CEJA Young Farmers

BACK TO WORK 🏁 We are back in action and gearing up for another fascinating season in CEJA. Onboarding of the College of Commissioners, finalisation of the strategic dialogue and final conference of our FARMRes project on mental health: here are some of the main highlights for our organisation until the end of the year. Share your own highlights with us below. ⬇

With July 2024 coming to an end, we are delighted to introduce you to CEJA's LinkedIn newsletter. Our 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫’ 𝐆𝐚𝐳𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞 is the perfect channel to further update you with a monthly recap of CEJA’s activities in Brussels and beyond. You will get a “digest” on policy, projects, events, and the wonderful young farmers that make the organisation. We hope you will appreciate this first viewpoint on the EU Agri-Food bubble through the lenses of young farmers. 📬 Don’t forget to subscribe to receive the monthly update, and let’s get into the latest activities of July ⤵

What a night! 📺 The second episode of the Young Farmers Late Show is already available for streaming ➡️ https://lnkd.in/e9q5dKJq Thank you to our amazing guests Natasha Foote, Charles Welbes, Mariana Debernardini, Fabio Cossu and our Vice President Rūdolfs Pulkstenis for their great contributions, and to all the viewers. Thank you as well to BluePoint Venues and their team, Laurent Coessens and Baptiste Campion, for the production. #YFLS2 -------- The “Young Farmers Late Show” is an initiative part of the project “A Revived CAP: CAPitalising on the National Strategic Plans” (project number: 101122121) from the IMCAP2027 programme of DG AGRI, in which CEJA is working on together with Euractiv.

𝐄𝐔 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 2024-2029: 𝐀 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 Today, the newly constituted European Parliament re-elected Ms. Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission after an exchange of views in plenary that highlighted the importance of agriculture. The start of this new mandate is a crucial moment to ensure young farmers' voices are heard. The new strategy for the farming and food sector can be decisive in its capacity to set a long-term vision with prospects for the younger generation. Europe’s young farmers welcome the announcement of President Von der Leyen to publish a new strategy for the farming and food sector, stemming from the work made by the strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture. CEJA President Peter Meedendorp positively reacted to the news, adding that: “The Commission must commit to dedicating a consistent chapter of this strategy to generational renewal in agriculture, if not a dedicated Communication that would encompass all EU, national, regional and local policies, to provide better living and working conditions to young generations in agriculture. It is a vital step forward if we want to secure our collective ambitions for the future of our sector.” Taking stock of the different areas of action put forward by political groups and announced today by the Commission’s President, young farmers want to highlight the four core priorities which, in their eyes, should drive the mandate 2024-2029 to provide sustainability pathways to EU agriculture: 1. 𝐀 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡, 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬 2. 𝐀 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 3. 𝐀 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐤𝐢𝐭, 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 – 4. 𝐀 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 As the European Union opens a new mandate, Europe’s young farmers are committed to playing their part in creating more sustainable, resilient, and innovative futures in agriculture and rural areas. They call on the European Parliament, Commission, and Council of the EU to match their ambitions with a consistent and forward-thinking policy strategy. Our full Press Release in pdf: https://bit.ly/4d4zHSj

On Tuesday, CEJA hosted a summer R&I afterwork in cooperation with the consortium of the Horizon 2020 project COCOREADO. Our objective was to discuss how the EU's research agenda can support the strengthening of farmers' positions in value chains. The panel, moderated by Secretary General Marion Picot, featured high-level insights from: ◾ Diego Canga Fano, Director of Research, Outreach and Geographical Indications in DG Agriculture and Rural Development - European Commission; ◾ Lisa Van Den Bossche, Research Associate at ILVO (Instituut voor Landbouw, Visserij- en Voedingsonderzoek), project partner in COCOREADO; ◾ Lennart Nilsson, Farmer from Sweden and President of COGECA - COPA COGECA; ◾ Peter Meedendorp, Young farmer from the Netherlands and President of CEJA. Together, participants tried to draw some priorities to align the policy-research agenda. Can you guess what some of those priorities may be? Comment below. ⬇ Thank you to all panellists and participants for their great energy and openness to dialogue.

Yesterday, the Council of the EU failed to agree on a general approach on New Genomic Techniques (#NGTs), despite the last attempt of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024. Reacting to this deadlock, CEJA Vice-President Rūdolfs Pulkstenis said: “targeted mutagenesis and cisgenesis can be part of the set of tools to reach more sustainability in agriculture. This is about creating new varieties for new challenges”. He added: “CEJA is aware of the difficulties surrounding patentability, a subject on which young farmers had also expressed reservations. However, this must not be used as a pretext for such a blockage, which deprives us of an essential innovation for the sector”. A new legislative framework at EU level is necessary and cannot be put off indefinitely. CEJA urges the Hungarian Presidency of the EU (#HU24EU - Hungarian Ministry of Agriculture) to create the conditions of an agreement for a Council general approach. 📜 CEJA position on NGTs: https://lnkd.in/e8hszvNK

