European Agricultural Policy Research Articles

Beekeeping and agropastoralism interactions through floral resources in the French Mount Lozère

Beekeeping has faced increasing difficulties during the past decades, among which is the decline in floral resources. Agriculture provides essential floral resources for beekeeping, but some farming practices have also been shown to be responsible for their decline. To provide floral resources for beekeeping, what type of agricultural transformation should be promoted, and how? To answer these questions, we still lack knowledge about the floral resources that are used by beekeeping and about the technical-economic obstacles that farmers face in implementing more favorable farming practices, particularly in agropastoral settings. To help fill these gaps, we develop a novel approach that frames both agropastoral farming and beekeeping as farming systems, by characterizing the beekeeping systems of a given place, the floral resources they use, and the impacts these farming systems have on floral resources. This approach is applied to the agropastoral landscapes of Mount Lozère, southern France, using a methodology based on semi-structured interviews with farmers and beekeepers addressing the agronomical functioning of their farms. We demonstrate that the floral resources used by beekeepers on Mount Lozère are threatened by the current dominant agricultural development paths, which seek to maximize the material productivity of labor. Such paths lead to the intensification of agricultural practices in harvested areas and the extensification of rangelands. These pathways are reinforced by the low remuneration of agropastoral labor and by the current rules of the European Union Common Agricultural Policy. “Frugal” farming, a farming system based on reduced inputs and investments, and labor-intensive practices, namely, a labor-intensive use of pasture, seems an effective way to produce floral resources. Both, agropastoral farmers and beekeepers, would benefit from an increase in the number of agricultural workers in agropastoral landscapes. This calls for public policies that promote a better remuneration of agropastoral labor, either directly or by driving market mechanisms.

“People that are Supporting [the] Whole Sector are on their Knees”; Uncertainty and Socioeconomic Change are Occupational Stressors for Irish Farmers☆

AbstractFarming is a stressful occupation with many farmers facing daily uncertainty and high mental health risks. In addition to unpredictable occupations, rapidly changing European and Irish agricultural policies may put farmers in a liminal state. We aimed to identify sources of occupational stress or well‐being for Irish farmers, particularly regarding change in their lives and communities. We collected data online through semistructured interviews with 17 farmers and 1 interview and 3 focus groups with 11 farming stakeholders. We identified four central narratives (N1‐4) through narrative analysis. In N1, participants described how rapid changes could create stress by exacerbating uncertainty and threatening farmers' financial security. Participants described how these changes to standards for “good farming” (N2) and rural culture (N3) result in lost income, identity, and well‐being. In N4, participants identified ways in which work of farming can be therapeutic. Our findings add to literature on the impacts of uncertainty and liminality on farmers by identifying how deeply changes in agricultural models can impact farmers' identities and well‐being as they grapple with new and old occupational pressures. We suggest that economic policy and agricultural governance prioritize farmers' financial security and mental health through policy change and acknowledge their valuable contributions.

Environmental Concerns of Agri-Food Product Consumers: Key Factors

Growing consumer interest in caring for the environment has motivated the development of multiple studies focused on discovering this variable’s impact on purchasing behaviour. However, a major gap still exists between attitude and pro-environmental behaviour caused by the need for greater environmental awareness, among other things. Therefore, knowing the environmental issues that worry consumers of agrifood products is important. This work digs deeper into this issue by analysing these environmental concerns and examining differences between countries with different levels of environmental sensitivity. CAWI methodology has been used to conduct an online survey in four countries (Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Denmark), with 3200 valid responses analysed using qualitative and quantitative techniques. The obtained results highlight the existence of 11 major environmental dimensions or issues for consumers of agri-food products. In addition, a correspondence analysis identifies two key factors, the first focused on a range of environmental problems of a more general nature and the second with greater interest focused on concern for biodiversity conservation. This study has implications for both the agri-food sector and European agricultural policy.

