The problem

Reform of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) aims to address social, environmental and consumer concerns, as well as to ensure the sustainable development of Europe’s agro-industry. To maximise the effectiveness and efficiency of CAP reforms, tools are required to assess the impact of agricultural production on the many functions of European landscapes. The Model of European Agriculture (MEA) has the proper multifunctional perspective to do this job. However, EU and regional policy-makers need new impact assessment tools to make this work.

Overview:

MEA-SCOPE will develop a framework to assess the impact of CAP reform on the many facets of European agriculture and rural development. It will:

• Describe, analyse and evaluate the multifunctional nature of agricultural production under various social, economic and environmental conditions
• Bring together three existing micro-economic models that address elements, such as farm structure, economics, production and environmental impact
• Generate scientific knowledge about specific questions regarding the multifunctionality of agriculture

Contribution to policy development:

• The project will help the CAP reform process, especially in the policy design and policy legislation phases
• The policy impact assessment tool developed by MEA-SCOPE will bring together the work of existing agriculture and environment policy models

Project deliverables

• Various research reports on the different aspects of the project – from indicator sets to EU governance structures – November 2004 to November 2006
• A case study on regional differences in social demand for commodity and non-commodity issues – May 2005
• Summary of results for the policy model – May 2007

Dissemination

• Hold three end-user workshops for relevant decision-makers – February 2007
• Launch website – August-December 2004, followed by regular updates
• Publish results in appropriate scientific journals – Throughout project

Technical information

Project acronym: MEA-SCOPE
Project’s official full title: Micro-economic instruments for impact assessment of multifunctional agriculture to implement the Model of European Agriculture
Research priority: 1.1. Modernisation and sustainability of agriculture and forestry, including their multifunctional role in order to ensure the sustainable development and promotion of rural areas
Specific webpage: http://www.mea-scope.org/
Proposal/contract no: 501516 
Start date: 01/05/2004
Kick off meeting: 18-19/05/2004
Completion date: 30/04/2007
European Commission scientific officer: Hans-Jörg Lutzeyer (Hans-Joerg.Lutzeyer@ec.europa.eu)

Coordinator:
Name: Centre for Agricultural Landscape and Land Use Studies
Abbreviated Name: ZALF
Address: Eberswalder Str 84 - D-15374 Munchenburg
Country: Germany
Tel: +49 334 3282230
Fax: +49 334 3282215
Website: www.zalf.de

Partners

Name: Institute for Agricultural Development in Central and Eastern Europe
Abbreviated Name: IAMO
Country: Germany 

Name: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture
Abbreviated Name: FiBL
Country: Switzerland

Name: European Centre for Nature Conservation
Abbreviated Name: ECNC
Country: The Netherlands

Name: Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences
Abbreviated Name: DIAS
Country: Denmark

Name: Institute of Environmental Management
Abbreviated Name: SIU-IEM
Country: Hungary

Name: Research Centre for Agriculture and Forest Environment
Abbreviated Name: RCAFE
Country: Poland

Name: Soil Science and Conservation Research Institute
Abbreviated Name: SSCRI
Country: Slovak Republic

Name: Agricultural and Environmental Engineering Research Centre
Abbreviated Name: CEMAGREF
Country: France

Name: Research Institute for Hydrogeological Protection
Abbreviated Name: IRPI
Country: Italy

Name: Agricultural Economics and Land Resources Department, University of Florence
Abbreviated Name: DEART
Country: Italy