The study was presented on 19 March 2026. The authors explained how recent developments in input and output prices have placed significant pressure on farmers’ incomes across the EU. They emphasised the crucial role of support payments in sustaining farm profitability when margins are squeezed by inflation and rising production costs. The authors also outlined policy options to support further reflection on the effectiveness of current income support measures and ways to improve the targeting of policy instruments. More specifically, the presentation focused on the following topics:
- The inflation shock and income pressure experienced by EU farms in 2022 and 2023, especially due to increases in energy and fertiliser prices.
- The diverse impacts of income shocks across types of farms, time periods, and Member States (on which the online dashboards accompanying the study provide more detailed information).
- The need for more timely and robust data to inform policy responses.
- The effectiveness of farm income support measures evaluated based on their transfer efficiency, targeting efficiency, and transaction costs.
- Suggestions for improving the targeting of policy instruments and to align farm payments more closely with farmers’ needs.
The presentation was followed by comments and questions from the Members, who praised the study as a valuable and timely evidence-based contribution to the forthcoming debate on farm income support under the future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Members raised several questions about the challenges associated with putting better-targeted farm income support measures into practice, particularly regarding criteria for defining farm viability and ensuring a balanced distribution of payments, the consideration of differences among farms and of farm performance (including ecological sustainability), the impact of the proposed CAP budget reform, and ways to boost the uptake of risk management tools.
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