加入WTO後，一般預期對我國總體經濟是有利的，農業部門卻因生產成本高、經營規模小，並受限於自然條件，勢將承受不同於其他部門的負面衝擊。因此，存在許多值得關切的問題，例如加入WTO後對農業的影響為何？政府應該如何因應當前貿易新形勢而調整農業政策？我國農業在新貿易經濟體系下應該扮演怎樣的角色？本文根據歷有文獻概述入會後對農業主要經濟變數的影響，並歸納出所受衝擊的方向與可能幅度。由於貿易自由化的環境效果也普受重視，因此本文以水稻生產為例，說明其環境的外部性，並評估貿易自由化對我國農業環境品質的影響。最後則就我國農業未來的發展方向，提出若干建議，其中能源作物的推廣是值得進一步評估的。
It's generally expected that the economy as a whole could benefit from the accession to WTO. The agricultural sector, however, seems to be in the opposite because of its high production cost, small farming scale and various natural constraints. As a result, several challenges attract attention from different agents that include the following questions: To what extent the impact on agriculture could be? How should the government respond to the new challenges? What is the new role that agriculture could play in the new trade system? In light of previous literature, this paper reports the potential impact of Taiwan's accession to WTO on the agricultural economy as well as the agricultural environmental quality. Accordingly, some suggestions regarding the strategies and institutional mechanisms are made for sustainable agricultural development. Further evaluation of energy crops may be warranted in light of the global trend of developing renewable energy and the great potential in Taiwan.
