent years.

The Secretary for Agriculture also highlighted that the Azores are a good example of a region where environmental concerns, animal welfare and sustainability are ever present in public policies, as advocated by the next CAP.