With its 2,600 square kilometers, half of which is agricultural, Luxembourg is the second smallest state in the EU. 660,000 inhabitants, 200,000 daily cross-border workers, its per capita GDP is among the highest in the world. Known for its banks, the Grand Duchy is less known for its agriculture. However it is rural and attached to its agricultural productions and to its 3000 farmers.

Our guests :

-  Romain Schneider, Luxembourg Minister of Agriculture . He recalls for us the difficult weeks experienced by the country's farmers when the European borders were closed. Luxembourg agriculture has no borders: 8% of the land of Luxembourg farmers is located with its neighbors!

- Janusz Wojciechowski, European Commissioner for Agriculture. While the CAP budget was on the decline, the coronavirus crisis changed the situation. He estimated in our program that "the EU proposal has been considerably improved with an additional 26 billion euros since the pandemic, ie 2% more than the financial perspective for the next seven years initially planned" . It also develops for us the farm-to-fork strategy that the Commission wishes to put in place in the framework of the new European "Green Deal".

Our reports:

- "Luxembourg Agriculture plays the wall pass", by Luke Brown. An account of the difficulties encountered by Luxembourg farmers during the Covid-19 crisis: lack of seasonal workers from Eastern Europe and farmers forced to make long detours to go to their fields located outside the borders… He explains to us how Luxembourg's agriculture is dependent on its neighbors and open borders. The well-named Schengen Cuvée could not be sold…

- "Spanish olives and lambs await European aid", by Anaïs Guérard. The emblematic Iberian sectors, such as lamb and olive oil, were severely impacted by the crisis. Food business operators and actors hope to survive thanks to EU storage aid.

A program presented by Caroline de Camaret, produced by Johan Bodin, with images by Stéphane Bodenne, and the participation of Luke Brown, Céline Schmitt, Catherine Nicholson, Perrine Desplats and Mathilde Bénézet.

Actions co-funded by the European Union. This publication commits only its author and the Commission cannot be held responsible for the use of the information contained.

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