"An ordinance will be published this month, in principle next week, to remove a bureaucratic burden that exists for farmers," said Minister José Manuel Fernandes to journalists in Elvas (Portalegre). According to the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, this ordinance will change several CAP rules, namely to "help all those [farmers] who have less than 10 hectares" and who, therefore, "will not be subject to sanctions related to compliance with cross-compliance requirements". Earlier, speaking at a session as part of the celebration of Farmers' Day, at the Innovation Hub at the National Plant Improvement Station in Elvas, the government official indicated that the ordinance, among other points, will include "the end of the land fallow rule" and the need for crop rotation. "We are going to simplify as much as possible and not only with this ordinance," he assured, admitting that this "is still a year of transition", but the Government will have more "solutions from 2025" to "completely stabilise the entire agricultural sector". "Also because we are going to reprogram the PEPAC [CAP Strategic Plan] to solve the problems that have affected farmers", which were "mainly lack of predictability and instability", he argued. This upcoming ordinance is an example, however, that the Government is "already acting immediately" and working "at great speed, listening to farmers to make better decisions". According to information requested by Lusa from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, the ordinance, among other points, will establish that farmers are no longer required to dedicate a minimum part of their arable land to non-productive areas, such as fallow land, although they are encouraged to maintain them for the benefit of biodiversity. Another example is that farmers will also be able to opt for crop diversification, instead of rotation, while small farms with less than 10 hectares are exempt from controls and sanctions related to compliance with cross-compliance requirements with this CAP simplification, approved by the European Parliament and Council. "This will significantly reduce the administrative burden related to controls for small farmers," according to the same data. In the session in Elvas, the minister reiterated that agriculture is a strategic bet of the Government and recalled that farmers "are not enemies of the environment, they are not villains". They are rather "landscape sculptors" and "most" agricultural companies "are family-owned" and transmit knowledge, values and respect for the environment and nature, he assured, arguing that farmers "need support for the challenges" of the climate transition, whose objectives take time to be achieved. Read Also: Use of rustic soils? "The measure will be punctual and will help agriculture" (Portuguese version)