Assessment of Spatiotemporal Distribution of Herbicides in European Agricultural Land Using Agri-Environmental Indices

Short-term estimates are not suitable for monitoring and comparing fluctuating pesticide use in EU agricultural land. A discriminative and comparable (HI) herbicide index was evaluated to elucidate herbicide use in the 21st century. The HI was 0.66 kg of active substances per hectare of conventional agricultural land across the EU. However, the HI varied between the 27 EU Member States. The highest mean values of HI were observed in Belgium, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Germany, France, and Denmark, with the lowest in Romania, Greece, Bulgaria, and Latvia. The results showed that the distribution of the HI variable was independent of the geographical location of each country, such as from North to South or from West to East in the EU. It seems that country-level agri-environmental parameters ultimately influenced the herbicide use. To assess the causes of this variability, 31 agri-environmental parameters (formatted into indices to be comparable) were investigated, emphasizing the structural characteristics of the agricultural sector in each EU Member State. Using only the significant independent variables (13 out of 31), linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was applied to explore the differentiation potential of EU27 by creating a discrimination model. The assessment of each one variable in the HI could contribute to the reduction in environmental impacts and the faultless implementation of the European agricultural policy in the near future.

EUROPEAN POLICY OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE: CHALLENGES FOR UKRAINE

Ukraine, despite the damages and losses inflicted on agriculture by Russian large-scale aggression, actively participates in the implementation of the main tasks of the global goals defined by the European strategy for sustainable development. The purpose of the article is to analyze the relationship between the policy of sustainable rural development of the European Union and the possibilities of its implementation in various spheres of life, economic, social, ecological, and institutional to support sustainable rural development in Ukraine. Ukraine is an active participant in the implementation of the system of transfer of knowledge and innovations in the agricultural sector – Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems at the regional level, since the rural population needs to increase its own level of awareness of opportunities and potential risks in conducting economic activities and understanding of rational use of resources. The methodology includes analysis of the report on monitoring progress in achieving the goals of sustainable development in the context of the EU, which are directly related to agriculture or the development of rural areas, directives of the Commission of the European Union, statistical data of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, primary and secondary sources. The originality of the article lies in the fact that in the article for the first time covers a detailed analysis of the indicators of the goals of sustainable development of agriculture and rural areas and their correspondence to the tasks of the strategy of the common European agricultural policy. The results of the analysis can be used in planning future projects for rural communities or agricultural enterprises to improve their social and economic situation

INTEGRATION OF THE CRISIS RULES CREATED BY COVID 19 INTO THE EUROPEAN COMMON AGRICULTURAL POLICY AND HUNGARIAN AGRICULTURAL LEGISLATION

After the end of the COVID 19 outbreak, the authors summarise the measures taken by the European Union to ensure the continuity of food supply and the functioning of the food chain during the outbreak. In addition to the EU measures, the specific measures followed by the Member States and their room for manoeuvre are presented using the Hungarian example. In this article we have also tried to elaborate the implications for the European Agricultural Policy and consequently for European Agriculture. The literature we have elaborated also covers the agricultural market processes and the implications for rural areas. However, this article focuses on the Hungarian public law implications of the legislation and the Hungarian judgement practical issues of its application.Our article also discusses the link between the extreme drought year 2022 and the pandemic. We will look at why the extraordinary legal instruments used under COVID '19 were appropriate to deal with the consequences of extreme weather.

FINANCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND EXPERIENCE FOR UKRAINE

Current trends in the development of agricultural production necessitate the attraction of additional financial resources to finance the agricultural sector, which are specific to each national economy. The article examines the priority directions of development of the mechanism for financing agricultural production in Ukraine in the context of current trends in the implementation of the common agricultural policy in Europe. A comparative analysis of the mechanism of additional financing of agricultural production in the EU countries was carried out in the implementation of the common agricultural policy. Clustering of European countries was carried out while taking into account the existence of patterns in the agricultural market and it was confirmed that these patterns do not determine the features and volumes of additional financing of agricultural production. The existence of twelve possible types of markets of agricultural products in European countries is determined and the existence in practice of six of them is confirmed. It is determined that there are significant violations in the policy of convergence of financing of the agricultural sector declared by the OAP, which confirms the need to reform the Common Agricultural Policy of European countries in the direction of greater compliance with the national problems of the European agricultural sector.It has been determined that there is a specific list of development problems that is not repeated for any of the European countries for the agricultural sector of Ukraine, and its own type of agricultural market has been formed, which also has no correspondence. The article focuses on the need to form in Ukraine a specific mechanism of additional financing of agricultural production, taking into account the problems of development of the national agricultural sector and in the context of the Common Agrarian Policy of the Economic Community, its priorities and direction of reform.

