On Friday, The EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Phil Hogan from Ireland, attended Luxembourg's annual Agriculture Fair in EWttelbruck, with Luxembourg's Minister for Agriculture, Viticulture and Consumer Protection, Fernand Etgen, as part of the launch of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

The Ettelbruck Agricultural Fair, which is held annually on the first week-end of July in Deichwisen in Ettelbruck, is organized by the Ville d'Ettelbruck and annually attracts more than 30,000 visitors from all over the country, including agriculture, forestry and horticulture professionals, families interested in crafts and local products, tjose involved in scientific research and tourists.

Commissioner Phil Hogan first met the European Council of Young Farmers (CEJA) and participated in the official opening ceremony, during which he officially agreed to the Rural Development Plan (RDP) of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. He stressed the importance of the role of farmers in sustainable development and welcomed the willingness of Luxembourg's Ministry of Agriculture to support the players in the success of this objective through the measures of the RDP.

The PDR is a political tool and a financing mechanism used by Member States to implement the EU's rural development policy in their country. The PDR is the second pillar of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and is more focused on EU spending towards certain goals. The RDP provides measures of aid for young farmers, investments in agricultural and wine farms and support for farmers in areas with natural constraints. One third of the budget of the RDP is available to agri-environment-climate measures, including:

• Organic farming
• Payments for Natura 2000 and the Water Framework Directive
• Premium for the maintenance of the landscape and of the countryside
• improved application techniques and / or composting
• river borders
• creation of extensive curbs on ploughing
• Diversification of rural cultures
• maintenance of hedges alongside fields
• extensification of fertilisation
• Maintenance of traditional orchards
• Premium for field lactating dairy cows
• prevention of erosion and nitrate leaching
• Endangered breeds
• Waiver of use of plant protection products

The Leader initiative is also part of the RDP, and represents 6.6% of planned spending.

Each RDP has a budget from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (Feader) supplemented by national contributions. Feader provides €100.6 million for the period 2014-2020 co-financed by a national component representing ultimately a budget of about €368 million for 2014-2020. The RDP budget is intended to finance activities related to the various objectives and priorities of the EU's rural development policy. In addition, states support a budget of almost €133 million planned to accompany the RDP measures and to finance national objectives related to the second pillar of the CAP.

Photo by MAVPC: Opening the Ettelbruck Agriculture Show 2015