Agriculture under the conditions of globalisation focussed on the expansion of the EU

Agriculture ensures the physical existence of the population and it creates a fund of basic foodstuffs. In addition, it produces non-food commodities as well as being a region forming and political element. It fulfils the function of an internal political stabilising factor and it is a requirement for an overall, balanced, development. The article puts into context: global agriculture; agricultural production within the expanded EU, which is developing under the conditions of the integrated Common Agricultural Policy. It also draws attention to the current trends characteristic of agriculture within the EU. Emphasis is also put on how the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is perceived, as well as its consequences for the agrarian production and the position of the EU in the international trade of agricultural products.