MP wants to increase Sweden's supply to 80 percent

Isabella Lövin, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Climate and Development and Deputy Prime Minister, ends this year's political week in Almedalen.

When the morning with his colleague Gustav Fridolin, called for a press conference in the center of Visby, it was especially with the message: increased food security and more organic farming.

The goal is that Sweden's self-sufficiency goes from 50% to 80% today.

– It is not viable, as it is the case today, to produce half of the food we consume. And half also depends on imports of fossil fuels, manure, pesticides from other countries.

MP also wants to appoint a parliamentary inquiry with the task of achieving the goal around 2030.

Much of the proposed effort on half a billion crowns a year accounts for about 200 million crowns to double support for farmers who want to switch to organic production.

The European Commission recently proposed that agricultural aid for 2021-2027 be reduced by five percent. According to the LRF Farmers' Association, Sweden's support can be reduced by between 10 and 15 percent.

Many farmers are struggling to get additional subsidies.

– In the short term we see that there is very great need for farmers who might otherwise be forced to sell their farms and go bankrupt. Here, the government has a close dialogue with LRF and farmers to see what we can do to facilitate. Then we must have a long-term vision of Swedish agriculture that consumes consumers and Swedish conditions. Then we consider that organic farming is more sustainable and economically profitable in the long run.

For agriculture, profitability increases according to Lövin, while it may be more expensive for consumers.

– It's hard to pronounce. We are talking about a future where we do not know how much imported products will be expensive or what climate change will affect global food production.

The Green Party's message for this fall's elections is that it is unlikely that MP will join a government with moderates. And in his speech at Almedalsparken on Sunday at lunchtime, Lövin again criticized the alliance parties.

– Lööf, Björklund and Busch Thor also abruptly reduce the climate budget and also promise to abolish the air tax if they get the power. The entire alliance has even threatened to trap a minister to stop the introduction of the aviation tax. Is it to be an adult in the room?