Assessment of farmers’ position in the food chain
These guidelines show why farmers' cooperation, quality schemes, short value chain and coherent CAP instruments, assessed through robust, mixed-method evaluations, are key to increasing value added and bargaining power, thereby strengthening farmers’ position in the food chain.
- Programming period: 2023-2027
- Socio-economic impacts
Improving farmers’ position in the food chain is essential for a fairer, more resilient agrifood system. These guidelines were developed during the thematic working group on ‘Assessing CAP contribution to farmers’ position in the food supply chain,’ organised by the EU CAP Network with the support of the European Evaluation Helpdesk for the CAP, between March and December 2025. The main objective of this thematic working group was to develop practical guidance to help Managing Authorities and/or evaluators assess whether farmers' position in the food supply chain has improved as a result of the CAP.
Farmers’ position in the food chain is shaped by more than prices or income alone. To counter the influence of external factors (e.g. market transparency or concentration), farmers can implement multiple strategies. Because these strategies are closely interlinked, they must be analysed together. The guidelines, 'Assessment of farmers’ position in the food chain', promote a comprehensive approach covering a set of analytical dimensions derived from the CAP intervention logic. The strength of this approach lies in acknowledging the dynamic interconnections between dimensions and in understanding how they mutually influence one another.
A central message is that CAP Strategic Plans (CSP) interventions and common organisation of agricultural markets (CMO) provisions jointly influence farmers’ position. Financial support, regulatory frameworks and market rules interact in practice, and their combined effects often matter more than individual measures. Evaluations that consider the CAP as a whole provide a clearer picture of how policy choices translate into real improvements for farmers.
The guidelines identify three main strategies through which the CAP can make a difference: farmers’ cooperation, especially through producer organisations and collective action; participation in quality schemes and organic production, supporting differentiation and higher value added; development of short supply chains, reducing intermediaries and strengthening local market links. These pathways can strengthen farmers’ position in the value chain by enhancing their bargaining power and improving their economic performance.
The guidelines propose guidance for Managing Authorities to adapt the evaluation scope to reflect the specific design and priorities of their national CSP, and to select the relevant analytical dimensions in line with the evaluation objectives.
Strengthening farmers’ position is a dynamic process. Establishing the causal impact of CAP instruments on the economic performance of agricultural holdings may require considering intermediate steps. Farm-level decisions can trigger wider changes in the organisation of the value chain, leading to improved contracts, concentration of supply, vertical integration and ultimately, higher value added.
To capture these effects, the guidelines recommend mixed-method evaluations that combine quantitative analysis with qualitative insights and stakeholder perspectives. Quantitative and qualitative indicators are both essential for describing the baseline situation, tracking changes attributable to CSP interventions or CMO provisions, and accounting for external factors to isolate the policy’s net effect. Evidence triangulation ensures that these findings are validated from multiple angles, making the overall assessment more robust and reliable.
Effectiveness alone is not enough. Even strong interventions can underperform if they overlap, conflict or fail to complement each other. Assessing internal coherence is key to understanding not only what changed, but also how and why. It helps identify synergies, tradeoffs, gaps and enabling factors across CAP instruments. Improving coherence is essential to maximise the overall impact of the CAP on farmers’ position in the food chain.
Finally, the guidelines stress that evaluation should support policy learning and improvement. Clear, evidence-based conclusions must inform practical recommendations, helping Managing Authorities refine intervention design, targeting and implementation. In this way, evaluation becomes a strategic tool to strengthen the CAP’s contribution to fairer value distribution and more resilient farming systems.
Author(s)
European Evaluation Helpdesk for the CAP
