EU Farm Subsidies: UAE’s Royal Family Receives €71M in Payments

The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) royal family, the Al Nahyans, has been found to benefit from substantial European Union (EU) farming subsidies, totaling more than €71 million over six years. This revelation comes from a cross-border investigation by DeSmog, in collaboration with The Guardian, Spain's El Diario, and Romanian news outlet G4Media.

The Al Nahyan family, with an estimated wealth of over $320 billion, primarily from oil reserves, has been expanding its agricultural empire globally. In Europe, they control farmland in Romania, Italy, and Spain, receiving substantial subsidies under the EU's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

CAP subsidies, which account for a third of the EU's budget, are intended to support farmers and rural areas. However, the investigation highlights that a significant portion of these funds is going to foreign investors, including those linked to autocratic states.

DeSmog's analysis of CAP beneficiaries between 2019 and 2024 identified 110 payments totaling over €71 million to companies and subsidiaries controlled by the Al Nahyans and their sovereign wealth fund, ADQ. The largest payment was received by Agricost, a Romanian agricultural company, which owns the EU's largest farm, spanning 57,000 hectares.

The investigation also found that the UAE's Spanish and Romanian farms cultivate alfalfa and other crops for animal feed, with much of the produce exported to the Gulf. This aligns with the UAE's food security strategy, as the country currently imports up to 90% of its food.

The size of the subsidies received by the UAE has sparked debate among policymakers and campaigners. The European Commission has proposed capping land-based payments to €100,000 per farmer annually, but this would only affect a small fraction of the EU's top landowners, who currently capture 16% of the CAP budget.

The UAE's receipt of EU subsidies has been described as a 'scandal hiding in plain sight' by Thomas Waitz, an Austrian Green party MEP. He argues that the funds were intended to support real European farmers, not fossil fuel dynasties.

The investigation also highlights the complex ownership structures of UAE corporations, making it challenging to trace the ultimate beneficiaries of the subsidies. Despite being technically state-owned, ADQ is closely controlled by the UAE's ruling family, blurring the lines between state and family finances.