CAP Reform: A New Era for EC Agriculture

The European Community (EC) adopted a major reform of its Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in May 1992, after more than a year of intense debate. The package of reforms, to be phased in beginning in the 1993/94 marketing year, will alter EC production, consumption, and trade of most major commodities. Unlike previous reforms in the CAP’s 30-year history, this program significantly changes the policy tools used to support farmers. CAP reform was spurred by the EC’s inability to control expenditures and production of surplus commodities. International pressures, both from General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations and from bilateral trade disputes, provided added impetus