G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
8 Febru ary 2017 
(17-0765) Page: 1/14 
Committee on Agriculture  Original: English  
 
NOTIFICATION  
The following submission, dated 23 January  2017, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation of European Union . The notification concerns new or modified domestic support 
measures exempt from reduction ( Table DS:2 ). 
 
_______________  
 
 
This notification covers the following new measures:  
 
 a set of Regulations covering the European Union's direct support schemes, rural 
development and market organisation policies referred to as the "2013 CAP reform" 
(Common Agricultural Policy);  
 a Regula tion for aid to the most deprived;  
 two Regulations covering expenditure related to animal and plant health;  and 
 a Regulation covering the promotion of agricultural products . G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Table DS:2  
DOMESTIC SUPPORT: EU ROPEAN UNION  
Notification under Article 18:3 of th e Agreement:  
New or modified domestic support measures exempt from reduction  
______________________________________________________________________________  
(1) FULL TITLE OF MEASUR E: 2013 CAP reform  
Following the agreement on the EU' s multiannual perspect ive for financial planning (Council 
Regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 1311/2013 laying down the multiannual financial framework), the 
2013 CAP concerns the policy for the period 2014 -2020. The 2013 CAP reform package maintains 
the two pillars of the CAP, whilst increasing the links between them, thus offering a more holistic 
and integrated approach to policy support. It introduces a new architecture of direct payments - 
better targeted, more equitable and greener - an enhanced safety net and strengthened rural 
development. As a result the policy is adapted to meet the challenges ahead by being more 
efficient and contributing to a more competitive and sustainable EU agriculture.  
Most CAP support to farmers continues to be granted in the form of decoupled income sup port with 
no obligation to produce.  
(2) DOMESTIC LEGISLATION  REFERENCE:  
 Regulation (EU) No  1305/2013  of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
17 December 2013 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for 
Rural Development (EAFRD) and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No  1698/2005 ; 
 Regulation (EU) No  1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
17 December 2013 on the financing, management and monitoring of the common 
agricultural policy and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No  352/78, (EC) No  165/94, ( EC) 
No 2799/98, (EC) No  814/2000, (EC) No  1290/2005 and (EC) No  485/2008 ; 
 Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and the of the Council 
establishing rules for direct payments under support schemes within the framework of the 
common agricu ltural policy and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 637/2008 and Council 
Regulation 73/2009;  
 Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and the of the Council 
establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and re pealing 
Council Regulations (EC) No 922/72, No 234/79, (EC) 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007;  
 Regulation (EU) No 1310/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
17 December 2013 laying down certain transitional provisions on support for rural 
development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), amending 
Regulation (EU)  No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards 
resources and their distribution in respect of the year 2014 and amending Council Regul ation 
(EC) No 73/2009 and Regulations (EU) No 1307/2013, (EU) No 1306/2013 and (EU) 
No 1308/2013of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards their application in 
the year 2014.  
(3) DETAILED DESCRIPTION  OF MEASURE WITH REFE RENCE TO CRITERIA:   
Direct Payment schemes  
Direct payments are aimed at supporting and stabilising farmers ' incomes. They also ensure the 
provision of environmental public goods (through cross compliance and greening). The 
2013 CAP reform provides a completely new architecture of direct payments in order to better 
target support.  
The basic rules on direct payments and the applicable eligibility criteria are contained in 
Regulation  (EU) No 1307/2013. For the 2013 and 2014 application years, transitional Regulations 
(Regulations (EU) No 671/2012 and 1310/2013) applied. Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 applies 
from application year 2015.  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Annex 2, paragraph 6  
 
