Agro Fossil Free - A new social contract for sustainable agriculture - Towards an inclusive policy for the agricultural sector

General Description

Agriculture in Germany, Europe and worldwide is undergoing a dramatic process of change. On the one hand, liberalization and market opening, new technological developments, the growing world population and new customer demands offer many farms new opportunities. On the other hand, many farmers face international competition, are forced to grow their businesses with high investment risk, are part of strictly regulated value chains and have to meet increasing social demands. At the same time, many people are concerned that the processes of rationalization and modernization of agricultural production are taking place at the expense of nature conservation, environmental protection and animal welfare. At many levels, therefore, a new understanding is already being sought about what society expects from agriculture and what support farmers can expect in return. Against this background, this open access book develops a science-based critique of the environmental impacts of agriculture and the political logic of agricultural policy. It presents a new vision with concrete indicators as well as alternative strategic options for action. The comprehensive analysis is bundled into a proposal for a new architecture of European agricultural policy, which is intended to initiate a broad discussion on a New Social Contract for agriculture in Germany and Europe.