Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)

  Statistical services

Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)

Statistical Services

P.O.Box 2 (Latokartanonkaari 9)

FI-00791 Helsinki, FINLAND

See sub-categories below.

The statistics describe the use of pesticides in the growing of the most important agricultural and horticultural crops in Finland:  spring and winter wheat, rye, barley, oats, rape and turnip rape, food potatoes and food-industry potatoes, sugar beets, grassland for feed production (not pasture), caraway, broad beans, peas, cabbages, carrots, food onions, strawberries, currants (black, green, red and white) and apples.

Crop-specific information on the quantities of pesticide products (plant protection products) used and the treated areas was collected from farmers in 2013 and 2018 during crop yield survey and horticultural enterprise survey.  The available pesticide products and their active substance concentrations were sourced from the Plant Protection Product Register maintained by the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Tukes).

Data collection included pesticide use in the production of the yield harvested in the year 2018. Thus, the collected data covers the treatment of harvested crops during the growing season of 2018, and for overwintering crops in autumn 2017, too.

Laki kasvinsuojeluaineista 29.12.2011/1563

In English: Law on plant protection products

https://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/2011/20111563

Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

2012

The national law requires the production of pesticide statistics according to the EU regulation.

No divergencies.

The classification used for pesticides corresponds to Annex III of Regulation (EC) No 1185/2009 (http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2009/1185/2017-03-09) of the European Parliament and of the Council.
The classification system for crops derives from the Annual crop statistics Handbook 2019 (https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/cache/metadata/Annexes/apro_cp_esms_an1.pdf).

Agriculture / crop production

Winter wheat, spring wheat, rye, malting barley, other types of barley, oats, rape and turnip rape, food potatoes and food-industry potatoes, sugar beets, grassland for feed cultivation (not pasture), broad bean, caraway, peas, cabbages, carrots, food onions, strawberries, currants (black, green, red and white) and apples.

For crop codes, please, see table "2.3.1. Crops" in the attached Excel file in "3 - Annexes".

Not available.

The data reported are the quantity of each active substances listed in Annex III of Regulation 1185/2009 contained in plant protection products used on a selected crop, expressed in kg. The area treated with each substance are expressed in hectares. For biological products the treated area only is reported.

Agricultural or horticultural holding.

Agricultural and horticultural holdings with minimun annual Standard Output of 2000 euros.

See sub-categories below.

The entire territory of Finland.

FI Åland Islands

Pesticide use data was collected in the years 2013 and 2018.

Not applicable for Pesticide Use Statistics, because it is not based on an index number of time series.

See the attached Excel file in "3 - Annexes".

Every 5 years (2013, 2018)

See the attached Excel file in the Annexes of "3.1 Source data".

See sub-categories below.

Summing up active substances into hierarchical classes was carried out according to the Regulation (EU) 2017/269.

In the conversion of litres into kilograms it was assumed that 1 litre = 1 kilogram.

Pesticide data was collected in the Finnish crop yield survey. Other statistical procedures are described in the quality report of the crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

Not applicable.

See sub-categories below.

See section "4. Quality management" in the quality report of crop statistics (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See section "4.2. Quality management - assessment" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

There is a need for information on pesticide use among research and administration, e.g. when estimating the risk on the environment. Also, media is interested in pesticide use especially with issues that are currently in public debate. Recently, such topics have been glyphosate and neonicotinoids. 

New information that is now available in the pesticide use statistics includes: 

 - the used amount of pesticides specifically in agriculture

 - use of pesticides in the cultivation of each of the main crops

 - agricultural area treated with pesticides

There is a need for information on the regional use of pesticides. So far, only national figures have been published in the pesticide use statistics. Regional estimates of pesticide use can be made by combining the national crop specific use of pesticides per hectare with regional cultivation areas of the crops.

Development of data processing so, that regional data on the use of pesticices can be published.

See section "5.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See sub-category below.

Not applicable for Pesticide Use Statistics because in this data collection, there is no target on the number of data. Member States are asked to collect data on representative crops without stipulating the number of crops.

See section "5. Accuracy and reliability" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See section "6. Accuracy and reliability" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See item "6.2. Sampling error" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See sub-categories below.

See item "6.3.1. Coverage error" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See the item "6.3.2. Measurement error" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See the item "6.3.3. Non-response error" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See the item "6.3.4. Processing error" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

Not applicable.

Seasonal adjustment is not applicable to pesticide use statistics since all plant protection treatments associated directly or indirectly with the crop during the reference period are reported.

See item "6.5. Data revision - policy" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See sub-categories below.

See item "6.6. Data revision - practice" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

See item "6.6. Data revision - practice" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

No revisions have been made for the pesticide data of the year 2018.

See sub-categories below.

The statistics were released on one occasion (see item 7.1.2.).

The reference period ended at the harvest of the included crops in 2018. The latest crops were harvested by the end of October 2018. The time lag between this point and the release of the statistics (27 Mar 2019) was about 5 months.

See sub-categories below.

Data are collected on a country level (NUTS 0). Therefore, the data are not comparable on a regional level. The geographical comparability between countries is evaluated by Eurostat.

Not applicable, because there are no mirror flows in Pesticide Use Statistics.

Not applicable for Pesticide Use Statistics, because it is not based on time series.

Not applicable for Pesticide Use Statistics, because it is not based on time series.

Not applicable. See item "8.3. Coherence - cross domain" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").

Not applicable for Pesticide Use Statistics, because the data collection is based on a five-year period.

Not applicable, because it has no relevance for national accounts.

Not applicable.

See sub-categories below.

https://www.luke.fi/en/news/the-dry-summer-of-2018-reduced-the-need-for-plant-protection-bird-cherry-oat-aphid-and-silver-y-were-exceptions/

See sub-categories below.

https://stat.luke.fi/sites/default/files/luke-luobio_73_2020.pdf

See sub-categories below.

Not available.

http://stat.luke.fi/en/tilasto/4083

Not applicable.

See sub-categories 9.6.1. and 9.6.2. below.

https://stat.luke.fi/en/tilasto/4083/kuvaus/4358

See sub-categories below.

https://stat.luke.fi/tilasto/4081/laatuseloste/4359 (in Finnish)

The collection of pesticide data from farms was carried out as a supplement to the annual crop survey and horticultural enterprise survey. With this arrangement a separate pesticide survey could be avoided, which meant lower costs and one survey less for the farmers. While filling in the crop or horticultural survey, the farmer was dealing with crop data and, therefore, pesticide survey fitted well together with these surveys. The total cost of the statistics on pesticide use in agriculture (data collection, processing and dissemination) was estimated at 125,000 euros.

Submitting of pesticide data was an additional burden for the farmers. The amount of work varied a lot between farms depending on the number of crop species and on the extent of pesticide use. Web questionnaire had several functionalities that helped answering. Pesticide data was asked for those crops only that were grown on the farm according to the answers of the farmer to the crop survey questions. The target of pesticide use (weeds, diseases, insects or growth regulation) was asked first, and then the questionnaire showed a menu of those pesticide products that were available for the crop-target combination in question. For telephone interview, farmers and interviewers got a list of all the avaialble pesticide products arranged in groups according to the target of the product. Each product had a theree-number code that helped its identification.

The data on pesticide use should have been available on farms, because the terms of farm subsidies and legislation obligate farmers to keep record of pesticide use.

See sub-categories below.

See section "11.2. Confidentiality - data treatment" in the quality report of crop production statistics of Finland (CROPROD_ESQRSCP_A_FI_2019_0000, see "3 - Annexes").