Conditions for the Competitiveness of the Agricultural Sector in the EU, Japan, Canada, Vietnam, and Mercosur Countries

Abstract The main purpose of this paper was to identify the resource conditions for the competitiveness of the agricultural sector in the European Union (EU), Japan, Canada, Vietnam, and Mercosur countries. The study proved that these countries demonstrate a strong competitive potential. The largest labor resources are found in the Vietnamese agriculture, even though it has witnessed an outflow of 40% of its workforce over the recent years. The EU exhibits high levels of gross fixed capital formation in the agricultural sector. Conversely, the Vietnamese agriculture recorded the fastest growth in capital expenditure. Canada and Mercosur countries have a considerable area of agricultural land and a concentrated agrarian structure, and thus can benefit from economies of scale which, in turn, determine their global competitiveness. It is the opposite in Japan and Vietnam, with over 90% of farms having an area up to 5 ha.