Economic Aspects of EU Common Agriculture Policy

Agriculture has for a long time been a central policy field in the European Union. Most EU member countries run a technologically advanced agriculture employing no more than 3–5 % of their population. Agriculture along with the forestry are the main land users and play a key role in the management of natural resources in rural areas and in determining the rural landscape. Agriculture makes a valuable contribution to the socio-economic development of rural areas and full realisation of their growth potential. Agriculture contributes between 3 and 4 per cent of the EU’s combined GDP.

How does CAP work?

Over the past five decades, the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) — accounting for around half of the EU budget — has encouraged the agriculture sector to become more and more intensive, as has the growing globalisation of the world's economy.…