Changes in the Role of Agriculture from the Perspective of Innovative Agricultural Entrepreneurs. The Case of Szeklerland, Eastern Transylvania

Abstract Relying on an interview-based research carried out in Szeklerland (Eastern Transylvania) between 2011 and 2020, the present study investigates the impact of the new rural development paradigm on the first level indicated by Van der Ploeg et al. (2000): changes in the relationship between agriculture and local society. The analysed region does not form an administrative unit, it is the eastern region of the former Austro-Hungarian monarchy. It consists of rural settlements and small towns, the population of which is mostly of Hungarian ethnicity. More than half of the households have a small amount of land and are engaged in farming as their main or supplementary activity. Following a brief overview of the regional context, our paper analyzes the essential changes that have been taking place in the relationship between agriculture and the regional society over the last one or two decades. The focus of the analysis is how changes in the relationship between agriculture and the regional society appear in the innovative agricultural entrepreneurs’ practice and interpretations.