Market situation 

The Commission updated the Council on the latest market developments in the main agricultural sectors. It also reported on the support measures agreed at the September 2015 and March 2016 Council meetings. In the debate that followed the measures currently in place were thoroughly evaluated.

Many ministers expressed continued concern about the current market situation, and stressed the need to alleviate the difficult situation facing European farmers and help the sustainability of the most affected sectors. 

At the end of the meeting the presidency drew conclusions in which it calls upon the Commission to put forward in July, a set of measures which are both able to ease the current market pressure and are compatible with existing budgetary constraints.

"Despite the September and March packages of measures, the crisis in the dairy, pigmeat and fruit and vegetables sectors continues, due to a persistent imbalance between supply and demand. Farmers' incomes are negatively affected. The difficult situation is calling for additional measures as soon as possible, and we urged the Commission to present an additional financial package in July 2016."

Organic agriculture

The presidency informed ministers about the state of play of the negotiations with the European Parliament on organic farming. In its debrief the presidency highlighted the significant progress made on most issues, including sensitive points such as: imports, controls and non-authorised products and substances.

Source: consilium.europa.eu