The EC's latest CAP reform proposals could lead to future food shortages, delegates attending a joint meeting of the Farmers' Union of Wales livestock, wool and marts and hill farming and marginal land committees have warned.

"The latest proposals continue to remain in direct opposition to comments made in previous European Commission and Parliament documents," said newly-elected FUW livestock, wool and marts committee chairman Dafydd Roberts, of Llanerchymedd, Anglesey.

"Proposed Pillar 1 greening measures, such as the requirement to dedicate at least seven per cent of all eligible hectares towards an ecological focus area, will take land out of food production at a time when experts are warning of catastrophic global food shortages over the coming years.

"It was only last year that the EC acknowledged the dangers Europe faces over the coming years due to food shortages and rising food prices, and these issues were identified as priorities for future CAP proposals."

Delegates at the meeting believed that the latest proposals, if left unchanged, could have a catastrophic impact on EU food security and result in increasing food price volatility.

"The proposals represent a missed opportunity to address the twin issues of food security and climate change in a workable and commonsense manner," added Mr Roberts.

"Just a few years ago talk of food shortages was treated as scaremongering but over the past five years crop failures have led to food rationing in developed countries, food export bans across the world, civil unrest, war and bloodshed."

Mr Roberts said failure to recognise the severity of the situation which would face populations over the coming decades would be folly.

"The CAP was designed to feed Europe, ensure food prices remained stable and prevent civil unrest due to food shortages.

"Given what the experts are predicting in terms of food shortages, we need to ensure that it does just that."

Common Agricultural Policy reform proposals released today by the European Commission would have a catastrophic impact on Welsh dairy farming in the first year of their implementation, according to Farmers' Union of Wales dairy committee chairman Eifion Huws.

Under the proposals, Welsh payments per hectare would see a 40 per cent shift away from values based upon historical payments.

"This would mean a huge fall in income for many dairy farmers in 2014 so there is a real need to change this as well as other measures in the proposals," said Mr Huws.

"Only a few years ago the EC were talking about measures to ensure a 'soft landing' for the dairy industry in the run up to the abolition of milk quotas.

"Yet these latest proposals would wash away any effect the quota regime soft-landing provisions provide for dairy farms.

"These proposals would mean anything but a soft landing for farm businesses - for most it would be more like being dropped from a great height."

Mr Huws said any transition away from the historic entitlement value to a flat-rate payment must be gradual and over a lengthy period.

"We have already raised these concerns with members of the EU Agriculture Committee and the European Commission and over the coming months we will continue our efforts to fight for the interests of Wales' dairy farmers."

[caption id="attachment_4513" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Emyr Jones[/caption]

The latest European Commission proposals for reforming the Common Agricultural Policy would devastate European food security and destabilise Wales' rural communities, according to Farmers' Union of Wales president Emyr Jones.

"Last year the EC acknowledged the dangers Europe faces over the coming years due to food shortages and identified this as the number one priority.

"But the latest proposals would take land out of agriculture and reduce food production across the EU while undermining farming communities across Wales."

Mr Jones said the proposals represented a missed opportunity to address the key challenges identified by the EC and the European Parliament and this failure could delay the finalising of an agreement on CAP reform.

"The combined problems of food security and climate change have been described as 'the perfect storm', and the CAP should be seen as a toolkit to address these challenges.

"Yet today's proposals could almost have been aimed at making matters worse and ignoring the fact that we have a framework which was specifically set up to protect people against starvation."

Mr Jones' concerns were echoed by Members of the European Parliament at a special meeting of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee with Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos during which the proposal to take land out of food production was slammed.

Mr Jones added: "We have already discussed our concerns with members of the European Agriculture Committee and the Commission and we have our work cut out over the coming months to ensure the regulations are changed in a way which protects rural Wales and Welsh food production."

The Farmers' Union of Wales is urging farmers to work together over the coming weeks in a concerted effort to reduce incidences of sheep scab.

Lorraine Howells, Chairman of the FUW's Common Land Committee, said: "At this time of year many farms are preparing to treat their sheep for scab.

"However, failure to treat animals at the same time as your neighbours can mean animals becoming reinfected, because the mites which cause the problem can be transferred by direct contact with infected sheep or objects."

Miss Howells said that failure to coordinate treatment in an area could result in a great deal of wasted time and money.

Sheep can be treated by either dipping or injection.

"We fully recognise the concerns which exist in relation to dipping and the withdrawal period following treatment. However, scab can be a major animal health and economic problem, and it is important that we do all we can to eliminate the disease."

Miss Howells also urged commoners to work together to ensure flocks on open mountains are treated.

"Scab can be a great problem on open land, and many graziers work closely together to ensure that commons and open land are cleared and animals treated at the same time.

"Graziers must continue to clear commons at the same time, and if this does not already take place, they should come together in order to coordinate this type of action."

Miss Howells added that no animals should be returned to a common after clearance without being treated.

Further information on sheep scab can be found on the Hybu Cig Cymru website (http://www.hccmpw.org.uk) under the animal health and welfare section.