ABSTRACT
Farming across much of the Mediterranean has evolved in response to the uncertainty of its natural and climatic conditions with small units, part-time farmers and diverse crop patterns. It can be argued that much of European agricultural policy has been based upon criteria of efficiency which have resulted in standardisation and higher unit production. Using the Argolid Valley in Greece as an example it will be seen that the adoption of policies directed at the farmer, the crop and water resources can encourage, and entrench, intensive monocropping of cash crops while exerting considerable strain upon the natural resources of the area. It is maintained that the degradation of natural resources, and the decreased potential for income generation resulting from this, have resulted in a reduced set of options for farmers and the inequitable distribution of those options among them.
