Farm Productivity and Profitability: A Comparative Analysis of Selected New and Existing EU Member States1

This paper attempts to shed light on the recent performance of farms in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland and to compare the findings with the situation in two regions of existing EU Member States. Utilising farm survey data, ratios of agricultural profitability and productivity have been estimated. Analysis indicates that Hungarian farms have the best prospects among the analysed CEECs according to their profitability. The poor profitability and structural problems of Polish agriculture are highlighted. Family farms are less productive than corporate farms in the Czech Republic and Hungary despite the expectations at the outset of the reform that better incentives would boost their productivity. Comparative Economic Studies (2005) 47, 652–674. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ces.8100066