Greece agricultural policy reform

In late July, Greek officials at the National Dialogue in Patras outlined their priorities for the upcoming Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2028‑2034, calling for well‑funded, flexible measures tailored to Greece’s fragmented farms, islands, and mountainous areas. The ministry emphasized securing farmer incomes, modernising operations, enhancing climate resilience, and ensuring predictable financing through both EU and national resources.

A week later, PASOK’s deputy secretary of agriculture warned that the sector was in crisis, citing an aging rural population, rising costs, climate pressures and the OPEKEPE fraud scandal. The party demanded a radical overhaul of the CAP, proposing a “pay farmers, not land” approach that would deliver transparent subsidies to genuine producers, lower input costs, and invest in climate‑adaptation and rural infrastructure. The shift highlights a growing political debate between the government’s push for flexible funding and the opposition’s call for deeper structural reforms to rescue Greece’s agriculture.

In August 2026, the government unveiled a new CAP framework for 2028‑2034 with more than €20 billion in funding. The plan targets climate change, rising production costs, competitiveness and the renewal of rural labour, introducing an Integrated Management and Control System, digital tools, data cross‑checking and preventive audits. It stresses strategic, long‑term support rather than fragmented measures, aiming to secure food security and strengthen Greece’s role in the European agricultural sector. Deputy Minister Athanasios Kavvadias, during a visit to Thesprotia, reiterated the goal of backing every productive activity that creates income and jobs in the periphery, while also stressing the need to raise the added value of Greek products through quality certification, standardisation, processing and strong commercial branding for export.