ABSTRACT
The potential for Europeanization in Maltese agriculture was acute as Government policy differed significantly from that of the Union. On the threshold of membership in 2004, Malta's agricultural sector remained small, populated by an ageing workforce and unable to meet domestic food demand resulting in a continual negative balance of payments in agricultural products. The complex network of links between the farming community and Government further muddied the waters of reform. Interviewees remarked upon the direct access between the political class and major agricultural and industry players, some even claiming that the latter dictated the majority of decisions made by Government in this sector. As the principal distributive policy of the Community for nearly all of its history, Common Agricultural Policy's (CAP) focus on increased production led to over-production which threatened to overwhelm the Community's budget. Producer Organisations (POs) are legal entities which are established by producers and recognised by the Member State within which they operate.