Basic Payment Scheme(BPS) : The 2013 CAP reform introduced the Basic Payment which entered 
into force from 2015.  
The Basic Paym ent Scheme is operated on the basis of payment entitlements allocated to active 
farmers in the first year of application of the scheme. Under the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS), 
eligible farmers must hold entitlements and activate them each year on a correspon ding number of 
eligible hectares (either used for production or maintained in a state suitable for grazing or 
cultivation without preparatory action going beyond usual agricultural methods and machinery) to 
receive payments. In general, each entitlement in  a member State or region should have the same 
value from 2015 (the flat rate value determined by dividi ng the envelope for BPS in the m ember 
State by the number of eligible hectares declared by farmers) but member State s may derogate 
from this rule provid ed the values of entitlements converge towards a flat rate by  2019. Where 
convergence towards a flat rate value is opted for, the value of payment entitlements is still 
established based on individual reference amounts in 2014. According to Article 34 of R egulation 
(EU) No 1307/2013, payment entitlements may be transferred to other farmers. Farmers are not 
required to produce in order to be eligible for payment under the BPS.  
Based on the budget limits applying to each member State , and taking into account each member 
State's decisions regarding the level of funding for different schemes, the Commission sets annual 
national envelopes for the BPS which could be between approximately 25% to 70% of the national 
ceiling for direct payments.  
According to Regulat ion (EU) No 1307/2013, m ember States decide on the shares of their financial 
ceiling for direct payments (as set in its Annex II) they will allocate to each scheme:  
1. The young farmer payment (up to 2%);  
2. Where applied, the redistributive payment (up to 30 %) ; 
3. Where applied, the payment for areas with natural constraints (up to 5 %); and  
4. The remaining amount, after deduction of the 30% to be allocated to the compulsory 
"greening payment", forms the ceiling available for the basic payment.  
Eligibility to the Basic Payment is a precondition for eligible farmers to receive other direct 
payments such as the greening payment, the redistributive payment, the payment for areas with 
natural constraints, the payment for young farmers, and the small farmer scheme. The Basic 
Payment is granted with no requirement to produce. It is a decoupled income support which is 
granted in the form of decoupled direct payments and not related to price support. Eligibility for 
the Basic Payment is a precondition for the complementary payments under the decoupled income 
scheme: the greening payment, the young farmers payment, the payment for Areas with Natural 
Constraints, the small farmers scheme and the redistributive payment.  Payments under the 
BPS comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the 
relevant criteria of paragraph 6.  
Payment for agricultural practices beneficial for the climate and environment (The greening 
payment) : 
The 2013 CAP reform introduced several instruments to promote enviro nmental sustainability and 
combat climate change. Under direct payments the "greening" direct payment, which is a subsidy 
granted to farmers on the condition that they undertake practices that are beneficial to the climate 
and to the environment (Article 4 3 of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013). It should be underlined that 
farmers may only be paid the full BPS and greening payment if they have fulfilled the obligations 
under greening and undertaken the necessary practices that are beneficial to climate and the 
environment.  
The agricultural practices under greening include the maintenance of existing permanent 
grassland, application of crop diversification and the establishment of ecological focus areas on the 
agricultural area. Subject to a decision by m ember St ates a farmer can, instead of applying these 
basic practices, undertake practices which are considered equivalent (such as crop rotation instead 
of crop diversification). These requirements have been chosen in such a way as to bring real G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  environmental enha ncement whilst limiting the additional costs and burdens in the operation of the 
farm. Member States must allocate 30% of their direct payment envelope to green direct 
payments.  
By respecting these greening practices, farmers contribute to long -term compe titiveness and for 
an economically, environmentally and socially sustainable way of managing their farms. The 
greening payment is th erefore a new element of the EU' s response to the global challenge of 
sustainable management of natural resources and climat e action which is of particular importance 
to agriculture.  
On top of these mandatory instruments, agri -environmental policy encourages the introduction 
and/or maintenance of extensive, environmentally friendly farming systems programmed and 
targeted toward s regional needs. These instruments will be accompanied by broad support from 
the Farm Advisory System and applied research.  
The greening payment is a payment granted with no requirement to produce. It is a decoupled 
income support and not related to price  support.Payments under the greening measure comply 
with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria 
of paragraph 6.  
Small farmers scheme :  
The Small Farmers Scheme (SFS) is a simplified direct payment schem e. It is optional for m ember 
States, and where implemented, it is also optional for farmers.  
Any farmer claiming support may decide to participate in the SFS and thereby receive an annual 
payment calculated in accordance with the policy decision taken by the member State in this 
respect. Such payment can never exc eed EUR  1,250 per farmer (some m ember States opted for a 
lower maximum level of payment). M ember States may choose from different methods to calculate 
the annual payment, including an option where by farmers would simply receive the amount they 
