Slovenia supports Luxembourg’s call regarding the deforestation regulation

Ljubljana/Brussels – Slovenia supported Luxembourg’s call for further simplifications in the implementation of the regulation on the marketing of products causing deforestation, known as the deforestation regulation, during the EU Council meeting on agriculture and fisheries on Monday. State Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Maša Žagar emphasized the need for thoughtful changes and upgrades to simplifications for low-risk countries.

Agriculture Minister Mateja Čalušić already called for the simplification of the deforestation regulation during the recent visit of European Commissioner for Agriculture Christophe Hansn, in order to reduce administrative burdens for European farmers and forest owners.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, State Secretary Žagar highlighted the importance of competitive, sustainable, and resilient agriculture during the ministerial discussion on the vision for agriculture and food. A strong and stable two-pillar common agricultural policy that reflects flexibility and is supported by appropriate resources is crucial.

Ministers also addressed the conditions in agricultural markets in the face of challenges such as volatile prices, disease outbreaks, political and customs uncertainties, and climate impacts. Slovenia reported a general increase in agricultural product prices and warned of persistently high food and agricultural input prices, particularly fertilizers and energy, as well as the impact of more frequent natural disasters.

The State Secretary welcomed the proposed simplifications in response to the recently published proposal by the European Commission for the simplification of the common agricultural policy, especially the simplification of the process for amending strategic plans and the abolition of the obligation to prepare an annual report on appropriateness. She also positively assessed the proposals for small farmers and the amendments regarding risk management, particularly the introduction of a new measure for rapid response to crises, as proposed by Croatia and Slovenia. (May 27)