Tag: Central and Eastern Europe

Improving agricultural research impact is an important goal for the European Union (EU). The EU Framework 7 project Impresa studied the process of research impact across Europe, and this article selects and discusses results drawn from the 11 Eastern EU Member States. The major methods used were a survey of the levels and trends of research expenditures by the public and private sectors, case studies identifying impact pathways of individual science-based innovations, and quantitative analyses of the relationship between research investments and their final impacts. The conclusions drawn are that, despite the potentially high payback from public investments in agricultural science, insufficient resources are being invested by the post-2004 EU accession countries, and improvements in innovation capacity and networking should enhance the efficiency of research impact.

In 2004 and 2007 twelve countries joined the European Union (EU), bringing about significant changes in the field of European agriculture. One of the major changes was the transformation of the agri-food trade of these countries. This paper analyses the effects of EU enlargement on the competitiveness of fruit spirits in six Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs), especially regarding geographical indications, by using the theory of revealed comparative advantages. Although the majority of the studied CEEC fruit spirits was both competitive and had a comparative advantage in the EU-15 beverages market in the period 2001-2011, during this time the competitiveness in terms of quality and price of fruit spirits in the region declined. The results indicate that these countries are losing their market positions in their traditional fruit spirit sector in the EU-15 beverages market in spite of the fact that the majority of these products have a geographical indication. These changes are in line with the overall trend of an increasing trade deficit in the overall beverages, spirits and vinegar market of the six CEECs with the EU-15 after 2003. By contrast, the well-known grappa of Italy is shown to be competitive in terms of both price and ...

This paper assesses the impacts of the global financial and economic crisis on the agro-food sector of Central and Eastern European, Caucasus and Central Asian countries on the basis of research conducted in Hungary, Ukraine, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. The objective of the study was to propose policy options to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations and other public authorities which can be applied to lessen the undesirable effects of the current or future crises in the sector. Results of interviews of stakeholders were analysed in the context of primary economic data and sixteen policy recommendations were formulated.