The 27 agriculture ministers of the EU have started the debate on the future common agriculture policy after 2013, in the presence of the current president of the Agriculture Council, Michel Barnier, the European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mariann Fischer Boel, and the chairman of the European Parliament's agriculture committee, Neil Parrish.

While there are discussions of the 'health check' currently underway with a view to modifying the current provisions by 2013, this informal meeting saw the ministers focusing on the post-2013 period, not so as to put the two processes in opposition, but in perspective.

The ministers agreed on the main aims and challenges of the future common agriculture policy, namely:

- to ensure the food security of the European Union, including the health aspect;

- to contribute to the global food balance;

- to preserve the balance of rural areas to maintain territorial cohesion;

- to develop an agriculture that reconciles economic performance with environmental efficiency.

For Michel Barnier, the French Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, discussions on the content must be launched now before the debate on the budget starts in 2009. Mariann Fischer Boel approved of the choice of subject, stating that the time had come to start these discussions on the future of the CAP. The European Commission should submit proposals on the subject as of next year.

The last three days had seen public debate on agricultural issues.