<div style="text-align: justify;">The study, financed by
the European Commission, was carried out by the Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institut (vTI) –
Institute of Farm Economics. The conclusions, recommendations and opinions presented in this report
reflect the opinion of the consultant and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the
Commission.<br>For more than two decades, organic farming has been supported through policy measures
which contribute to the growth of the organic sector in the European Union. However, the degree and
type of support for organic farming differs substantially between Member States. Against this
background, this study aims to document and assess the public support by describing, reviewing and
categorising the instruments and measures used and levels of support offered. It identifies and
analyses important issues surrounding the implementation of public support with a view to putting
forward conclusions relevant for the future development of the policy.<br>The study consists of two
parts:<br>Part A provides a comprehensive description and review of the public support measures in
place for organic farming, including a categorisation of the mix of the measures used. It covers the
following elements in 27 Member States referring to the current RDP programming period 2007 ‐
2013:<br>Measures in rural development programmes;<br><br>Measures in CAP Pillar 1 (Article 68 of
Regulation 73/2009, top‐ups in the Common Market Organisation for fruit and
vegetables);<br><br>National support schemes, including, where relevant, schemes at regional
level.<br>Part B explores in depth the relationship between policy measures, policy strategies and
the development of organic farming. <br><br>More specifically, four study questions are
addressed:<br><br>Study Question 1: To what extent has the use of public support measures addressing
organic farming contributed to the development of the number of farms, area of land under organic
management and growth of the organic market for organic products?<br><br>Study Question 2: What are
the factors influencing the effectiveness and efficiency of the measures?<br><br>Study Question 3:
What links exist between national/regional support package and the European Action Plan for Organic
Food and Farming (EOAP)?<br><br>Study Question 4: To what extent have Member States developed an
overall strategy to develop organic farming?<br><br>The analysis in Part B has been carried out in
six Member States corresponding with nine programming regions: Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Germany (Bavaria, Lower Saxony), Italy (Marche, Apulia) and the United Kingdom (England, Wales).
These countries vary with respect to types of public support for organic farming, strategies for
organic food and farming, sizes of the organic sectors as well as data availability and level of
institutional development. i<br><br><br><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/external-studies/organic-farming-suppor… study
</a><br><br><br>Source: UE<br></div><br><br>
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