Join us for the COCOREADO R&I Agrifood Afterwork! 📅 Date: 25th June 2024  🕡 Time: 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM  📍 Brussels 🔗 Registration: https://lnkd.in/e9KtnJeu 📧 Confirmations of registration will be sent by email. We are excited to invite you to an inspiring and informative evening aimed at bridging the gap between farmers and research & innovation (R&I) in agriculture to rebalance farmers' position in food value chains! Organized under the Horizon 2020 COCOREADO Project, the COCOREADO R&I Agrifood Afterwork promises to be a dynamic gathering that brings together farmers, researchers, agribusinesses, and policymakers to discuss and shape the future of agricultural R&I in Europe. 🗣️ Our Panel:  - Peter Meedendorp: President of CEJA and Young Farmer from the Netherlands  - Lennart Nilsson: President of COGECA, COPA COGECA - Diego Canga Fano: Director of DG Agriculture and Rural Development F – Outreach, Research & Geographical Indications  - Lisa Van Den Bossche: Researcher Associate at ILVO and COCOREADO Partner Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a movement that empowers farmers to improve their position in food value chains! #fair4farmers

Last week CEJA was in Florence 🇮🇹 for an amazing seminar organised by Giovani di Confagricoltura ANGA. During an intense three-day programme, we experienced the best Tuscany and Italy have to offer. A small overview of some of the highlights during these three days: The #youngfarmersymposium, held in the prestigious Camera Di Commercio Firenze venue in the center of Florence, provided much food for thought on the topic of #NGTs. Experts from across the country came together to share their insights in an stimulating panel discussion on the potential that this powerful technology holds for #agriculture. Following this conference, delegates enjoyed a sightseeing tour of the classical surroundings of this beautiful city. The gala dinner was a night to remember. Our hosts treated us to the finest food Italy has to offer, turning this night into great opportunity to exchange insights and experiences with the young Italian farmers, and of course, join each other on the dance floor. On the final day of the seminar, it was time for the famous farm visits, this time in the countryside of Tuscany. First stop on this road trip was one of the oldest and most innovative, Marchesi Frescobaldi farms. Here, they showcased their philosophy on producing their wine, cereals and olive oil. The second stop felt like coming home, as we visited Fattoria di Petroio of our very own Diana Lenzi. She provided us with a tour of her organic wine-making process, and served us amazing lunch under the Tuscan sun. Furthermore, in between all these activities, a packed working group agenda allowed our delegates to also make great progress on CEJA inter discussions, such as: -Putting the finishing touches on our #Nature and #Biodiversity paper -In-depth discussions on our Strategic positioning regarding the post-2027 #CAP -Approval of our finances plus talks on the creation of an internal code of conduct to strengthen our organisation for the future -Solidifying our stance towards the strategic dialogue for the future of agriculture Grazie mille once again to all the staff of Giovani di Confagricoltura ANGA for making this seminar a great success, in particular to, Giovanni Gioia, Martina Dal Grande, Carlo Guarini, Francesca Margarito and, of course, to all the young farmer delegates!

1️⃣ week until the EU elections, which means the last presentation of our #CEJA2024Manifesto - Access to investment. In our capital-intensive sector, a real acceleration of access to investment is needed to support the younger generation in farming. Young farmers are more likely to see their loan applications rejected by the bank in comparison to farmers over 40 years old, as regularly demonstrated by fi-compass surveys. The main reasons for rejection are the perceived higher-risk profiles of young farmers, the lack of viable business plan, as well as their lack of capital and collaterals. Helping young farmers’ investment with simple and bureaucracy-free financial instruments is essential, with guarantee instruments or risk sharing loans, for which the memorandum of understanding between DG AGRI and the European Investment Bank (EIB) has proved success. More broadly, a reflection together with banks and other private stakeholders about the future of sustainable agricultural investments should take place. This would facilitate change management at farm level. 📄Read our full #CEJA2024Manifesto: https://lnkd.in/eQMSuvSx 📄Read our policy paper "Smart Farmers for Smart Farming" - chapter 3 "Financing": https://lnkd.in/gRip9P26

📆 𝐂𝐄𝐉𝐀 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐮𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 On 27th-28th May, CEJA gathered its annual Presidium meeting in Brussels, which is the opportunity to look back on the year that has just passed. 𝐀 𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫! CEJA Presidency shared their update and feelings on the many activities of the organisation since their election mid-2023. President Peter Meedendorp and Vice-Presidents Elisabeth Hiden, Katharina Schobersberger, Matteo Pagliarani, & Rūdolfs Pulkstenis commented on: 💬 The many meetings and insightful events attended across Europe; 🤝 The strong connection with the membership, with Seminars in the Netherlands, in Belgium, in Slovakia, but also many visits of CEJA Presidency in members' events; 📃The extension of CEJA mandate with internal discussions; 🔊The expression of young farmers' voice ahead of the EU elections, with our Manifesto and interactions with candidates; 🏢 The involvement of CEJA in the strategic dialogue on the future of agriculture; ⭐ The continuation of CEJA's recent projects such as the 2nd Edition of the Young Farmers Leadership Programme, or our 2 episodes of the Young Farmers' Late Show. All in all, it has all been about continuing to spread the voice of young farmers, driven by CEJA members. CEJA Secretariat, led by Marion Picot, completed with an overview of recent activities and policy developments, stressing how to anticipate the discussions that are becoming higher and higher on the EU agenda. 𝐎𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 Members worked the first day on strengthening our organisation by working on CEJA budget and developing a Code of Conduct. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 The second day was dedicated to internal discussions, with the continuation of the work on two position papers: - Future of the CAP: farm economics and social inclusion - Nature & Biodiversity ----------------- Thank you to all delegates present and looking forward to CEJA General Assembly in Florence on 13th-14th June 2024