部长：欧盟成员地位对苏格拉农业非常重要

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Minister: EU membership crucial for Scottish farming

By Reuters Media  on Jan 26, 2016    at 10:33 a.m.

 LONDON - Scotland's farming is heavily reliant on subsidies and staying in the European Union is "absolutely crucial", the country's rural affairs minister Richard Lochhead said on Tuesday.  

Scottish government data, issued on Tuesday, showed that EU subsidies accounted for 74 percent of Total Income from Farming (TIFF) in 2015.

"These figures highlight the importance of EU funding to Scottish agriculture," Lochhead said in a press release, adding that Europe was also the number one destination for Scotland's food and drink exports.

Britain is seeking to renegotiate its relationship with the EU and then planning to hold a referendum on continued membership.

Agriculture was worth an estimated 667 million pounds ($955.54 million) to the Scottish economy in 2015, down 15 percent from the prior year. Subsidies accounted for 490 million pounds of the total.

The decline partly reflected a 23 percent dip in average milk prices in 2015. Scottish dairy producers benefited from EU emergency aid last year.

"Farmers would prefer to farm without the financial support they receive from the EU, but the reality is that most farms don't make enough from the market for this to be possible," said Andrew McCormick, the vice president NFU Scotland, which represents farmers, crofters and growers.

McCormick said, however, there were many questions that needed to be answered before farmers could make an informed vote in the referendum, including what the trading arrangements would be with the rest of Europe if Britain opts to leave.

"Access to markets is vital and clarity is required on what this would look like should the vote be to leave the European Union," he said. ($1 = 0.6980 pounds)、

http://www.agweek.com/news/nation-and-world/3933031-minister-eu-membership-crucial-scottish-farming