site.btaDeputy Agriculture Minister Georgieva: Environment-friendly Practices Are Top Challenge before Agriculture

To meet the objectives of the European Green Pact, the widespread adoption of environmentally friendly practices without affecting food security is a major challenge for agriculture, Deputy Agriculture and Food Minister Tanya Georgieva said. Georgieva is attending the Informal meeting of Agriculture and Fisheries Ministers on June 12 and 13 in Stockholm, the Agriculture Ministry said Tuesday.

The Deputy Agriculture Minister stressed that national and regional specificities in individual member states need to be taken into account in the process of identifying effective measures and instruments to implement the green transition. These relate to soil and climate conditions as well as the structure of agriculture and forestry.

A key policy priority should be to achieve economic stability at all links in the agri-food chain, which will enable agriculture to successfully meet the expectations of meeting European climate and environmental targets. Support is needed for farmers to adapt to greener practices and remain competitive in the face of a series of unforeseen shocks in the internal market, Georgieva said.

Regarding forestry, Deputy Minister Georgieva said that placing forests at the centre of the transition to a green economy challenges their management to maintain the balance between the economic, social and environmental functions of forests. The new environmental conditions require a rapid change in forest policy, allowing for revenue generation in forestry beyond timber extraction, she added.