Technological advances and growth of food production

First, it is established that forecasts of yields per hectare prepared for Germany, France and Italy over the past fifteen years have been well below the actual result; technical advances and new technological procedures have led to much higher yields than originally expected. Next, many examples are quoted to demonstrate the further advances of which technology is capable in the various branches of agricultural production: Plant breeding, animal breeding, feeding, farm-level production techniques. Similar progress has been seen in fields other than agriculture. As the production potential of agriculture in Europe is rising, considerably less land is going to be needed. If the possibility of manufacturing synthetic feeding stuffs - and (at a later stage) even synthetic foods - becomes a reality, this trend will be further reinforced. The sooner the practical consequences of the new developments in technology are recognized, the more efficiently can a strategy be worked out to utilize its positive effects and to prevent negative ones. Since technical progress is continually changing the basis for the employment of labour, capital and land, the current revolution in agricultural technology will become increasingly important in shaping European agricultural policy.