would have received if they had not opted for the  SFS. This scheme is expected to result in a 
significant simplification for the farmers concerned and for national administrations. The small 
farmers ' scheme i ncludes simplified administrative procedures. Participants will also be exempted 
from greening and from the cross compliance penalties (however they still have to respect the 
rules in relation to the environment, public health, animal health, plant health and animal welfare). 
It is an administrative simplification linked to management and control of direct payments. 
Farmers can opt for participation in the small farmers scheme only once (in  2015) and remain 
under that scheme, unless they opt out. Expenditur e under the SFS is financed from the funds 
allocated to the other direct payment schemes.  
The Small Farmers Scheme is a payment granted with no requirement to produce. It is a 
decoupled income support and not related to price support. Payments under the SF S comply with 
paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of 
paragraph  6. 
Payment for young farmers : 
In order to encourage generational renewal, provision is made for a compulsory payment for 
Young Farmers. This payment is intended to support the first years following the initial setting up 
of farmers not older than 40 years of age in the year of submitting their first application for direct 
payments and for the first time setting up an agricultural holding a s head of the holding (the 
setting up may have taken place either in the year of application or in the period during the 
preceding five years). The payment is granted for a maximum of five years.  
Member States have the option to introduce additional eligib ility criteria in terms of appropriate 
skills and/or training requirements.  
This is in addition to other measures available for young farmers under rural development.  
The Young Farmers Payment is a payment granted with no requirement to produce. It is a 
decoupled income support and not related to price support. Payments under the Young Farmers G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Scheme comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the 
relevant criteria of paragraph 6.  
Payment for areas with natural constr aints: 
The 2013 CAP reform defines "Areas with Natural or Other Specific Constraints " with specific 
criteria under Article  32 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013. These are areas where farming is 
handicapped by a natural or other specific constraint and where farmers face higher costs of 
production. There are three different categories of such areas:  
1. Mountain areas, which are handicapped by altitude, difficult climatic conditions and a short 
growing season;  
2. Areas, other than mountain areas, facing significant n atural constraints;  
3. Other areas which face specific constraints and where the land needs to be managed in 
order to conserve or improve the environment, to maintain the countryside, to preserve the 
potential for tourism or to protect the coastline.  
The area s have to be delimited by m ember States on the basis of eight biophysical criteria 
(e.g. slope), with some flexibility to use other criteria for up to 10% of their agricultural area. The 
2013 CAP reform developed a set of common biophysical indicators, as part of the new legal 
framework for rural devel opment, which is to be used by m ember States for identifying "areas, 
other than mountain areas facing significant natural constraints.  
As provided for in Article 49 of Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013, up to 5% o f the national envelope 
for direct payments may be reserved for additional payments to farmers operating in areas with 
natural con straints as designated by each m ember State.  
The payment for areas with natural constraints is a voluntary payment granted wi th no 
requirement to produce. It is a decoupled income support and not related to price support. 
Payments under the BPS comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as 
well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 6.  
Redistributive Payment :  
Member States have the option to further target direct payments through a redistributive payment 
targeted at small and medium -sized farms eligible to the Basic Payment.  
The redistributive  payment is granted with no requirement to produce. It is a  decoupled income 
support and not related to price support. Payments under the redistributive scheme comply with 
paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of 
paragraph 6.  
Annex 2, paragraph 5  
Single Area P ayment Scheme :  
The ten of the 13 m ember States joining the EU after 2004 that applied the Single Area Payment 
Scheme (SAPS) until 2014 continue to apply it for the 2015 -2020 period (Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, 
Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hun gary, Romania and Bulgaria). These m ember 
States are also allowed to grant Transitional National Aid for those sectors which in the past years 
were allowed to receive Complementary National Direct Payments. The level of the amounts to be 
paid will be gradu ally reduced and in application year  2020 will reach 50% of the amount payable 
in 2013.  
The payments linked to greening, young farmers, small farmers, natural constraints and 
redistributive payments in the countries using SAPS will be notified together wit h SAPS  payments.  
Payments under  the SAPS comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as 
well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 5.  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Article 6.5  
Voluntary Coupled Support : 
Within the framework of the direct payments system, vol untary coupled support (VCS) can be 
applied in up to 21 agricultural sectors and type of pr oduction at the choice of each m ember State. 
The support is limited in terms of both amounts available and objectives. VCS is granted within 
defined quantitative lim its and based on fixed areas and yields or on a fixed number of animals. 
Member States decide on the shares of their direct payments financial ceiling to be assigned to the 
