Study on the common agricultural policy influence on physical and economical dimension of agricultural holdings (case study in the south of Galaţi county)

Abstract

If before 1989, Romania was one of the countries with the largest physical size of farms, after 1989 it became one of the countries with the lowest physical size of these holdings. In 2007, the first year after EU accession, the physical size of farms was 3.5 ha, our country being on the penultimate place in the EU 27 (exceeded only Malta whose total area was only 11 000 ha). The opposite stood the Czech Republic, with 89.3 ha per holding. Putting the two former socialist countries on diametrically opposed positions is the following of different applied policy in the transition of agriculture to a market economy. While Romania has pursued restoration of what was formerly in agriculture, in the Czech Republic was considered foreshadowing the future of agriculture. Consequently, in Romania has resulted atomization of agricultural holdings and fragmentation of land which exceeds what was about 50-60 years before, in the interwar period and the Czech Republic - a concentration of agricultural holdings land that placed it at the forefront of EU countries. Romania's agricultural policy during the accession to the EU was facing, no doubt, at the enterprise or farm size, measured by the single criterion of land surface in use or existing livestock, some acts showing the orientation sided, narrow and exclusive. Thus, by the provisions of Emergency Ordinance no. 108 / 27 June 2001 on commercial farms, farms are considered only agricultural units which have at least 110 ha of arable land in the plain (ie 50 hectares in hilly area) or 15 cows or 5,000 meat poultry or 100 pigs etc. The criteria for sizing of large, medium or small farms don’t have a unified approach to economic theory. However, the most commonly used are the following two criteria established by: the attracted resources in production (in physical units), with reference, first, on the average size of holdings land and, secondly, at livestock, tractors and agricultural machinery and other elements of the production factors; the results achieved (expressed in physical or monetary units), with reference to the quantities of final products or proceeds. The literature, in the majority inclined to physical parameters or reflects the inputs or results. In Galati, characteristic of farms distribution by physically class size, is very large share of farms under 5 ha - 97.23% of all farms in the southern of Galati county, against 96.57% in the county of Galati and higher share of holdings with 50 and over 50 hectares - 0.88% against 0.56% in Galati county. The authors have proposed, using a case study, to highlight the common agricultural policy impact on physical and economic size of farms in the southern of Galati county.