Spatial Patterns of Change in Agriculture and the Role of the Common Agricultural Policy

Abstract

This paper identifies and analyses the role of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in affecting the spatial location of agricultural activities in an area of northern Italy. The study is based on survey data (300 observations) regarding the stated intentions of farm households under two CAP scenarios, and uses statistical analysis to identify the potential determinants of different farm reactions, using explicit spatial information (altitude, Less Favoured Area status, agrarian regions). The study demonstrates the relevance of explicitly addressing the differentiated spatial effect of the CAP on different dimensions of agricultural activities. However, the work also highlights the limitations of such a location-based analysis compared with both non-spatial variables and more 'functional' spatial variables.

Farmers’ stated preference analysis towards resources use under alternative policy scenarios

“…The variables considered as determinants are all of those derived from the questionnaire and are fully available in Viaggi et al (2009) in which the stated reaction to the CAP scenarios was also collected. The full list of variables used, and the way each variable was measured, is shown in Table 3.…”

Target Groups of Rural Development Policies

“…Aside from external factors, a farmer's perceptions and motivations are also important drivers of strategic behaviour within the scope of farm adaptation processes that are supported by policy schemes such as AEMs (Praestholm et al, 2006;Siebert et al, 2006). A farmer's education level as well as his or her perception of and attitude towards entrepreneurial change and risk taking affect the level to which RD programme measures motivate a farmer to diversify (Lange et al, 2013) or increase investment (Viaggi et al, 2013a). A farmer's intrinsic motivation and social values can also affect farm abandonment levels (Antrop, 2005;Sutter, 2004).…”