EU to propose longer exemption on fallow land rules

The European Commission is set to propose an exemption on Thursday on rules requiring farmers to leave part of their land fallow if they apply for EU subsidies, an EU spokesman said on Tuesday. France had said this week it would push its EU peers to agree to ease regulations on fallow farmland.

The European Commission is set to propose an exemption on Thursday on rules requiring farmers to leave part of their land fallow if they apply for EU subsidies, an EU spokesman said on Tuesday.

France had said this week it would push its EU peers to agree to ease regulations on fallow farmland. The EU introduced these to tie its farming subsidies to more environmentally-friendly practices, but temporarily suspended them following the Ukraine war in response to food security concerns. "In general terms the idea is to continue a derogation to those rules," a Commission spokesperson told a news briefing. He declined to comment on the details of the proposal.

The rules on fallow land were part of the grievances that have led to protests by angry farmers in France, Belgium and elsewhere in recent weeks. Farmers must meet certain conditions to receive EU subsidies, normally including a requirement to devote 4% of farmland to "non-productive" areas where nature can recover. That can be done by leaving land lying fallow.