Food and agriculture have been subject to heavy-handed government interventions throughout much of history and across the globe, both in developing and in developed countries.  Today, more than half a trillion US dollars are spent by some governments to support farmers, while other governments impose regulations and taxes that hurt farmers. Some policies, such as price regulations and tariffs, distribute income but reduce total welfare by introducing economic distortions.  Other policies, such as public investments in research, food standards, or land reforms, may increase total welfare, but these policies come also with distributional effects.  These distributional effects influence the preferences of interest groups and in turn influence policy decisions.  Political considerations are therefore crucial to understand how agricultural and food policies are determined, to identify the constraints within which welfare-enhancing reforms are possible (or not), and finally to understand how coalitions can be created to stimulate growth and reduce poverty. 

Offers an elegant yet accessible introduction to the political economy of agricultural economics and food policies Presents both theoretical arguments and empirical evidence Documents major changes and variations in agricultural and food policies Blends a firm analytical grasp of welfare economics principles with a nuanced understanding of how ideology drives political economy Emphasizes the importance of interactions between institutions and economic and political forces

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