BUCHAREST, June 4 (Xinhua) -- The European Union (EU) will increase efforts in agricultural research and bio-economy to ensure its agriculture to meet the standards on environment and climate, said Romanian Minister of Agriculture Petre Daea on Tuesday.
The minister made the remarks at a press conference organized at the end of the informal meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries ministers, held in Bucharest in the context of Romania's Presidency of the EU Council.
According to the official, research and bio economy are catalysts for agriculture, taking into account the future reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
"Research and bio economy are key priorities in agriculture, as they allow farmers in EU countries to line up with the ever-rising standards of the CAP, especially those on environment and climate," said Daea, adding that the discussion at the meeting focused on the solid policies and appropriate instruments that are of particular relevance to ensuring the transmission of knowledge and research results to the farmers.
The ministers also held active discussions on how to ensure better policy guidance to provide viable new models for agribusiness, especially in the bio-economy, while encouraging farmers to move towards innovation and research.
Earlier, European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan argued that more money will be available for EU small and medium-sized farms through the new CAP, and that adopting a bio economy strategy will allow the creation of around one million new jobs in the EU in the next 10-12 years.
According to the commissioner, the EU will identify concrete steps to make sure that the entire rural environment benefits from investments.
The Romanian minister chaired the informal meeting in Bucharest, with "Research in Agriculture and Bio-economy - Building Synergies" as the main subject.
