Agricultural ecosystems provide numerous services to farmers and society. The supply of nitrogen and water to crops by these ecosystems are estimated to contribute up to 50% of the economic value of agricultural production from field crops (cereals, oilseeds, industrial beet, etc.). Agricultural ecosystems also help to store around 47% of the total carbon stock in French soils.

However, farming activities also weaken these ecosystems. Agriculture is the biggest emitter of ammonia into the air, and agricultural inputs pollute water and soil: nitrate levels in rivers in metropolitan France have rised by 6% between 2000 and 2020. The contamination of environments by pollutants of agricultural origin persists, to the detriment of flora and fauna. The population of crop auxiliaries, such as earthworms, is shrinking. Mechanisation has eliminated 70% of hedgerows since 1950, which is detrimental to biodiversity. Since 1990, the surface area of grassland has shrunk by 11%, and since 1989, 36% of the farmland bird population has disappeared.

Pollution, water restrictions and climatic risks in turn cause losses in agricultural yields. Aware of the issues at stake, farmers are increasingly adopting farming practices that are more environmentally friendly: 36,000 farms had High Environmental Value certification by 1^st January 2023, and more than 60,000 farms were involved in organic production, a 2.5-fold increase in 10 years.