There’s a lot of new faces in new places this week in Brussels as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has finally revealed her picks and priorities for her new team of Commissioners over this next 5 year political cycle. So who will be the ones shaping the future of the agrifood sector in the years to come? Natasha Foote outlines all the main players likely to feature in the agrifood policy game to come over the next few years.
New Commission, new approach?
In brief – ones to watch for agriculture food and rural
| Christophe Hansen | Agriculture and Food Commissioner |
| Raffaele Fitto | Executive Vice-President designate for Cohesion and Reforms |
| Olivér Várhelyi | Health and Animal Welfare Commissioner |
| Teresa Ribera Rodríguez | Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition |
| Wopke Hoekstra | Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth Commissioner |
| Jessika Roswall | Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy |
| Maroš Šefčovič | Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security; Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency |
In her mission letters to the new crop of Commissioners, President von der Leyen is clear that she intends to turn the page and start a fresh chapter, outlining what she calls a “new approach” for this next political cycle.
An underlying principle of von der Leyen’s vision is ‘cooperation’ between Commissioners, which reflects the interconnected challenges Europe is facing, like the climate and biodiversity crises. This means there is plenty of crossover between Commissioners, blurring the lines of responsibilities. This is something that could cause headaches down the road if the President isn’t able to keep her team on the same page.
There’s also emphasis on transparency and information flow, forging a closer relationship with the EU institutions. This includes organising a “structured dialogue” with the Commissioner’s respective Parliamentary committee.
Dialogue seems to be the core theme here, with von der Leyen ushering in a “new era of dialogue” with citizens and stakeholders, calling for a first edition of an annual Youth Policy Dialogue within the first 100 days so that young people can be heard and help shape his work.
Members of her team are also required to be “more present on the ground, more often and in more regions”, meeting representatives in regional or local areas helped by the EU network of local Councillors.
She also sets out that the success of this new Commision will be “measured against our ability to meet the targets and objectives we set, notably as part of the European Green Deal”. That being said, not a single new Commissioner has ‘Green Deal’ as part of their title.
The approach has already been criticised by some civil society groups, with the WWF putting out a statement warning that Von der Leyen’s priorities “signals a shift away from the strong climate and environmental ambitions of the past mandate, towards a more significant focus on competitiveness and industrialisation”.
The new crew expected to lead the European Commission’s work over the next 5 year political cycle. The key faces for the agrifood sector are circled in yellow.
Christophe Hansen – Agriculture and Food Commissioner
Luxembourg’s pick has won his bid for the agri top spot. This comes as no surprise – Hansen’s name has been floating around the bubble for months now, with stakeholders even starting early to get a leg-up in the lobbying game.
So who is this new agriculture Commissioner? Hansen is a seasoned politician, having worked his way up from an adviser position in the Parliament to serve as an MEP since 2018 as part of von der Leyen’s own political family, the centre-right EPP.
He has a strong environmental flavour to his background, starting with his degree in geosciences, environmental sciences and risk management. He also worked as the Environment Attaché at Luxembourg’s permanent representation to the EU and chaired the Council Working Party on the Environment during the 2015 Luxembourgish Presidency.
During his time as an MEP, he was part of the Parliament’s committee on international trade – a background that could come in handy given the controversy around trade in the agrifood sector – as well as a substitute for the Parliament’s environment and economic and monetary affairs committee.
All in all, this gives a pretty rounded profile for the Commissioner – and stakeholders already seem happy (although, frankly, it’s not a secret that the bar was set low for the incoming Agriculture Commissioner).
Fun fact: Hansen’s cousin Martine Hansen is currently Luxembourg’s agriculture minister, and she’s not been one to shy away from criticising EU regulation…
See his biography here.
What’s his mission?
As for the actual role, interesting to note is the slight change in his title to include ‘food’ – it’s subtle, but this is a nod to working more holistically across the food chain.
In her mission letter to Hansen, President von der Leyen sets out that she expects the incoming Commissioner to prepare a Vision for Agriculture and Food based on the conclusions of the strategic dialogue, to be presented within the first 100 days.