scheme. Where applied, the share for Voluntary Coupled Support is defined as a gene ral rule up to 
a maximum of 8 or 13 % (+ 2% for protein crops) for each m ember State as a percentage of its 
direct payments ceiling.  
All the eligible sectors and types of production (out of the list of 21) have been targeted, by at 
least one m ember State, u nder this scheme for the 2015 -2020 period with the exception of cane 
sugar and chicory, short rotation coppice and dried fodder. The s ectors most often supported by 
member States are beef and veal, milk and dairy products, sheep and goat meat, protein crop s, 
fruit and vegetables and sugar beet.  
Member States may only grant VCS in clearly defined cases where specific types of farming or 
specific agricultural sectors that are particularly important for economic and/or social and/or 
environmental reasons unde rgo certain difficulties in terms of risk of decline or of abandonment of 
production. Payments shall be granted to the extent necessary to create an incentive to maintain 
current levels of production. The decision to use the maximum allowance for voluntary  coupled 
support is valid during the period 2015 -2020. Member States had the possibility to review their 
initial decisions by 1 August 2016 with effect from  2017.  
Payments  under VCS comply with Article 6.5 of the Agreement on Agriculture . 
Crop specific pay ment for cotton :  
The current regime  is designed to encourage a competitive, sustainable and market -driven cotton 
sector, while safeguarding the legal commitments of supporting the production of cotton in regions 
of the EU where it is important for the agr icultural economy. Crop -specific payments for cotton are 
available in accordance with Article 58 of Regula tion (EU) No 1307/2013 in four m ember States. 
To be eligible for crop -specific aid, farmers must only grow co tton on land authorised by the 
member Sta tes, using authorised varieties of seed and subject to minimum quality of cotton 
actually harvested. The crop -specific payment for cotton is paid for cotton of sound, fair, and 
marketable quality. The payments are based on fixed areas and yields and they a re made on 85% 
or less of the base level of production. If the eligible cotton area exceeds the base area, aid is 
reduced proportionally to the overshoot.  
Payments under crop -specific scheme for cotton comply with Article 6.5 of the Agreement on 
Agricultur e. 
Rural Development  
Rural development programmes define multi -annual strategies in selected programming areas, 
based on a thorough analysis of their socio -economic and environmental needs. The strategies 
implemented under each programme aim at meeting EU priorities for rural development through a 
number of selected measures. The programmes also lay down the conditions that potential 
beneficiaries have to meet if they are to benefit from rural development funds.  
Member States or regions design their own mu lti-annual programmes on the basis of the EU legal 
framework set for the period 2014 -2020. The new structure based on EU priorities is t o provide 
more flexibility for m ember States in their decisions on how and with which tools to address their 
specific ne eds and problems, including the environmental ones, identified in the analysis of the 
situation. On the other hand, the list of priorities also ensures that the programmes contribute to 
the overall EU priorities for rural development as well as the overall  goals for EU Structural Funds.  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  The rural development programmes are co -funded from national envelopes. The allocation of 
national envelopes is set out in the Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013, as part of the overall 2013 CAP 
reform agreement. Co -financing can  have different rates from 53% up to 95% for  certain 
measures/regions even up to 100% for measures financed with funds transferred from the CAP 1st 
pillar (direct payments). In order to further underline the importance of using rural development 
for the en vironme nt and climate -related issues, m ember States have to spend at least 30% of 
their rural development funding from the EU budget, at the level of each programme, on certain 
measures related to land management, environmental issues and climate change mi tigation and 
adaptation.  
Agri-environment -climate payments which represent the most important rural development 
measure in terms of environmental payments can only be granted for commitments which are set 
at the level going beyond mandatory requirements. T his guarantees that the payments for this 
measure deliver the environmental and climate -related public goods additional to those provided 
by mandatory requirements. Member States and regions decide about the exact content of agri -
environment -climate measur es to address their specific needs. Member States and regions have a 
large menu of measures to respond to the needs and priorities of their rural areas.  
The EU priorities for rural development are the following:  
1. fostering knowledge transfer and innovation  in agriculture, forestry, and rural areas;  
2. enhancing farm viability and competitiveness of all types of agriculture in all regions and 
promoting innovative farm technologies and the sustainable management of forests;  
3. promoting food chain organisation, inc luding processing and marketing of agricultural 
products, animal welfare and risk management in agriculture;  
4. restoring, preserving and enhancing ecosystems related to agriculture and forestry;  
5. promoting resource efficiency and supporting the shift towards a low carbon and climate 
resilient economy in agriculture, food and forestry sectors;  
6. promoting social inclusion, poverty reduction and economic development in rural areas.  
All those priorities should contribute to the cross -cutting objectives of innovatio n, environment and 
climate change mitigation and adaptation.  
The different elements/measures of the new rural development programmes cover the following 
elements within the scope of Annex 2 to the Agreement on Agriculture:  
Annex 2 paragraph 2  
 
