What drives farmers' participation in EU agri-environmental schemes?: Results from a qualitative meta-analysis

A better understanding of why EU farmers choose to join agri-environmental schemes (AESs) is vital to help policy makers design programmes that would be more attractive to participants. This paper identifies the key factors influencing farmers' participation in AESs through a qualitative meta-analysis of papers published in peer-reviewed journals between 2000 and 2013. A range of empirical studies that explored factors influencing farmers' willingness to participate in such schemes were selected and systematically analysed. The meta-analysis reveals several key drivers for participation in AESs including fair payments, lower household dependency on agricultural incomes, age and education levels, the presence of a successor and the ability to make progressive rather than step changes to agricultural activities. Of particular importance is the finding that the design of agri-environmental policy is not the only relevant factor influencing uptake but other policies which impact on the farm household and the rural community can also encourage or discourage participation in an AES.