Introduction to the special issue ‘agricultural land markets – recent developments, efficiency and regulation’
介绍了农业土地市场的最新发展，包括地价上涨、城市化与可再生能源对土地利用的影响，以及非农投资者需求增加导致的土地分配不均问题，并探讨了市场效率与监管措施。
Land is a crucial production factor in agriculture. However, it is usually in short supply, and its supply has been decreasing due to competition from non-agricultural uses. In the last decade, the price of land increased significantly in many parts of the world. Although boom and bust cycles are not new to land markets, current developments are considered to result from a new constellation of driving forces. The price surge in land markets has been traced back to land use changes caused by urbanisation and renewable energy production. Moreover, it has been conjectured that growing land demand by non-agricultural investors in the aftermath of the financial crisis has further increased prices. At the same time, the share of farmed land owned by farmers has declined constantly in most developed economies. In this regard, an unfair or unsound distribution of property rights raises political concern since an unequal distribution of land is likely fuelling social unrest and political conflicts in rural areas. These developments have triggered public debates on whether land markets as an allocation device work efficiently, as well as whether existing land market institutions and current legislation are in line with political objectives and societal needs. In fact, many governments take actions or contemplate measures that aim to limit land prices including, such as preventing dominant players in the land market, capping land rental and sales prices or giving privileged treatment to farmers over non-agricultural investors.