She says she wants to help “exhausted, tested farmers”. The Minister of Agriculture, Annie Genevard, unveiled, Friday September 4, a set of measures for the agricultural sector, at the end of an exceptional summer, marked by significant losses in yield. This plan, called Casi (for “Climate, adaptation, drought, fire”), aims to respond to a “double imperative”: “compensate losses to avoid bankruptcies and restart production”. It will be endowed with one billion euros, despite a “difficult budgetary situation”, recalled the minister. A dedicated unit will be set up within the ministry to coordinate and accelerate disbursements.
Half a billion euros to compensate farmers
Annie Genevard has made a commitment to "add as much as necessary to national solidarity compensation" (ISN), the main State mechanism to compensate for harvest losses linked to exceptional climatic hazards, a measure which intervenes beyond a certain threshold of losses. The government estimates the amount needed at 520 million euros. The minister spoke of an acceleration of advances and payments, and called for “particular speed from all state services”. The advance payments for this compensation have been increased to 80%, compared to 70% previously. The first payments are expected from October, the minister's office told France Télévisions.
In addition, the agricultural disaster regime will have to compensate for losses of non-insurable funds, such as perennial plantations or vines, for 30 million euros.
Property tax reductions on undeveloped properties (TFPNB) are also planned for the benefit of “the hardest hit agricultural operations”, i.e. 330 million euros. From 2027, the method of calculating compensation for losses will be changed. It will take into account the returns of the previous eight years, instead of the current five. “It’s more protective and I went to negotiate this victory in Brussels for our farmers,” commented Annie Genevard.
The plan also provides for a strengthening of social and psychological support, as well as the extension of aid for the purchase of fertilizer and diesel (GNR). The fertilizer purchase assistance window will be extended until December 31, supplemented by both European and public funds. The assistance window for purchasing agricultural fuel will be renewed in September and October, for a total of 106 million euros.
An “agricultural rearmament fund” to revive production
On the aspect of agricultural recovery, Annie Genevard announced the establishment of an “agricultural rearmament fund” for France and the Antilles, endowed with 235 million euros, in particular for the purchase of fodder, seedlings, to compensate for fire damage, etc. It will be managed at department level and will include an “envelope dedicated to the various fires” which hit the territories this summer. The prefects will begin next week to consult agricultural organizations, in order to “define the target audiences and the amount of individual aid”.
“We will also mobilize an additional 20 million for the campaign to cover social contributions starting this fall,” added the minister.
An increase in the advance rate on CAP aid
Finally, Annie Genevard announced the increase "from 70% to 75%" of the "amount of CAP advances that farmers will receive very soon", i.e. 420 million euros of cash which will arrive more quickly in farm accounts. She also asked to accelerate the deployment of the single check: "Wherever we can do it legally, we will reduce the number of PAC checks and we will favor checks on documents rather than on farms."
Annie Genevard recalled that this plan complements technical measures already taken this summer, such as exemptions to encourage fallow land. The agricultural emergency law, “almost entirely validated by the Constitutional Council, contains several measures which will be directly useful to farmers”. In particular, she considered that no one "can any longer say in good faith that we must prohibit the storage of water", in reference to the supervision of storage basins.