Non‐chemical weed management for sustainable rice production in the Ebro Delta

AbstractWeed control is one of the major challenges in rice cultivation, and the use of agrochemicals for this crop is severely restricted under the new European agricultural policy. Therefore, new effective non‐chemical weed control techniques are the key to sustain European rice production. We investigated four non‐chemical weed management strategies in the Ebro Delta in north‐eastern Spain, two in dry‐seeded rice fields and two in water‐seeded rice fields. In addition, two controls per sowing condition were included: a positive control consisting of chemical herbicides treatment and a negative control consisting of no weeding and no seeding. Mechanical weeding using a rotary harrow placed in front of the seeder was the best weeding technique for dry seeding, while ‘stale seed bed’ and transplanting was the best performing technique for wet seeding. Both techniques were as effective as the chemical weeding control, reducing the density of weeds and the supplementary manual weeding time needed for those weed species more abundant in Ebro Delta rice fields (i.e., Echinochloa oryzoides, Echinochloa crus‐galli, Bolboschoenus maritimus and Heteranthera reniformis). Thus, non‐chemical weeding alternatives have been proven effective for both, transplanting and dry seeding field management strategies.

The Nutritional Value of Mealworm (Tenebrio molitor), its Breeding and its Perspective Application in Nutrition

Summary Ensuring a high‐protein diet in the human population and important farm animals is closely related to looking for new protein sources intended for food and feed production. Quantitative and qualitative proteins are one of the basic components for human nutrition and farm animal nutrition. Under European conditions, there is a lack of production of protein raw material, especially those intended for livestock nutrition. Therefore, the European Agriculture policy also focuses on looking for and producing local non‐traditional protein components. One possibility for animal protein production is producing invertebrate proteins. There are currently a number of invertebrate taxa that can be used in human and animal nutrition, as illustrated by the study conducted in 2017 on the “Nutritional Value of Invertebrates and Their Application in Nutrition (present and perspectives)”. Currently, the larval stage of the Tenebrio molitor species seems to be promising, with fast use time. The presented study deals with the nutrition values of the produced biomass of Tenebrio molitor.

The emergence of pesticide-free crop production systems in Europe.

Pesticide risk reduction is a priority in European agricultural policies, but how to reach these targets remains an open question. Against this background, a novel approach for transforming pest management practices is currently gaining momentum in Europe: pesticide-free, non-organic production systems. These involve the non-use of pesticides in parts of crop rotations or entire crop rotations but do not comply with other organic farming regulations. Here we present insights into the first real-world examples of such systems, in Switzerland and Germany. In both countries, pesticide-free production was initiated jointly by farmers and downstream actors some years ago. This was followed by the launch of public support schemes in 2023. We discuss the functioning and impacts of these examples, as well as farmers' adoption behaviour. Compared with organic production, the reviewed pesticide-free production schemes are more flexible and have lower adoption hurdles for farmers, as well as lower yield losses. These characteristics facilitate the large-scale adoption of pesticide-free production systems. Moreover, pesticide-free can become a clear-cut and simple production standard. Pesticide-free production can thus be a disruptive approach to create a tangible 'third way' between conventional and organic production. However, there are various adoption barriers and pesticide-free production would not currently be profitable without support in most cases.

Zur alten und neuen Logik der Agrarpolitik in Europa: Gibt es effektive Steuerungsmechanismen einer nachhaltigen Landwirtschaft?

