By Milka Sokolović, Director General, EPHA
Health is missing
As the EU enters another pivotal phase in shaping the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), one critical dimension remains largely absent from the debate: public health. The CAP is not just about farms and food production. It is a structural force that shapes the food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the rural communities we rely on. Yet, health remains peripheral in both the design and reform of this major EU policy. Current CAP discussions rightfully stress food security and economic viability. But here’s the problem: if the food we produce does not support people’s health and environmental sustainability, the entire food production misses the point. When it comes to its effect on health, agriculture cannot be siloed from its downstream effects on:
Nutrition and chronic disease: Nearly 1 in 5 deaths in Europe is diet-related, and yet EU subsidies continue to favour commodities over nutritious, fresh foods.
- Antimicrobial resistance (AMR): While sales of veterinary antibiotics in the EU have dropped by 53% since 2011, food-producing animals still account for 88% of all veterinary antimicrobial sales. Continued reductions are essential, and the CAP must support responsible husbandry and One Health safeguards.
- Chemical exposure: Pesticides and fertilisers impact not only biodiversity and soil, but human health through contaminated food and water.
Despite these realities, health objectives are not embedded in the CAP’s structure or budget priorities. This is a missed opportunity and a risk to public interest.
Opportunities we must not waste
Not all is bleak. Recent discussions, such as the EBAF guiding document on the future of the CAP, highlight elements EPHA supports:
- The emphasis on ecosystem services, animal welfare, and agroecological practices provides a critical opportunity to build both environmental and health resilience.
- The recognition of local food systems and generational renewal is aligned with EPHA’s call for food environments that are healthy, fair, and sustainable.
The Strategic Dialogue also pushes the conversation further in ways public health advocates should welcome:
- Supporting a shift toward healthier, more plant-based diets, in line with national dietary guidelines, to address both overconsumption and environmental pressures.
- Strengthening the EU School Scheme to ensure healthy food habits from early childhood.
- Using public procurement to shift food environments, ensuring that health-supportive choices are also affordable and accessible.
- Expanding independent advisory services that can help farmers transition toward agroecological and lower-input practices, benefitting both ecosystems and food safety.
- Recognising agri-food systems as part of Europe’s critical infrastructure, which reinforces the need for food system resilience in the face of health, environmental and geopolitical risks.
These are not marginal improvements, they are essential shifts that will define whether our food system protects or undermines public health in the decades to come.
Target support where it matters
While the debate around income support targeting and simplification continues, EPHA advocates for a basic principle: public funds must deliver public goods. That includes:
- Prioritising farmers who produce nutritious, health-supportive food
- Supporting practices that reduce environmental and health risks (e.g. AMR, pesticide use)
- Ensuring equity by directing funds to small farms, disadvantaged areas, and new entrants.
We support efforts to reduce unnecessary complexity for farmers and administrations. But simplification must never come at the expense of weakening environmental, social, or public health safeguards. It must serve transparency, fairness, and accessibility, not deregulation. A just and sustainable CAP must incentivise food systems that support health, not merely output.
Break the silos
The future of the CAP cannot be decided in silos. If the EU is serious about building a sustainable and equitable food system, agriculture, environment, and health must be treated as an interconnected system. At EPHA, we stand ready to work with agricultural, environmental, and social partners to ensure the next CAP is not only greener and fairer, but also healthier. Because in the end, what we subsidise is what we prioritise. And public health must be part of that priority.