He’s also tasked with ensuring that the next round of the Common Agricultural Policy reform is “fit for purpose” and provides the right conditions for “thriving rural areas”. There is also a strong focus on ensuring farmers have a “fair and sufficient income”, which includes ensuring that farmers are not forced to systematically sell their products below production costs.
Hansen must also ensure that there is a “new approach to deliver sustainability”, including an EU-wide benchmarking system in the agrifood sector – the details are vague on what exactly this would mean – and exploring possibilities to support the organic sector.
He is also charged with the promotion of “cutting edge science, innovative technologies and emerging products in the agrifood sector”. This could suggest that he will have more of a hand overseeing work on New Genomic Techniques (also known as New GMOs, gene editing).
Food security is not mentioned in his brief, but food sovereignty is – perhaps a signal that this will become the new buzzword.
You can check out his mission letter here.
Olivér Várhelyi – Health and Animal Welfare Commissioner
A controversial pick, the Health portfolio goes to Hungary’s Várhelyi, along with a shiny new addition to his title – ‘animal welfare’.
At first glance, it seems an odd pick to put Várhelyi – who was European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement in von der Leyen’s first innings as President – in the health position, but it is most likely to have been done to minimise Hungary’s influence at the EU level. This is because health is a national competence – and a very technical one at that.
That being said, the portfolio is an important one – in charge of all things One Health and also overseeing key files such as the EU’s proposal to loosen rules on New Genomic Techniques (NGT).
With a background in EU law, Várhelyi is no stranger to the politics in Brussels, having worked in and around the EU institutions for pretty much his entire career.
He also comes with a reputation, known for being a disagreeable character to work with. Also famously got himself in hot water when, during a debate at the European Parliament, he lost his patience and asked on record “how many idiots are left?” which, predictably, didn’t go down very well with MEPs. Várhelyi also took it upon himself to announce the EU would stop sending financial support to Palestine (reversed when von der Leyen stepped in).
You can check out his biography here
What’s his mission?
Well, as already mentioned, the most interesting element here is the explicit mention of ‘animal welfare’, replacing food safety as the previous title. The change has come on the back of a sustained lobbying campaign from animal welfare groups, notably Eurogroup for Animals, who celebrated the addition as “historic”.
As for food safety, there was some murmurings that this would be handed over from DG SANTE to AGRI, but it seems from the mission letter – which states the “enforcement of food safety standards” as a key part of his role – that there is no such plan. It’s currently unclear where seeds would fit into the picture.
Várhelyi is also charged with “modernising the rules on animal welfare”. The planned overhaul of the EU’s animal welfare legislation failed to materialise (or at least partially – check out this ARC2020 article for the details), so it seems there are plans to revisit this in the next mandate.
He is also in charge of the new European Biotech Act, which should focus on creating a “conducive” environment for innovations in health technology and other areas. There are whispers that this Biotech Act may also encompass agricultural genetic technologies.
Other relevant points for agrifood stakeholders includes proposing actions to “prevent and reduce food waste”, as well as working to improve the “sustainability, safety and affordability of food”, including through supporting organic farming.
There are plenty of crossover between these two Commissioners – for example, the affordability elements, innovative techniques (i.e. NGTs) and the organic farming support – indicating that they will need to have a close working relationship.
You can check out his mission letter here.
Raffaele Fitto – Executive Vice-President designate for Cohesion and Reforms
Agrifood work will be overseen by Italy’s Raffaele Fitto, a hard-right politician who has secured one of the coveted Executive Vice-President positions.
Fitto is currently minister for European Affairs and Cohesion Policy and and head of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) in his home country, Italy, under Giorgia Meloni’s government.
While not a red line for the Parliament’s Socialists or Liberals, the move to appoint an ECR Vice President has already been lambasted by the Greens, who warn that Fitto’s appointment could “create a dangerous shift towards the far-right in the Commission and endanger the pro-democratic majority in the European Parliament that voted for Ursula von der Leyen in July”.
As with the other Commissioner-designates, Fitto will have to win over the Parliament – and the Greens have promised that they will “not give Fitto an easy ride” in his hearing.
The mission
This time around, von der Leyen explained that, in the spirit of equality, each Executive Vice-President will also have a portfolio to focus on – for which they will have to work with other Commissioners. In this way she’s aiming for a “leaner” structure that’s “more interactive and interlinked”.