 Fostering knowledge transfer and innovation;  
 Advisory Service, farm management and farm relief service;  
 Quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs;  
 Co-operation between farmers/entities on pilot projects, sharing facilities and resources, 
innovations,  horizontal and vertical integration and development of short supply chains;  
 Mutual funds for adverse climatic events, animal and plant diseases, pest infections and 
environmental incidents.  
 
Annex 2 paragraph 7  
 
 Risk management;  
 Income stabilisation tool  
 
Annex 2 paragraph 8  
 
 Crop, animal and plant insurance;  
 Mutual funds;  
 Restoring agricultural production damaged by natural disasters.  
 G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Annex 2, paragraph 11  
 
 Investments in physical assets;  
 Farm and business development;  
 Setting -up producer groups and orga nisations.  
 
Annex 2 paragraph 12  
 
 Agri-environment and climate;  
 Organic farming;  
 Natura 2000 and Water Framework directive payments;  
 Payments to areas facing natural or specific constraints;  
 Animal welfare.  
 
Annex 2, paragraph 13  
 
 Basic services and villag e renewal in rural areas;  
 Payments to areas facing natural or other specific constraints;  
 
Payments under rural development comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on 
Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraphs 2, 7, 8, 11, 12 and 13.  
 
Promotion measures within the Common Market Organisation  
Annex  2 paragraph 2 (f) to the Agreement on Agriculture  
 
Wine National Support Programmes :  
 
