Pressure to reform the common agric

Pressure to reform the common agriculture policy (CAP),namely from successive World Trade Organisation (WTO)
negotiations, has lead European Union (EU) politicians and negotiators to study the European paradigm of agricultural
multifunctionality. The central assumption is that agriculture is a multifunctional activity not only producing food but also
sustaining rural landscapes, protecting biodiversity, generating employment and contributing to the viability of rural
areas (Potter and Burney, 2002, p. 35). The EU multifunctional agriculture (MFA) concept corresponds to a ruraldevelopment oriented approach (Aumand et al., 2001). Within this concept, agriculture provides non-commodity outputs (NCOs) which are required by consumers and society.