Agricultural land — a multifunctional good

Abstract

Agricultural land is a classical and basic factors of economic production, but the role of this factor is changing significantly. There are now many roles and functions tied with agricultural land: economic, environmental, cultural and political. Agricultural land is a source of private, market and many public goods. Demand for agricultural land is growing on a global scale which may result in it reaching a level of land utilisation regarded as neither sustainable nor optimal. There is also reduction of land area in some parts of the world, land abandonment and its transfer to non-agricultural use. These tendencies are present especially in the European Union and in the United States. Both are regarded as alarming and disadvantageous for World agriculture.