Abstract Few policies have been as heavily criticised as European agricultural policy. Consequently, since its establishment in 1962, it has been in a continuous process of reform, encompassing six major reforms in the last 30 years alone. The central question arises: What is the logic behind the endless reform history of EU agricultural policy? Are agricultural reforms fundamentally a logical consequence of changing objectives or structural conditions, and thus dynamically efficient? Or do they represent a sequence of unsuccessful political learning processes and thus a perpetual policy failure? The latter implies that there are more efficient policy options that would be politically feasible given the democratic power relations and decision-making processes in place.

Farmers’ futures: an application of the Delphi method in the context of Finnish agriculture

In Finland, agriculture is practiced in variable growing conditions that are further challenged by climate change and under external pressure caused by international competition, changing consumer preferences and demands, and the renewal of the European Union Common Agriculture Policy and Paris Agreement climate targets. Futures studies in agriculture have focused on scenario building with expert panels, though usually without farmers’ involvement. This study focuses on farmers’ views of shaping the future of Finnish agriculture. It builds on the disaggregative Delphi method and combines interviews and a representative survey of Finnish farmers. The study is based on a bottom-up process in which a farmer panel of 20 farms defined their views of the future in a semi-structured thematic interview. The views were turned into statements in a structured survey sent to the second panel, which comprised all Finnish farmers who had received agricultural subsidies in 2016, with 4401 respondents. The results were analyzed using quantitative factor analysis, which produced five future images for Finnish agriculture. The images were shown to the original farmer panel for reflection. They considered the probability of each future image and their own role in it. Technology solves as a future image was most favored by farmers, followed by Ecological and specializing small-scale production image. Business-as-usual was the least likely future images according to the interviewed farmers. This paper describes the process and discusses both methodological benefits and pitfalls, as well as farmers’ future views of the forthcoming decades.

Aligning agri-environmental-climate public good supply and desire in a sustainable Dutch agricultural sector.

European agricultural policies increasingly incorporate mechanisms for delivery of public goods. Sustainable public good delivery requires alignment between societal demand and landscape supply. However, the variation of demands or desires regarding future public good delivery among society is hardly known. We inventoried the desires for public goods across Dutch society, and projections of agricultural supply. A multi-method approach was used to find agreement levels between desired and expected change in good delivery. Most stakeholders expressed a desire for biodiversity and climate regulation from agriculture, whilst desire for natural heritage and recreation was less common. The utility of a public good to a stakeholder appears to influence its desire. Scenarios for agriculture focus on extensification, sustainable intensification, regionalization, or meadow bird conservation. Regionalized scenarios showed the highest agreement between public good supply and desire. Maximizing alignment between desire and supply thus requires a challenging transition towards region-specific agricultural sustainability strategies.

Influence of soil management on vegetative growth, yield, and wine quality parameters in an organic “Pedro Ximénez” vineyard: field and UAV data

The use of cover crops in vineyards is expected to increase due to the strong encouragement by European agricultural policy and their contribution to reducing soil erosion. This paper presents the results obtained over three years in a vineyard of the “Pedro Ximénez” variety organically grown in southern Spain. The influence on production, vigor, and grape quality of a seeded cover crop versus tillage was compared using field data and imagery acquired by an uncrewed aerial vehicle. The vines under tillage showed greater vegetative development and yield than those with cover crops between rows. The grapes from the vines under the cover crop treatment ripened earlier and presented higher values of total soluble solids, characteristics that can be useful in the protected designation of origin where the study field is placed. However, the strong yield reduction caused by the cover crop treatment encourages future research to explore other cover crop species that could contribute to improving soil properties without compromising the profitability of the vineyard. This is the first time that the influence of cover cropping on the agronomic and oenological parameters of organically grown white vineyard varieties such as “Pedro Ximénez” has been assessed using field and UAV data.

