Who are their members?
The EPFS is composed of five "families" of stakeholders: farmers unions, consumers associations, development NGOs, environmental organisations and workers unions (industry or agriculture). Up to date organizations from the following countries have joined the Platform: France, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, and United Kingdom.
One of the EPFS roles is keeping its members informed on what is happening at EU level related to agricultural issues -especially CAP reforms- by organizing seminars and conferences and by its monthly newsletter.
The EPFS main objective is advocating for food sovereignty, which implies promoting domestic markets based on local food production and access for farmers to their local and regional markets. By lobbying the EU institutions the EPFS is fighting to adapt the current Common Agricultural Policy to the following principles:
Respect for human rights and food sovereignty.
Maintaining socially, ecologically and economically sustainable family farming in all the European regions.
Favouring regional and local markets.
-Remunerative farm prices that cover all production.
Promoting ecologically, socially and economically sustainable systems of production that produce healthy food and respect animal welfare.
A CAP based on adequate supply management tools to meet internal demand for basic products and end dumping prices (dumping is practiced when a product is sold at a price below the costs of production; in international trade it means that a product is exported at a price below the costs of production of the exporting country)
-Rejection of dumping practises and maintenance of the principle of preferential agreements for imports from developing countries in a way that respects their sustainable development.
Related EPHA articles:
Transparency over CAP expenditures
Assessing the health impact of Agriculture policies in the EU and the US
