Spatial disparities in the European agriculture: a regional analysis

• Published in: Applied economics 2008-07, Vol.40 (13), p.1669-1684
• Main Authors: Ezcurra, Roberto, Iraizoz, Belén, Pascual, Pedro, Rapún, Manuel
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural and food market; Agricultural economics; Agricultural policy; Agricultural production; Agriculture; Common Agricultural Policy; Economic theory; Europe; Geography; Regional disparities; Regional economics; Studies
• ISSN: 0003-6846; 1466-4283
• DOI: 10.1080/00036840600905175

This article examines the territorial imbalances in European agriculture during the period 1980 to 2001, by means of the information provided by various methodological instruments which allow us to overcome the drawbacks of conventional convergence analysis. The results obtained reveal that the regional distribution of productivity in the agricultural sector is characterized by the presence of positive spatial dependence. This fact implies that the European regions in close spatial proximity register similar levels of the variable under study, which highlights the relevance of geographical location in this context. The empirical evidence presented also shows that regional disparities have remained almost constant during the time interval considered. However, the increase in density around the European average explains the observed reduction in the degree of bipolarization, while intra-distribution mobility is relatively limited. Finally, the analysis carried out allows us to assess the role of variables such as country of origin, investment per worker in the agricultural sector, regional per capita income or the size of the agrifood industry, in explaining the dynamics of the distribution under analysis.