Member States may allocate a part of their EU Wine National Support Programmes for projects 
aimed at providing information on the responsible consumption of wines and the risks associated 
with harmful alcohol consumption, including about EU quality system covering designations of 
origin and geographical indications (PDO/PGI).   
These campaigns must  run inside the EU and EU financing cannot exceed 50 % of the eligible 
expenditure of a campaign. Member States may also contribute.  
Legal provisions for this scheme are contained i n Article 45 of Regulation (EU)  No 1308/2013.  
These payments from the win e national support programme  comply with paragraph  1 of Annex  2 
to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph  2 (f).  
Annex 2 paragraph 4 to the Agreement on Agriculture  
School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme :  
This scheme a llows the European Union to support the distribution of fruit and vegetables to 
children in nursery, primary and secondary schools under the Common Market Organisation 
(Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013). The objective is to introduce balanced diets and good ea ting 
habits. The de finitive allocation of aid per m ember State participating in the scheme is decided on 
a yearly basis and is based on the over all EU budget. The scheme is co -financed, which means 
that EU funds must be matched by national or private contr ibutions. The overall budgetary 
envelope from the EU budget for the Scheme is EUR  150 million from  2014.  
The scheme also supports educational accompanying measures explaining the potential benefits of 
fruit and vegetable consumption and reinforcing the li nk with agriculture.  
Payments from the school fruit and vegetable scheme comply with paragraph 1 of Annex  2 to the 
Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 4.  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  School Milk Scheme : 
The School Milk Scheme is an aid provided  by the European Union, under the Common Market 
Organisation (Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013). The scheme aims at supplying milk and certain milk 
products to children in nursery, primary and secondary schools and aims to encourage 
consumption among children of healthy dairy products containing important vitamins and 
minerals. Member States may match EU funding with additional amounts from national budgets. 
The scheme does not only have a nutritional character but also an educational character and 
contributes therefore to the fight against obesity among children. The School Milk Scheme is there 
to provide quality products for children, to contribute to a healthy way of living and to nutritional 
education with a better knowledge on products.  
Payments from the s chool milk scheme c omply with paragraph 1 of Annex  2 to the Agreement on 
Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 4.  
(4) COST OF MEASURE:   
 
The overall ceiling for the agricultural budget for the period 2014 to 2020 was fixed in the 
Multiannual Financial Framework (Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1311/2013).  
Budget year 2016 will be the first budget year in which the new direct payments are made. For 
that year:  
 The overall ceiling for direct payments and market related expenditure  support (1st pillar) 
will be EUR 43.95  billion. Direct payments will count for nearly 96% of total 1st pillar 
expenditure without taking into account assigned revenue.  
 Rural development (2nd pillar) will have an annual ceiling around EUR 14.4  billion 
(commitment), before reprogramming (due to late approval of some programmes 
during  2014). This ceiling includes some forestry measures, which are not covered by the 
Agreement on Agriculture.  
(5) DATE OF ENTRY INTO E FFECT:  
 
 Rural development for 2015 -2020 (Regu lation (EU) No 1305/2013): applied from 
1 January  2014;  
 Cross cutting issues  such as funding and controls (Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013): applied 
from 1 January 2014 (with some exceptions set out in its Article 121);  
 Direct payments (Regulation (EU) No 130 7/2013): applied from 1 January 2015;  
 Common Market Organisation (Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013): applied from 
1 January  2014 (with some exceptions set out in its Article 232);  
 Transitional rules (Regulation (EU) No 1310/2013): applied from 1 January 2014.  
(6) PERIOD OF APPLICATIO N:  
 
 Rural development (Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013): 2014 -2020;  
 Cross -cutting issues such as funding and controls (Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013): 
indefinite;  
 Direct payments (Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013): indefinite (budgets set  2015-2020);  
 Common Market Organisation (Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013): indefinite;  
 Transitional rules (Regulation (EU) No 1310/2013): 2014 only.  
(7) PRODUCTS TO PRINCIPA LLY BENEFIT (IF ANY INDIVIDUAL PRODUCT(S )):  
 
Support under direct payments (BPS, SAPS,  greening, small farmers scheme, young farmers 
scheme and redistributive payments under Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013) are decoupled 
payments and not provided for individual products.  
Voluntary Coupled Support (Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013) may be applie d (depending on 
member State decision and European Commission approval) to 21 products: beef and veal, milk 
and dairy products, sheep and goat meat, protein crops, fruit and vegetables, sugar beet, cereals, G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  olive oil, rice, grain legumes, starch potato, nuts , oilseeds, seeds, hops, hemp, silkworms, flax, 
cane and chicory, short rotation coppice and dried fodder.  
The cotton crop specific payment (Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013) is for cotton.  
Rural development (Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013): the support is not p rovided for individual 
products.  
 G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Table DS:2  
DOMESTIC SUPPORT: EU ROPEAN UNION  
Notification under Article 18:3 of the Agreement:  
New or modified domestic support measures exempt from reduction  
______________________________________________________________ _______________  
 
(1) FULL TITLE OF MEASUR E: European aid to the most deprived . 
 
