Risk Management and the Environment in Agriculture: A Key Policy Theme

Abstract

The profile of both risk management and environmental considerations in agriculture has increased dramatically in the last ten years. Agricultural policy changes over this period have increasingly exposed farmers to market risk, while other sources of risk on the production side have also become more apparent. As a consequence, producers’ risk management skills and the instruments used to manage risk have become a central feature of the farm management literature and the general agricultural policy debate. In addition, the awareness in society of the impact of agriculture on the environment has much increased, and farmers are more and more being viewed as “stewards of the countryside” as well as producers of food. Hence, the motivation for this book.