Agri-environmental measures

Agri-environmental measures (MAE) are measures introduced in the European Union as part of the Common Agricultural Policy, in return for payments to voluntary farmers. They are one response to the growing concerns of the public, consumers, local authorities and certain elected representatives about the ecological impact of the intensification of agriculture, which developed strongly throughout the 20th century, relying on crop mechanization, chemical inputs, off-farm breeding and, more recently, biotechnologies integrating the transfer of genes from one species to another (transgenesis).