СПІЛЬНА АГРАРНА ПОЛІТИКА ЄС НА 2023–2027 рр.: АМБІЦІЇ І РЕЛЕВАНТНІСТЬ ЦІЛЯМ СТАЛОГО РОЗВИТКУ

Здійснено системний аналіз еволюції змісту, завдань, методологічних принципів формування та інструментів реалізації САП ЄС. Визначено ключові принципи модернізації європейської аграрної політики для програмного періоду 2023–2027 рр., а саме екологічність, справедливість, конкурентоспроможність, на основі яких реалізовуватимуться політичні реформи, спрямовані на підтримку переходу до сталого сільського і лісового господарства. Ідейною основою нового етапу реалізації САП ЄС є: визнання потреб і очікувань європейців як ключової цінності процесу політикотворення, забезпечення багатофункціональності сільськогосподарського виробництва, відповідність трьом вимірам сталості – соціальному, економічному й екологічному. Таргетування нової моделі САП ЄС, а також дизайн системи дій з її реалізації підкреслюють традиційну винятковість ролі фермерів як стейкхолдерів сільського розвитку, управління локальними ресурсами, забезпечення продовольчої безпеки і реалізації суспільних потреб населення країн-членів.Встановлено комплементарний характер джерел формування фінансових ресурсів САП ЄС, які в перспективі направлятимуться на підтримку доходів фермерів, ринкові заходи й стимулювання сільського розвитку. Задекларована відданість ЄС глобальним Цілям сталого розвитку в площині модернізації аграрної політики трансформується в політичні дії, спрямовані на захист навколишнього природного середовища і протидію змінам клімату завдяки запровадженню програм екологізації сільськогосподарського виробництва, розширення взаємозв’язку між прямими виплатами і правилами озеленення. Крім екологічно орієнтованої ідеології ЦСР, САП ЄС на 2023–2027 рр. сповідує і популяризовані на глобальному рівні соціальні цінності, зокрема гендерну рівність, суспільну взаємодію і партнерство, розвиток людського капіталу та ін.

FINANCING THE AGRICULTURAL POLICY IN SERBIA AND HARMONIZATION WITH THE COMMON AGRICULTURAL POLICY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Agriculture is one of the most important economic branches. Previously, the aim of the agricultural policy was to provide sufficient food for all inhabitants. However, today, thanks to the application of innovations in agriculture, there is enough food for everyone, but it is not properly distributed in all parts of the world. Many people still do not have the basic conditions for a healthy life. The goal of modern agricultural policy is to provide high-quality, health-safe food to everyone in the world, and to reduce food waste while preserving biodiversity and protecting the environment. The importance of agriculture as an economic branch in Serbia is extremely large, considering the geopolitical position of Serbia, favorable climatic conditions, and quality arable land. Serbia is still not a member of the European Union, and to become one, it is necessary to harmonize all laws and regulations. The largest part of the work is precisely around agricultural policy, given that more than a third of all laws and regulations are related to the Common Agricultural Policy [CAP]. Serbian agriculture, as well as other economic branches, have not yet reached the standards defined by the European Union. Therefore, it is very important that the Serbian regulations are harmonized with the European Union regulations, because only in this way there can be faster development of agriculture and other economic branches. The topic of this paper will be the financing of the agricultural policy in Serbia in relation to the financing of the agricultural policy of the countries of the European Union. There will be more talk about how and from which sources Serbian agriculture is financed, but also about the help that the European Union provides to Serbia and other countries that are candidates for membership in the European Union. Given that the financing of the European Union's agricultural policy is based on two pillars - direct payments and market interventions and financing of rural development, this paper will show to what extent the financing of Serbian agriculture is in line with the financing of agriculture in the European Union. It will be pointed out how funds in the agricultural budget are allocated to measures related to market interventions, but also to rural development measures. As the imperatives of modern agricultural policy are the preservation of biodiversity, environmental protection, better living standards of the agricultural population, development of infrastructure in rural areas, the conclusion is that more attention is paid to the second pillar of the agricultural policy of the European Union, which is the financing of rural development. However, even in the European Union, more than 50% of the agricultural budget is directed to the financing of the first pillar, market interventions. In Serbia, this trend is even more pronounced, so more attention should be paid to the financing of rural development.

