Summary of newspapers of the previous day – 14. 3. 2011

Public notice will protect agricultural land

The Ministry of Agriculture advocates actively quality soil protection. Therefore, it set five protection classes in framework of which payments for exclusion of land from the agricultural land fund are scaled according to the soil quality. The public notice was issued in the Collection of Law this week. Soil can be considered as one of non-renewable natural resources. Its basic function is not only a medium for growing of arable crops and security of food self-sufficiency for the CR inhabitant. Soil has a crucial influence on water regime in landscape but also on plant cover and local climatic conditions. Its quality is directly connected with erosion and other negative effects.

VAT in foods will be even after new change one of highest in EU

The value added tax (VAT) rate in foods in the Czech Republic even in spite of moderation of planned growth of its rate, on which the coalition agreed on Thursday, will be one of the highest in Europe. The Food Chamber (FCH) stated it today. Same as the Czech Confederation of Commerce and Tourism (SOCR), also food producers advise food price growth after the tax increase. Thursday proposal of the government coalition counts at first with increase in basic VAT rate to 14 percents from 2012 and on a unification of rates to 17.5 percents from 2013. The original proposal was 20 percents.

Czech Republic and Germany want agricultural subsidies only for active farmers

German Ministress of Nutrition, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Ilse Aigner, with her Czech colleague Ivan Fuksa solved above all a direct payments system in the future Common Agricultural Policy, from a definition of active farmer to a refusal of discrimination of farms on base of their size, in Prague. They also discussed a necessary simplification of CAP rules, strengthening of competitiveness, and use of renewable energy resources. The Czech Republic and Germany agree in many opinions about a future form of the Common Agricultural Policy of the EU.

Eco-farmers criticize ACH plan for increase in number of pastured animals

Organic farmers dislike an intention of Agrarian Chamber (ACH) to increase minimal limits for farm animal breeding on permanent grass growth. According to today´s expression of PRO-BIO Organic Farmers Union, an obligatory intensification of breeding can endanger development of eco-farms in the CR. Hereat, the area of organically farmed land should have increased by a third to 15 percents of all agricultural land in the country by 2015 according to a plan approved by the government.