In the BMEL agricultural committee of the German Bundestag, the CDU/CSU opposition and the caretaker coalition parties SPD and Greens have reached an agreement on the expansion of the biogas network. They want to accelerate the production of green energy with additional subsidies. They want to establish this before the elections of 23 February.
In addition, the three factions drew up a list of agricultural and environmental laws on which they have not yet reached an agreement in their last committee meeting. In recent years, the CDU opposition has been very critical of the centre-left coalition's agricultural and environmental policies, but has submitted few counter-proposals of its own.
Last week, Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir (Greens) finally put his proposal for a national biodiversity strategy on the political agenda. An initial action plan contains around 250 measures to be implemented between 2025 and 2027 that could have a major impact on natural areas and the countryside.
The German political parties are still at odds over the financing of a radical agricultural transition as proposed by the so-called ZKL Future Commission. The CDU now says that these recommendations "must be understood as guidelines based on social consensus". The CDU does not mention the costs, and whether this should be paid for by a new meat tax or by higher VAT on food.
This week, a brief 'agricultural paragraph' was finally adopted at a CDU congress, as a kind of 'interim action plan'. It is proposed to reverse the previous reduction in agricultural diesel and the restriction of chemical pesticides. In addition, the CDU members want fewer (green) regulations in agriculture.
According to the latest opinion polls, the CDU/CSU will win the elections with more than thirty percent of the votes, followed by the far-right AfD with about 20, the SPD with about 18 and the Greens with about 15 percent. Since CDU leader Merz has already categorically ruled out governing with the AfD, and since the CDU and SPD together are unlikely to gain a majority, the formation of a three-party coalition may prove necessary.
If the Christian Democrats win the elections in February and become the largest party, the Bavarian sister party CSU will now claim the BMEL ministerial post. The CSU believes that regional Farmers' Union chairman Günther Felssner should become Özdemir's successor.
Felßner told the news magazine Politico that he sees no need for a break with the current agricultural policy and also supports the expansion of renewable energy sources, similar to Özdemir's approach. "We will once again have an agricultural policy that brings together ecology and economy," Felßner explained.