Agricultural policies in Europe - Man confronted with new agricultural structures
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly debate on 26 January 1972 (24th Sitting) (see Doc. 3051, report of the Committee on Agriculture). Text adopted by the Assembly on 26 January 1972 (24th Sitting).
The Assembly,
1. Having taken note of the report of its Committee on Agriculture entitled "Man confronted with new agricultural structures" (
Doc. 3051) ;
2. Noting that the fundamental changes in European agriculture over the last twenty years have completely transformed the farmer's occupation ;
3. Considering that the dangers inherent in this technological development for man and his natural environment have not always been clearly recognised ;
4. Being aware of the fact that the farming population is required to assume increasingly important functions in industrialised societies, not only by producing primary materials and adequate, balanced and wholesome foodstuffs, but also by assuring the protection of nature and the countryside, and providing leisure sites for the relaxation of the urban population ;
5. Noting that the income and social condition of European farmers and sometimes workers are still behind those of other vocational categories ;
6. Noting that the demands of consumers in respect of quality and price place farmers in a dilemma which can hardly be resolved without giving adequate information to consumers on the one side and without improving professional farmers' organisations, in particular in the field of processing and marketing of agricultural produce, on the other side ;
7. Noting that the problems raised by inheritance and land tenure laws in agriculture have not yet been satisfactorily resolved in most European countries, from the point of view of avoiding excessive sub-division of holdings ;
8. Considering that the projected establishment of land banks, at present being discussed in the Netherlands and Belgium, could contribute to a better distribution of land and to structural improvements in agriculture,
9. Invites its members :
9.1 to promote in their national parliaments the discussion of the idea of a "land bank" or similar means of providing agriculture with adequate capital for the proper cultivation of the soil ;
9.2 to encourage all forms of research on :
a the biological value of the various agricultural products ;
b technological farming methods calculated to avoid pollution of the environment, and in particular biological methods of control of parasites ;
9.3 to request, in discussions of regional planning and development policies, a fair remuneration for farmers, not only for their economic services, but also for the social services which they render to the community as nature conservation guardians, particularly in under-privileged regions which are isolated from main communication lines, and especially in mountain areas ;
9.4 to study the formation of prices for agricultural produce, with the aim of calling a halt to the present competition between States, which has detrimental effects on agriculture in all countries ;
10. Declares itself to be in favour of humanising agriculture along the lines defined in
Recommendation 577 (1970) and developed in the new report of its Committee on Agriculture (
Doc. 3051), giving family farms every opportunity to prosper, and improving the prospects and standards of living of all those engaged in agriculture ;
11. Instructs its Committee on Agriculture to go more thoroughly into the ideas set forth in its last report (
Doc. 3051), in order to define the exact significance of the technological revolution into which agriculture has been drawn during recent decades, and to propose specific lines of action which could serve as the basis for a recommendation to governments.
