Agriculture 4.0 and farms’ access to new technologies

Question for written answer  E-001851/2021
to the Commission
Rule 138
Gianantonio Da Re (ID)

In 2019, the Commission called on Member States to take full advantage of new farming technologies in view of the future objectives of the common agricultural policy. According to machinery industry representatives, around 80% of new agricultural equipment sold in Europe has some form of technological component but, despite the progress made, these technologies are still beyond the pockets of most farmers, particularly smallholders. This impediment is compounded by the ageing of the farming workforce, which could slow the transition to agriculture 4.0. Moreover, in many rural areas across the EU, internet access is poor, preventing farms from using the big data that has become the key to their competitiveness.

In view of the above:

• 1.How does the Commission intend to eliminate the barriers to the uptake of new technologies in the sector?
• 2.What funds are available for data collection from which the sector could benefit?