This means that Fitto is tasked with cohesion policy, regional development and cities, as well as strengthening the “competitiveness, resilience and sustainability of the food and farming sector” to ensure the EU supports the farmers that “need it most”. There is also an explicit mention of supporting rural communities.
All of this will require “investment and reforms” that Fitto is expected to be the driving force behind.
See his mission letter here.
Other characters
To reiterate, there is plenty of crossover between the Commissioners, meaning that there are plenty of other characters to keep an eye on. These include:
Teresa Ribera Rodríguez – Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition
Another Vice-President with ties to the agrifood sector, Spain’s Ribera is charged with overseeing a “clean, just and competitive transition”. This includes guiding the world to ensure the EU “stays the course of goals set out in the European Green Deal”.
Ribera will oversee the Health Commissioner’s work. She will also work on steering investments and financing a just and social transition. Ribera is also specifically charged with tackling anti-competitive practices “such as those which affect the competitiveness and sustainability of the food and farming sector”.
Ribera is currently Minister for Ecological Transition and Demographic challenge, and has previously been Minister for Ecological Transition as well as a member of the Spanish Parliament.
Wopke Hoekstra – Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth Commissioner
An old face in a new(ish) space, the Netherlands’ Hoekstra has been charged with the Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth portfolio following on from his work as Climate (and a short recent stint as also Transport) Commissioner.
This time round, Hoekstra is charged with enshrining the 90% emissions target for 2040 in the European Climate Law. He’s also in charge of developing a “Clean Industrial Deal” (clean seems to be the new buzzword here) and accelerating the build-up of a “single market for CO2”. This crucially includes enhancing carbon removals and enhancing the work on carbon credits to develop business models, which could extend to the agrifood sector – an idea that von der Leyen seems to be toying with.
Jessika Roswall – Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy
Sweden’s Roswall – currently Minister for EU Affairs – will take on the role of Environment Commissioner, also with ‘water resilience and a competitive circular economy’ (these names are getting longer and longer).
A lawyer by training, Roswall is charged with the enforcement and implementation of existing legislation related to environment, biodiversity, and zero-pollution. She’s also in charge of leading work on nature credits and private investment – both of which hold relevance for the agrifood sector. More directly, she’s instructed to contribute to the Vision for Agriculture and Food, as well as contributing to the new Climate Adaptation Plan.
Likewise, the focus on water resilience will come with a new European water resilience strategy to strengthen water security. It seems odd to single out one natural resource when the EU is facing a plethora of environmental issues, but this nonetheless has a direct link to the agriculture sector.
Her appointment has already raised some eyebrows, with liberal MEP Pascal Canfin promising to grill Roswall given that Sweden voted against the law to restore nature and failed to support imported deforestation regulation. “We will have to make sure she acts as true EU Commissioner,” the MEP wrote on X.
Maroš Šefčovič – Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security; Interinstitutional Relations and Transparency
Another familiar face, current Executive Vice-President Šefčovič has been downgraded to a bog-standard Commissioner job. Previously in charge of the European Green Deal, Šefčovič is now in charge of the trade portfolio.
With his background in the Green Deal, it’s an interesting pick – especially as the pressure is piling on to ensure greater coherence between its trade and sustainability polic.
With murmurings of a potential Mercosur deal getting agrifood stakeholders’ backs up, a key recommendation of the strategic dialogue is for the agrifood sector to take greater prominence in trade talks, and for the Commission to undertake a comprehensive review
of its negotiation strategies and review its method of conducting impact assessments prior to trade negotiations to place agriculture front and centre.
What next?
All of these Commissioner-hopefuls will now be subject to a grilling in the Parliament, and MEPs are already gearing up for a fight.
The Commissioner-designates will have to prove their mettle in front of MEPs to win their approval and, crucially, their vote to assume their new roles – something that won’t be an easy feat for some of the proposed candidates.
ARC2020 will be following all the Commissioner hearings, so stay tuned for more fun in the weeks and months to come.
More
Strategic Dialogue on Agriculture – what’s in it, what’s next?
News Roundup: Brussels plays musical chairs, responsibility reshuffle, and a big week ahead
CAP Strategic Plans: A European Food and Agricultural Policy for Times of War
