La biomasse, activité alternative au développement des zones rurales

2- The Common agricultural policy

The Common agricultural policy (CAP) played a fundamental part in the process of the construction of a European Economic Community, launched by the Treaty of Rome in 1957.

The installation since 1962 of the CAP allowed the constitution of one « European agriculture ». It is the Community policy most elaborate and that which gave place to sharp debates which facilitated the checking of the solidity of the mechanisms of integration of the markets.

Since its installation, the CAP knew to adapt and change to take up the successive challenges to which it had to face. During the first years of its existence, it stuck before very as soon as possible carrying out the objective of increase in the agricultural productivity registered with the article [39] 33 TCE (Appendix 2). This approach was not long in bearing its fruits, from where the great success of the CAP. It quickly was in the need for managing the surpluses of production in certain sectors. It was the engine of an agricultural revolution in Europe during the Sixties and seventies. This revolution allowed the industrialization of this economic sector considered then as a world separately and thus facilitated its progressive integration in the economy as a whole. It also contributed to modify the situation of the agricultural producers and their environment, as well as the traditional structures of the European rural world and the methods of the international trade of the agricultural produce and the foodstuffs.

From the economic point of view, the CAP is an instrument for the installation of sectoral Community activities between a group of country which permanently seeks a compromise to reconcile the defense of national interests and a European higher interest, in particular to face commercial constraints. It called into question the agricultural activity which, traditionally, was not only one activity of production but also a way of life which structured the world of the campaigns. The CAP thus has « contributed to a dissociation enters the agricultural world, that of agriculture, and the rural world, that of the territories »^6(*).

The CAP is founded on three guiding principles. First of all, the unicity of the market, materialized by freedom of movement of the agricultural produce. This implies a Community management of the prices and rules of competition, currency values stable and fixed agricultural rates of exchange as well as a harmonization of the national regulations and a marketing policy with respect to the Non-member states.

Then, the community preference which consists in giving the priority to the production of the community and at low prices to protect the European market against the imports from third countries.

Lastly, the financial solidarity which supposes a community financing of the expenditure of the CAP. Thus, the Funds European of Orientation and Guarantee (EAGGF), created in 1962, has it for function to finance all the expenditure required by the implementation of the CAP.

The CAP thus involved a strong change of the agriculture which, n the other hand of the profits of productivity, knew a strong fall of the number of the agricultural credits. Moreover, one could notice a decrease of the agroalimentary economy in Europe what caused an impoverishment of the farmers whose real income dropped. It also involved the accumulation of surpluses which increased considerably the Community expenditure managed by EAGGF and led to increasingly marked imbalances which justified the adoption of a reform in May 1992.

The influence of the agricultural sector in the whole of the economy and the regional policy of the Community decreases and the CAP did not manage to stimulate the essential structural changes for an economic and social development coherent and in particular to allow a rational balance between the economy and ecology.

The reform of the CAP imposes on Europe the installation of a new model of economic development and a new social contract within the framework of the insertion of L `agriculture in the total economy and the new world economic order. Agriculture has to play a new part in our company, from the point of view of an optimal occupation of agricultural space in term of volume of production, of combination of the factors of production. This orientation supposes a better use of the resources available taking into account the need for an environmental protection. An optimal combination of the resources supposes « to support the use of the ground and work, from a point of view of solidarity (unemployment) and protection of the natural inheritance (environment), compared to the capital »^7(*).

* ⁶ Gilbert Christmas, the Common agricultural policy, document delivered with the students of Euro 3404

* ⁷ Reform CAP  : a policy of the future, document of the Directorate-General of agriculture