Environmental Taxation on the Agri-Food Sector and the Farm to Fork Strategy: The Portuguese Case

Abstract

This research focuses on the environmental taxation applicable to the agri-food sector and aligns with the objectives of the Farm to Fork (F2F) Strategy of the European Green Deal context. Indeed, the methodology of the research develops a theoretical analysis through a literature review to assess environmental taxation and documental analysis of Portuguese tax codes. Furthermore, the Portuguese context of the empirical analysis assesses the contribution to the desired sustainability of the agri-food sector. The results show that the existing tax rules applicable to the agri-food sector are scant, with a few existing rules being misaligned with the objectives of the F2F strategy, because their potential impact on its objectives has been mostly negative or null. Most regulations predated the definition of the F2F strategy, seeking to respond to the need to minimise the price of basic food products, namely agri-food products, without considering concerns such as welfare and sustainability. It is worrisome, however, that a tax rule that does not conform to the F2F strategy has been approved after its definition, indicating that the Portuguese government does not envisage using taxation as an environmental tool in favour of the objectives outlined in the F2F strategy.