The system of conditionality comprising statutory management requirements (SMR) and GAEC standards aims to contribute to the development of sustainable agriculture through an increased awareness, on the part of beneficiaries, of the need to comply with those basic standards and requirements. It also aims to increase the consistency of the CAP with the environment, public health, plant health and animal welfare objectives pursued by Union law. However, considering that the agricultural area managed by small farmers who benefit from payments under the interventions referred to in Article 28 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 is limited, applying the system of conditionality to such small farmers, who manage majority of farms in the Union, yields insufficient benefits compared to significant costs, and imposes an important administrative burden on those farmers and national administrations. To reduce such costs and ease the related administrative burden, it is appropriate to exempt small farmers from the application of the system of conditionality.
Text as published in the Official Journal, reproduced verbatim (including any typographical quirks of the source). For the authentic version, see EUR-Lex.
