The new CAP reform (Agenda 2000) : moderate income decrease and direct support increase for French beef meat producers

Abstract

Berlin on 25 March 1999, European state and government heads adopted the bases of a new common agricultural policy reform (Agenda 2000). This article presents the results of a simulation of the consequences of these decisions for the French farms divided into five production types and, in more details for the French cattle farms. These simulations, which are conducted with data from the Farm Accounting Data Network (FADN), are based on constant structure for the period 1997-2004 (without the milk production reform). They show that the mechanical decrease of the farm income is more important for cereal producers (-18%) than for cattle breeders (-7%) or milk producers (-3%). Nevertheless, in the future the income variation will be deeply connected with fluctuations of market prices and with the enlargement of farms. With this reform, direct support will once again play an important role in the income of farmers (especially those who are specialised in cattle breeding) and will result in their legitimacy being questioned with more acuity.