Christophe Hansen, Member of the Commission. – Mr President, honourable Members, I am very glad that my first plenary debate as Commissioner for Agriculture and Food immediately gives me the opportunity to exchange with you on such a crucial topic: working conditions in agriculture. And I think it is closely linked to the discussion we just had before.

Farming indeed is a very demanding job, both physically and mentally, and farming can be a very lonely job as well, and cause suffering and mental health issues. We cannot be immune to these stories that real farming life writes out there, and we need to act where we can – at EU, at national and also at local level. We also need to see these issues in the longer-term perspective of generational renewal. As a Commission, we need to think about the long-term security of our continent, including on food, and to do that, a lively and healthy farming community is indispensable.

Honourable Members, farming is not a job that scores well on work-life balance. This is compounded by uncertain or fluctuating earnings. Excessive red tape is a major stress factor for farmers, who are busy filling out forms rather than working in their fields. Often, income support comes late and the market doesn't give the prices that our farmers will need. Increasingly unreliable weather conditions due to climate change pose additional challenges, and society does not always recognise farmers' vital role in providing healthy food and preserving our land.

This can lead to high levels of stress and can lead to mental health problems and disorders, such as depression and in some cases, sadly, even suicide. Among farmers, suicide rates in certain Member States are 20 % higher than the national average in other sectors. Furthermore, fatal accidents at work are more than double in the agriculture sector when compared with all other sectors, and without even considering the many accidents of self-employed farmers that are assumed missing in this incidence rate.

The Commission takes these problems very seriously and is taking actions. In 2023, the Commission adopted a Communication on a comprehensive approach to mental health. Special attention is paid to farmers' mental health and Member States are invited to take the necessary steps, particularly on prevention and awareness-raising.

The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work has just published an important report on Mental health in agriculture: preventing and managing psychological and psychosocial risks for farmers and farm workers. The report explores psychosocial risks and how they affect farmers and farm workers, and it highlights some international good practices addressing farmers' mental health. Possible discrimination that surrounds mental health problems are also addressed by guidelines provided to the Member States.

As regards accidents at work, the Commission pursues in its EU Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at Work for 2021-2027 an ambitious 'vision zero' approach to work-related deaths in the EU, including in agriculture. This involves investigating and addressing the root causes of accidents, improving data collection, increasing awareness and strengthening enforcement. The Strategic Framework also calls on Member States to provide training to farmers via farm advisory services, to increase their skills and awareness of health and safety rules on farms, including safe use of chemical substances, in particular, plant protection products.

The common agricultural policy can support these policy initiatives. Specifically, financial support for improving workers' conditions can be given, and the farm advisory service that Member States must make available to farmers under the CAP can be instrumental in raising awareness on mental health and accidents at work through specific advice to farmers.

This leads me to social conditionality, and for the first time in the CAP's history, the rights of workers to safe and healthy working conditions have been enshrined in the CAP legislation via a social conditionality mechanism. This mechanism ensures that farmers receiving direct payments and certain rural development support see these payments linked to respect for a set of rules under the social legislation. If they do not, their CAP payments may be reduced in proportion to the gravity of the infringement.

Currently, six Member States are already applying it, while the rest will follow as of next year, 2025. We are happy to see that France, Austria, Luxembourg and Italy implemented social conditionality already from 2023, and Spain and Portugal did so from 2024. By establishing social conditionality, the co-legislators clearly signalled that addressing mistreatment of workers in the farm sector is an important issue, and that public money is not granted to employers who do not respect the EU's social legislation.

The current mechanism has, however, its limitations. For example, in certain sectors – fruit and vegetables, wine, pigs, poultry and several others – farmers do not receive direct payments and, consequently, are not covered by this instrument. DG AGRI is currently carrying out a study on this mechanism, and we will assess the findings to enrich our reflections.

Our objective will be to make our common agricultural policy targeted, and find the right balance between incentives, investments and regulations. I am now looking forward to get your very important input on this topic, and I'm looking forward to a good discussion.