30 years of Austria in the EU

The structural change in the European and in the Austrian agriculture could not be stopped in the past few decades, however, it has slowed down since the accession to the EU. The goal of the implementation of the European Agricultural Policy in Austria is that owners of small farms will be able to manage their farms well and to achieve a sufficient income also in future. The CAP makes a central contribution to the maintenance of a small-scaled management covering the whole territory and to the maintenance of and the increase in the attractiveness of rural areas.

The system of direct payments is considered to be an important instrument for safeguarding sustainable agricultural incomes. This safety net creates a stabilisation of incomes of domestic farmers, guarantees the supply with high-quality food and constitutes a compensation for the higher European environmental requirements. Moreover, there exist various measures, such as, for example, the Agri-environmental Programme ÖPUL (among other things for organic farms), by means of which voluntary environmental services rendered are compensated. The support for less-favoured areas enables the maintenance of a land management covering the whole territory, the support of young farmers promotes a good generational transition.

The Austrian agricultural exports have increased by three since 1995. Three quarters of the exports of Austrian agricultural products and foodstuffs go to other EU Member States. The major export destinations in the year 2023 were Germany and Italy.

One example for an Austrian export hit is Austrian wines. EU subsidies for the conversion of vineyards, and investment and sales promotion, as well as the innovative Austrian enterprises have made the Austrian wine industry competitive on an international scale.

Austria is considered to be an organic model country within the EU. The share of the area under organic farming, amounting to around 27 %, ranks in the top field of the European Union. The maintenance and the strengthening of organic production continues to be a clear goal. The most important support measures for organic production are implemented in Austria within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy. The "organic farming" measure is a core element of the ÖPUL Agri-environmental Programme and can be combined with many other measures to ensure an appropriate compensation for the reduced revenue and/or additional costs incurred.

The production of organic food is increasingly controlled and extends to the entire production and processing process. Organic farms are inspected at least once a year by independent and officially authorised inspection bodies. An EU Regulation lays down the rules for the entire production of organic products (production, inspection, imports) in the EU. The associated labelling of organic food serves as a guide for consumers and offers a transparent way of understanding the origin and production methods of food and making informed decisions.

By means of the Agri-environmental Programme ÖPUL an environmentally compatible agriculture has been supported in Austria since the accession to the EU. Over 80 percent of farms and 80 percent of agricultural land make a significant contribution to the conservation of biodiversity, soil fertility and water protection.

In total, 614 million euros (including 100 million euros for eco-schemes) are earmarked annually for ÖPUL 2023. In this way, the goal of area-wide, environmentally friendly land management for arable land, grassland and permanent crops is pursued. Austria is a pioneer in the implementation of agri-environmental measures, with a participation of more than 80 percent of the land cultivated in Austria and more than 10 percent of the land made available for biodiversity purposes. Approximately 50 percent of the funding for ÖPUL measures comes from EU funds and 50 percent are provided by the federal government and the Federal Provinces, whereas the eco-schemes are financed at 100 percent from EU funds.

Water pollution from urban, industrial and agricultural sources has been considerably reduced and the quality of European water bodies has significantly improved.
Iconic fish such as salmon and sturgeon can be found in European rivers again in some places.

For Austria, European water policy has meant with its accession to the EU a confirmation and a reinforcement of the path it has taken in water protection. National priorities are the conservation and development of watercourse structures and flow conditions in watercourses, the protection of surface waters against organic pollution and chemical pollutants as well as the protection of groundwater as a drinking water resource. Since Austria has joined the EU, 340 million euros of federal funds have been allocated to support water ecology measures. Over the past 30 years, investments of around 16 billion euros in the expansion of wastewater treatment plants and sewerage systems have contributed to the high quality of the bathing waters and lakes that are so important for Austrian tourism.

Water does not stop at borders. Therefore, international harmonisation and coordination of water management issues is necessary. Austria can look back at a long tradition of international co-operation. Border water treaties exist with all major neighbouring countries. Water management planning in the EU is based on river basin districts. Austria has a share in the three large river basin districts Danube, Rhine and Elbe and is represented in the associated river basin commissions.

Targeted funding to increase biodiversity and climate change adaptation of Austrian forests primarily strengthens the protection, welfare and recreational effects of forests, which is, first and foremost, to the benefit of the society. The protective effect of forests is of enormous importance, especially in the Alpine region, for the preservation and protection of settlement and economic areas as well as of infrastructure facilities. The balancing effect of forests on the climate and the water balance as well as on the purification and renewal of air and water is no less important for the society. Moreover, the society also benefits from the recreational value of intact forests.

With the EU Timber Regulation the import of wood from illegal harvesting has been prohibited This Europe-wide Regulation strengthens the confidence in wood products.

As the renewable resource wood and other wood-based materials play a crucial role in the transition to a carbon-neutral circular economy, the European Wood Policy Platform (woodPoP) was initiated by Austria and Finland. Initiatives such as this one have been rendered possible by the strong cooperation that already exists between EU Member States. woodPoP provides a forum for multilateral exchange between policy-makers, scientists and practitioners along the entire value chain.

Annually around 450 million euros (of which 230 million of federal funds) are available for natural hazard management. With these funds, around 1,500 projects are implemented every year to better protect the population against floods, mudslides, landslides, rock falls and avalanches.

Following severe flooding in Central Europe in the summer of 2002, the EU Solidarity Fund was set up to provide effective and rapid assistance after severe natural disasters. Since then, the fund has also been utilised by Austria in the event of disasters - most recently in 2019, 2023 and 2024.

In Austria, cohesion policy has been an indispensable pillar of regional development since the accession to the EU, financed in particular by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF+). Thematically, the EFRE focuses on promoting projects with investments in employment and growth on innovation, the digital economy, intelligent specialisation of SMEs, and a greener, low-carbon circular economy. The ESF+ is used to promote employment measures such as increasing the employment rate, improving the quality of jobs and greater integration at the workplace.

Within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy also the LEADER-concept has established itself and proved itself to be a successful model of small-scale rural development policy. The programme enables people in rural areas to develop their regions together with joint projects. To this end, rural communities that want to network and work together are joining forces with regional players from a wide range of sectors. The volume of support has grown considerably since the accession to the EU, and LEADER regions are now active in the majority of rural areas in Austria.