The impact of EU accession: lessons from the agriculture of the new member states

In 2004 and 2007 12 new member states (NMS) joined the European Union, which has offered several possibilities and challenges to the newcomers. The aim of this article is to assess the impact of EU accession on new member states' agriculture as well as to identify those factors lying behind different country performance. Results suggest that EU accession has had a significant impact on NMS agriculture, although member states capitalised their opportunities in different ways, due to initial conditions and pre- and post-accession policies.