Do European Agricultural Policies Still Aim to Support the Living Standards of the Agricultural Community?

SummaryThere is a continuing mismatch in the EU between a key official stated objective of the latest form of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which still refers to ensuring a ‘fair standard of living for the agricultural community’ (clearly a social aim), and the way that farmer incomes are officially monitored and interventions designed. Poor targeting at low‐income cases where standards of living could be expected to be less than ‘fair’ is likely to make the CAP vulnerable to criticism for being wasteful of public resources, yet this has been ignored for political reasons. Following the UK's withdrawal from the EU (‘Brexit’), the CAP no longer applies in the UK, and UK agricultural policies have been able to abandon the explicit aim of guaranteeing living standards of farm households. There is no reliable evidence that, as a group, UK farm households are characterised by relative income‐poverty; though instability is a problem, they frequently have multiple income sources and hold substantial wealth, both of which impact on their potential standard of living. In the absence of evidence of low household incomes among its farmers, should the EU follow the UK's example and, in effect, transfer responsibility for alleviating poverty to national systems designed to tackle that problem in the community?

A long-term vision for rural areas: a case study of Sicilian farms

ABSTRACT In line with internationally defined goals of sustainable development, European agricultural policies today have a far-sighted vision for rural areas. Using a case study approach, this paper explores how receptive rural farms in Sicily are to a long-term vision of development. The study focuses on three key factors of a long-term vision, that is, digitalisation, innovation and sustainability, to examine not only whether farms have invested in these areas but also how they perceive their role in the post-pandemic era. Empirical results provide insights into the concentration of farms in the central inland areas of Sicily without any real long-term vision of development. Nevertheless, the analysis also shows that some of them do have a positive attitude to change.

Physiological, Enological and Agronomic Characterization of Pedro Ximénez Grapevine Cultivar under Organic Farming in a Warm Climate Zone

One of the challenges that European agriculture will have to face will be to adapt conventional agriculture to procedures of the new European agricultural policies. In this way, organic farming will have more importance in the coming years. One of the most important crops worldwide is grapevine. The main objective of this research work focuses on the physiological, agronomic, and enological characterization of Pedro Ximénez with the purpose of knowing the viability of the organic cultivation of this cultivar in a warm climate zone. Two experimental plots were selected with two different types of management, organic and conventional. In both plots, photosynthetic capacity (AN), stomatal conductance (gs), and intrinsic water-use efficiency (WUEi) were measured, and physicochemical composition of grape must was analyzed during ripening. In addition, bunch and pruning weight were measured as agronomic parameters. Physiological results were not significantly different between management at a general level in gs and WUEi, being possible to identify a difference in AN just before the harvest. At the level of fruit ripening, significant differences were found between the two managements. At harvest, grape must had a higher sugar concentration, amine nitrogen (α-NH2), and yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) in the organic management than in conventional, where higher values of pH and l-malic acid were observed. Taking into account the preliminary results obtained it could be concluded the viability of the organic management for Pedro Ximénez crop in a warm climate zone.

Will farmers go electric? How Dutch environmental regulation affects tractor purchase motivations and preferences

Farm machinery management can contribute to European agricultural, energy and environmental policy objectives of climate change mitigation and fossil fuel independence by investing in tractor electrification. However, many farmers in the Netherlands (and beyond) have expressed concerns about the future profitability and ability to produce at reasonable costs. The Netherlands is also in a so-called ‘nitrogen crisis’, which further causes policy uncertainty about the introduction of more environmental regulations for nitrogen abatement. We conducted a best-worst scaling survey experiment to elicit preferences for electric tractor attributes and measured attitudes towards environmental regulation using motivational posture theory. The ranking of and correlations across estimated preferences and the purchase intention show that the 156 dairy and arable farmers surveyed evaluated an investment in an electric tractor as not feasible. Another conclusion is that the breakthrough of electric tractors is affected by negative anticipated emotions and feelings concerning the current environmental policy and regulatory context.