Agrarian reform

The agrarian reform is a reform which by the agricultural policy is triggered and actions aimed at changing the agricultural structure is concerned.

General

Reforms generally concern the reorganization of existing conditions, mostly with the help of legal norms . Even moral appeals can within the expiration policy help missing when either clear legal regulations or the government afraid to take law already planned to be taken immediately. Agricultural reforms concern in the broader sense the change in the living and production conditions on the land by agricultural legal or agricultural policies agricultural loans , government investment in infrastructure or taxation .

With the exception of sub-Saharan Africa, far-reaching agricultural reforms are being carried out with more or less success in most third world countries , such as Egypt, Algeria, India, Iran, Cuba, Pakistan and the Philippines.

species

Agricultural reforms affect three areas of agriculture , namely land reform , land management and the agricultural market . While land reform deals with changes in ownership ( property ) or the use of land for agricultural land, land management concerns, for example, the size of the farm or technical measures to increase the value of the land . The agricultural market is exposed to more frequent reforms ( agricultural market reforms ).

Agricultural reforms in the EU

The Common Agricultural Policy of the EU (CAP) is also based on the basic idea that a free internal market with agricultural products can not be realized without dirigistic interventions with regard to the income situation of farmers. In January 1962, an agreement was reached on a uniform price setting for most agricultural products, the preference for EU agricultural products ( agricultural protectionism ), the stabilization of the farmers' income situation and the establishment of a guarantee fund for agriculture. In December 1969 an agreement was reached on the financing of the common agricultural policy. Agricultural reforms in the EU are intended to limit the negative effects of the agricultural market regulations . A first agricultural reform in 1983/1984 ensured that there were production quotas for some agricultural products (such as the milk quota ) and price guarantees for surplus products were no longer applicable. A fundamental agricultural reform was followed in May 1992 and brought in crop production a reduction of price support for cereals and beef, as well as a balance of price cuts in beef production.

In the course of the Agenda 2000 agrarian reform passed in March 1999, the competitiveness of European agriculture is to be brought into line with the world market, and with it the prices as well. To do this, the guaranteed agricultural prices for milk had to be reduced by 15%, grain by 20% and beef by 30%; compensation is provided through direct payments . The implementation took place until December 2006. The agricultural reform of 2003 decoupled direct payments from agricultural production in the EU. In the “Agrarian Reform 2014” passed in December 2013, the market orientation of agriculture will be continued and the CAP will be geared even more strongly than before to the remuneration of social services. In addition, through greening, direct payments are more closely linked to the fulfillment of environmental concerns. At the same time, the CAP continues to offer farmers a safety net in the event of market crises .

FAO agricultural reforms

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), held its first meeting in July 1979 agricultural reform which not only agricultural ( English agriculture ), but also a comprehensive rural ( english rural demanded) development. It was decided to create social justice and broad access to land and other resources for the poor rural population.

economic aspects

As a non-functioning market , the agricultural market is subject to state market regulation , which manifests itself as state interventionism in the form of agricultural protectionism , agricultural subsidies , intervention prices ( minimum and maximum prices for agricultural prices) or production quotas. Intensive market regulation leads to agrarian reforms in the event of politically undesirable changes in the market equilibrium or structure .

Agricultural reforms affect the income and / or wealth of market participants . Since Art. 39 TFEU pursues not only the goal of security of supply but also the securing of a fair standard of living for farmers, their per capita income is to be increased. Property can be affected by land reforms (such as land consolidation ). The aim of the agricultural reforms is to improve the living standards of the rural population and to increase the productivity of agriculture.