Enterprises in the agri-rural sector facing new challenges - Report on the 45th Annual Meeting of the Society for Economic and Social Sciences in Agriculture (GEWISOLA) in Gottingen in 2005

This article provides a general resume of four plenary speeches, 45 presentations and a final panel discussion held at the 451 annual meeting of the Gesellschaft fur Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften des Landbaues e. V. (Society for Economic and Social Sciences in Agriculture) (GEWISOLA), that took place in Gottingen from October 5(th) to 7(th), 2005. The conference topic was: 'Enterprises in the Agri-Rural Sector Facing New Challenges'. From an agricultural economic perspective, the attempt was made to give answers to questions concerning strategies chosen by agricultural and rural enterprises to cope with challenges resulting from diverse pressures to adjust as well as to respond to increasing opportunities opened up by globalisation. The individual contributions focused on the following priority areas: current developments in the agricultural sector, markets and policies, producers and consumers in the agricultural sector and in society, enterprises in a dynamic environment and, last but not least, the financing of the agricultural policy of the EU.