Joint Research Centre, European Commission

The Joint Research Centre is the European Commission’s science and knowledge service, which mission is to support EU policy makers with independent evidence throughout the whole policy cycle. Among the different areas of the policy support, JRC provides the scientific knowledge for the EU policy-makers in assessing through macro and micro socio-economic analyses the development of the Agro Food sector and related sectors including rural development, food security, trade, sustainable use of resources, and technological innovation in the EU and globally. JRC also focuses on the economic aspects related to the uptake of technologies in agriculture, including climate change mitigation and productivity technologies. This support is based on advanced economic modelling tools, statistical methods, and easy data access. In this frame it has oriented its research efforts to support agriculture and rural development policy, particularly the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) reform process in the EU as well as agriculture and policy developments selected non-EU countries. Specifically, JRC has developed a farm-level simulation model – IFM-CAP (Individual Farm Model for Common Agricultural Policy Analysis) – to enhance its capability in providing scientific support for CAP impact analyses at micro level. The JRC experience related to the extensive CAP policy support provided to the EU policy makers and the expertise in farm level modelling matches well the tasks and priorities of the MIND STEP project.

MIND STEP project information on the partner's website in English <link here>.