EU's flawed agri subsidy system: Do 125,000 farmers deserve $14.3 bn?

In fact, the U.K.'s looming departure from the EU may leave a 98 billion-euro hole in the next EU budget and that shortfall has exposed deep discontent on the continent.

The European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy — also known as CAP — is a 58-billion-euro ($64 billion) system of farm aid that accounts for the bloc’s biggest single budget expense. And it has long been a punching bag for euroskeptics.The U.K. press for years excoriated the “wine lakes” and “butter mountains” supported by EU money. Even after the production quotas went away, critics accused the EU of trade protectionism meant to squeeze rivals. 

The EU’s defense is that the system is more market-oriented and eco-friendly than it used to be. Today it’s no longer just the Brits grumbling. In fact, the