Sturing, waardering en beloning van duurzaamheid in de landbouw met kritische prestatie-indicatoren

Samenvatting

This report explores the options to steer, valuate and remunerate sustainability services of farmers, with a view to develop a critical performance indicators (CPI) system for facilitating the transition to circular agriculture. To this end, the relevant governance and legislative boundaries (Common Agricultural Policy [CAP], state aid and competition legislation) were investigated. Since December 2021, EU legislation offers enhanced flexibility in this respect. National financial support for sustainability services may now be channeled through the CAP National Strategic Plan, in principle without any ceiling or state aid notification, if agreed by the European Commission. In addition, sustainability agreements in the agricultural production chain are no longer prohibited (cartel formation) but, within certain conditions, have become a right. As regards the CAP and state aid, a 20% margin on top of the costs incurred and income foregone may in certain situations be applied as an incentive for participation. The CPI system may be employed in several ways for influencing behaviour of farmers and may be applied in all four previously identified domains (area- specific initiatives, market-oriented initiatives, application in the framework of the CAP, application in the form of derogations to legal requirements). For legal reasons, private and public funding may however not be combined in a joint expenditure system. Every private and public instrument is bound to its own specific legal, governance and accountability constraints in EU legislation. Nevertheless, CPI development is highly valuable as a common language for defining targets and measuring performance. In addition, societal transaction costs may be reduced through simpler and faster agreement on systems and definitions.