The Fund for European aid to the most deprived may deliver basic material assistance including 
food for the personal use of the most deprived persons within the Union.  
(2) DOME STIC LEGISLATION REF ERENCE:   
 
Regulation (EU) No 223/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11  March  2014 
on the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived.  
(3) DETAILED DESCRIPTION  OF MEASURE WITH REFE RENCE TO CRITERIA:   
 
The Fund promotes social cohesion, enhances social inclusion and contributes to the objective of 
eradicating poverty. The Fund supports national schemes whereby food and/or basic material 
assistance are distributed to the most deprived persons through partner organisatio ns selected by 
the m ember States.  
Annex 2 Paragraph 4 to Agreement on Agriculture  
 
Payments compensate for cost incurred or revenue foregone in relation to the provision of 
domestic food aid. Eligibility to receive the food aid is based on clearly -defined cri teria related to 
nutritional objectives. Food purchases for the schemes are made at current market prices or lower.  
 
Payments from the Fund for European aid to the most deprived comply with paragraph  1 of 
Annex  2 to the Agreement on Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 4.  
 
(4) COST OF MEASURE:  
 
The total annual expenditure for the Fund will be in the order of EUR 485  million (2011 prices) and 
the total amount for the full period 2014 -2020 may not exceed EUR 3.396  billion (2011 pric es).  
 
(5) DATE OF ENTRY INTO E FFECT:  
 
11 March 2014.  
 
(6) PERIOD OF APPLICATIO N:  
 
The Fund covers the period 2014 -2020.  
 
(7) PRODUCTS TO PRINCIPA LLY BENEFIT (IF ANY INDIVIDUAL PRODUCT(S )):  
 
The fund is not intended to support individual products.  
 G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Table DS:2  
DOMESTIC SUPPORT: EU ROPEAN UNION  
Notification under Article 18:3 of the Agreement:  
New or modified domestic support measures exempt from reduction  
______________________________________________________________________________  
 
(1) FULL TITLE OF ME ASURE:   
 
Management of expenditure relating to the food chain, animal health and animal welfare, and 
relating to plant health and plant reproductive material.  
 
These new Regulations manage the financing of the measures linked to EU food and food safety as  
well as feed and feed safety at all stages of production. It also lays down requirements regarding 
the prevention and control of transmissible diseases in animals and zoonosis, as well as on animal 
welfare, animal by -products, plant health and plant repro ductive material.  
 
(2) DOMESTIC LEGISLATION  REFERENCE:   
 
 Regulation (EU) No 652/2014  of the European Parliament and of the Council of 
15 May 2014 laying down provisions for the management of expenditure relating to the food 
chain, animal health and animal  welfare, and relating to plant health and plant reproductive 
material, amending Council Directives 98/56/EC, 2000/29/EC and 2008/90/EC, Regulations 
(EC) No 178/200 2, (EC) No 882/2004 and (EC) No  396/2005 of the European Parliament 
and of the Council, Dire ctive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 
and Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and 
repealing Council Decisions 66/399/EEC, 76/894/EEC and 2009/470/EC.  
 
 Regulation (EU) No 2016/429  of the Europ ean Parliament and of the Council of 
9 March  2016 on transmissible animal diseases and amending and repealing certain acts in 
the area of animal health ("Animal Health Law").  
 
