Fabio Santeramo | S2E10 | Sustainable Agriculture in Europe’s Climate and Trade Agenda

In this episode of the FSR Policy Briefcase (Season 2, Episode 10), hosts Leonardo Meeus and James Kneebone are joined by Fabio Santeramo, Part-time Professor at the Robert Schuman Centre and Head of the Agriculture Area at the Florence School of Regulation. The trio examines how climate policy and global trade are reshaping the future of European agriculture.
The conversation opens with the EU’s recent food trade surplus and what it signals about Europe’s position in global agricultural markets. Does strong export performance reflect confidence in the EU’s ESG standards, or do sustainability frameworks still struggle to deliver meaningful change on the ground?
Drawing on Fabio’s Policy Brief, the discussion turns to the evolving landscape of agricultural emissions pricing – from the political sensitivities surrounding a dedicated ETS for agriculture to the challenges of extending “polluter pays” principles to food systems. They also consider the leverage of the Common Agricultural Policy, the EU’s largest funding instrument, and whether reforming its incentives may prove more effective than introducing new regulatory obligations.
Finally, the hosts and Fabio confront the major structural questions: the environmental impact of livestock, the pressures on land use and biodiversity, and whether future food systems can be sustainable without more transformative shifts in production and consumption. The episode also touches on emerging innovations such as cell-based meat and what they might mean for Europe’s path forward. Recorded in September 2025.
Read the full Policy Brief from Fabio here: https://cadmus.eui.eu/entities/publication/45bb0ee6-f272-5055-8aaf-a5b8bef37148