UAE’s Ruling Royal Family Benefits from More Than €71m in EU Farming Subsidies

THE GUARDIAN: Al Nahyans’ control over farmland in Europe has meant they receive proportion of payments to farms

This screenshot was taken from this Guardian article. | Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi and president of the UAE, is at the helm of the Al Nahyan family. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
The United Arab Emirates’ ruling royal family is benefiting from tens of millions in EU subsidies to grow crops destined for the Gulf, it can be revealed.

A cross-border investigation by DeSmog and shared with the Guardian found subsidiaries controlled by the Al Nahyans collected more than €71m (£61m) in six years for farmland it controls in Romania, Italy and Spain.

The Al Nahyan family is the second richest in the world, with an estimated wealth of more than $320bn (£235bn), mostly derived from the Emirates’ vast oil reserves.

Subsidies under the common agricultural policy (Cap) make up a third of the EU’s entire budget, paying out about €54bn each year to farmers and rural areas across the bloc.

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