(3) DETAILED DESCRIPTION  OF MEASURE WITH REFE RENCE TO CRITERIA:   
 
Annex 2 paragr aph 2 (b) to Agreement on Agriculture  
 
Both Regulations cover among others, the expenditure related to pest disease control 
(e.g.:  quarantine eradication and prevention of the propagation of diseases) in terms of animal 
health, plant health and plant repro ductive material. The general objective of EU law in those 
areas is to contribute to a high level of health for humans, animals and plants along the food 
chain, a high level of protection and information for consumers and a high level of protection of 
the environment. In order to pursuit this objective the EU must provide with the appropriate 
financial resources in the different areas, including for exceptional circumstances such as 
emergency situations related to animal and plant health, when the appropria tions allocations are 
insufficient but emergency measures are necessary.  
 
The payments related to the food chain, animal health and animal welfare, and relating to plant 
health and plant reproductive material comply with paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agre ement on 
Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 2(b) . 
(4) COST OF MEASURE:   
 
Annual expenditure will be in the order of EUR 260  million. Total expenditure over the years 2014 
to 2020 shall not be more than EUR 1.892  billion (2011 pr ices).  
 
(5) DATE OF ENTRY INTO E FFECT:   
 
 Regulation (EU) No 652/2014 entered into force on the 30 June 2014 (with some exceptions 
set out in its Article 54).  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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   Regulation (EU) No 2016/429 enters into force on 21 April 2021, except for Articles  270(1) 
and 2 74, which apply from 20 April 2016.  
(6) PERIOD OF APPLICATIO N: Indefinite  
 
(7) PRODUCTS TO PRINCIPA LLY BENEFIT (IF ANY INDIVIDUAL PRODUCT(S )):  
 
The measure is not intended to support individual products.  G/AG/N/EU/35  
 
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  Table DS:2  
DOMESTIC SUPPORT:  EUROPEAN UNION  
Notification under  Article 18.3 of the Agreement:  
New or modified domestic support measures exempt from reduction  
______________________________________________________________________________  
 
(1) FULL TITLE OF MEASUR E: 
 
Information provision and promotion mea sures concerning agricultural products implemented in 
the internal market and in third countries . 
(2) DOMESTIC LEGISLATION  REFERENCES  
Regulation (EU) No 1144/2014  of the European Parl iament and of the Council of 
22 October  2014 on information provision and  promotion measures concerning agricultural 
products implemented in the internal market and in third countries and repealing Council 
Regulation (EC) No 3/2008 . 
(3) DETAILED DESCRIPTION  OF MEASURE WITH REFE RENCE TO CRITERIA:  
The EU allocates financial supp ort for campaigns to promote specific farm products/farm  and food 
production methods and inform consumers about how these products has been produced. The 
campaigns can run inside the EU, or beyond its borders.  
Payments from the promotion scheme comply wit h paragraph 1 of Annex 2 to the Agreement on 
Agriculture as well as with the relevant criteria of paragraph 2(f) .  
(4) COST OF MEASURE  
EUR 60 million during 201 4, to be increased to EUR  200 million by 2019. This budget applies to 
measures both inside and o utside the EU.  
(5) DATE OF ENTRY INTO E FFECT  
1 December 2015 . 
(6) PERIOD OF APPLICATIO N 
Indefinite . 
(7) PRODUCTS TO PRINCIPA LLY BENEFIT (IF ANY INDIVIDUAL PRODUCT(S )) 
Campaigns can cover the promotion of: fresh, chilled and frozen beef, veal and pig meat,  food 
preparations based on these products, sheep meat, milk products, olive oil and table olives, wines 
with a protected designation of origin or a protected geographical indication, wines with an 
indication of the wine grape variety, spirits drinks with a protected geographical indication, fresh 
and processed fruit and vegetables, products processed from cereals and rice, fibre flax, live plants 
and ornamental horticulture products, products covered by the schemes for protected designations 
of origin (PDO ), protected geographical indications (PGI) or tra ditional specialties 
guaranteed  (TSG) and organic farming and organic products.  
 
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