The suitability of the common agricultural policy for small islands in the European Union

Abstract

The study aimed at investigating if the Common Agricultural Policy is suitable for small islands in the European Union. The research was conducted through literature review and focuses on a case study research of the Aland Islands. The Aland Islands were taken as a representative sample since it shares many common characteristics with small islands in the European Union. The study also intended to· explore, amongst othe1 things, the factors that promotes or hinder the islands' development in the agricultural sector. The findings revealed that: the same trend exists on small islands in relation to the decline in small farms, decline in the agricultural labour force and the ageing of farming population; · statistics are lacking on small islands; agricultural workers are shifting to other economic sectors; Common Agricultural Policy's price support mechanism did not favour small farms; POSEI programmes take account the specific difficulties that the ultra-peripheral regions have in relation to the rest of the Union in applying the Common Agricultural Policy.