The EU commissioner in charge of the future of the EU’s much maligned Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has spoken out against criticisms levied at the policy or those who receive money from it, stating that “farmers need not be embarrassed because they receive support from public funds.”

The comments came at the closing of the Conference on the Public Debate on the CAP post-2013. While it might seem that such statements will only fuel the general public’s distaste for the CAP, the most worrying part of the speech was, perhaps, what was left unsaid.

Dacian Ciolos made no reference to development other than to that of EU farms, stressing the need for modernisation, innovation and diversification. The question of what the CAP does to the developing world was ignored entirely.

The CAP, it has been argued, puts a great deal of pressure on farmers in developing nations as it makes european farmers artificially competitive through the use of subsidies. In addition, the CAP promotes over production that has often been dumped in developing nations, causing real harm to the agriculture industry.

The question of a new CAP comes at a very interesting time, as european governments are slashing public spending in attempts to make a dent in their budget deficits and as the EU itself warning about ‘mushrooming’ institutions. One wonders how sustainable the CAP will be as people ask why farmers are continuing to receive state benefits when the vast majority of the population are being forced to cut back.