Agrarpolitik#

Agricultural Policy: Agriculture and forestry perform functions in production, infrastructure and ecology, from which the goals of Austrian agricultural policy are derived: economic sustainability, ecological orientation and social balance. The objectives of Austria´s agricultural policy are laid down in the Agricultural Act of 1992 (Amendments 1995 and 1996). They include: maintaining traditional forms of agriculture in a viable rural environment; extending the potential for combining agricultural occupations with those from other sectors; market-oriented production; sales and processing; promoting agriculture in the context of naturally disadvantageous conditions; ensuring supply with high-quality products and foodstuffs; maintaining clean water, air and ground; landscape protection; protection from natural catastrophes, etc. In the context of agricultural reform within the European Union, which Austria joined in 1995, Austria has also replaced its system of price subsidies with that of direct payments. The objectives of the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) for the period after 2000 are laid down in Agenda 2000, which was agreed on by the European Council in 1999. These objectives affect crops, beef, milk, rural development, etc. Agricultural policy in Austria is also determined by the following institutions: Federal Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry, Environment and Water Management ( Ministry of Agriculture), Agrarmarkt Austria, authorities of the provincial governments, Chambers of Agriculture and agricultural cooperatives (Austrian Raiffeisenverband)

Further reading#