Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Union
1.2. Contact organisation unit
E1: Agriculture and fisheries
1.3. Contact name
Restricted from publication
1.4. Contact person function
Restricted from publication
1.5. Contact mail address
2920 Luxembourg LUXEMBOURG
1.6. Contact email address
Restricted from publication
1.7. Contact phone number
Restricted from publication
1.8. Contact fax number
Restricted from publication
2.1. Metadata last certified
28 February 2024
2.2. Metadata last posted
28 February 2024
2.3. Metadata last update
28 February 2024
3.1. Data description
Organic farming can be defined as a method of production which places the highest emphasis on environmental protection and, with regard to livestock production, on animal welfare considerations. It avoids or largely reduces the use of synthetic chemical inputs such as fertilisers, pesticides, additives and medicinal products. The production of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and their use in animal feed are forbidden. It is as a part of a sustainable farming system and a viable alternative to the more traditional approaches to agriculture.
Organic farming differs from other agricultural production methods in the application of regulated standards (production rules), compulsory control schemes and a specific labelling scheme.
The collected statistics cover the following data:
Number of certified organic operators such as producers (agricultural holdings, aquaculture production units), processors, importers, exporters and other operators (wholesalers, retailers, etc.)
Number of manufactures processing products issued from organic farming (based on NACE classification)
Organic crop area under conversion and organic crop area and production from fully converted area
Number of certified organic livestock
Volume of organic products of animal origin (meat, eggs, milk, dairy and honey)
Volume of organic aquaculture production
Organic production statistics started to be collected, processed and disseminated by Eurostat for the reference year 1997 on the basis of gentlemen’s agreements (voluntary data transmission agreements). From the reference year 2008 and until 2020 included, the data collection was based on the Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008 implementing the Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products. This data was collected as summary tables to display an overview of the uptake of organic farming within the European Union, the United Kingdom, Iceland and Norway. Switzerland and some candidate countries (Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey) also provide data on a voluntary basis.
In order to better fit the legal requirements imposed by the Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008, a new version of the template for organic production data collection has been drafted by a task force organised by Eurostat in 2011 on organic farming.
However, a new Regulation (EU) 2018/848 on organic production and labelling of organic products adopted in 2020 and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, does not contain a legal basis for collecting agricultural statistics. Therefore, starting from the reference year 2021 onwards, data on organic production are submitted to Eurostat based on the ESS Agreement.
The current template for data collection, which includes qualitative and quantitative improvements to the data collected, has been in use since the 2012 data collection. The template is available on CircaBC (see the link in annex) and is composed of 7 different tables and it has been updated every year to take into account the different needs and improvements in the data collection.
Data collected between 2012 and 2022 are disseminated via 7 datasets:
Organic operators by status of the registration process (org_coptyp)
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (org_cropar)
Organic production of animal products (until 2011) (org_aprod_h)
Processors of organic products by NACE Rev. 2 activity (C) (2008-2011) (org_cpreact_h)
Processors and importers of organic products by NACE Rev. 1.1 activity (D) (until 2007) (org_cpreact_nr1)
An indicator for sustainable development is calculated to provide information on the share of organic area in the total area (Utilised Agricultural Area - UAA). The data on the UAA are provided by crop production statistics (apro_cpsh1).
In datasets listed above, the flag 'n' can be combined with the statistical value 0. In this case, it means that the value reported by the country is not equal to 0 (the statistical value is between 0 and 0.5 of the unit of measure used in the dataset).
Detailed information on the organic production data collection can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.2. Classification system
Organic production concepts are expected to be coherent with the following classifications (or latest classifications):
Organic production (Regulation (EU) 2018/848 and its delegated regulations and implementing regulations)
Detailed information on the classification used in organic production data collection can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.3. Coverage - sector
Detailed information on the sector coverage of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
According to Regulation (EU) 2018/848, ‘organic production’ means the use, including during the conversion period referred to in Article 10, of production methods that comply with the Regulation at all stages of production, preparation and distribution. ‘Organic product’ means a product resulting from organic production, other than a product produced during the conversion period referred to in Article 10. The products of hunting or fishing of wild animals are not considered as organic products.
Organic farming differs from other agricultural production methods in the application of regulated standards (production rules), compulsory control schemes and a specific labelling scheme.
Detailed information on the statistical concepts and definitions used in the organic production data collection can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.5. Statistical unit
Detailed information on the statistical unit of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.6. Statistical population
Detailed information on the statistical population of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
3.7. Reference area
Data in Organic production statistics cover both the EU Member States that signed the ESS agreement and the countries that submit the data voluntarily. The data refer to national level (NUTS level 0).
3.8. Coverage - Time
Data are available from 1997 onwards.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
The following units of measure are used to collect statistics on organic production:
Certified registered organic operators (referring to their main or secondary activity) expressed in number of operators
Certified registered organic processors who manufacture organic products (as their main or secondary activity) expressed in number of processors
Certified organic crop area (under conversion and fully converted) expressed in hectares
Certified organic crop production from fully converted area expressed in 1 000 kg
Certified organic livestock expressed in heads of live animals
Production of certified organic products of animal origin expressed in 1 000 kg of carcass weight and in thousand eggs
Production of certified organic milk products (produced on farms or processed on farms or by dairy enterprises) and honey and products of bee-keeping, expressed in 1 000 kg of products obtained
Certified organic aquaculture sold by producers expressed in 1 000 kg live weight
Detailed information on the unit of measure of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
The reference period is the calendar year N, starting on 1 January N and finishing on 31 December N.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Up to reference year 2007 data were delivered to the Commission on the basis of 'Gentlemen's agreements' (no obligation to deliver statistical data).
From reference year 2008 and until 2020 included, data had to be provided according to
Starting from reference year 2021 onwards, data on organic production are submitted to Eurostat based on the ESS Agreement.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Not applicable.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics (recital 24 and Article 20(4)) of 11 March 2009, stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
Most data for organic production statistics are not confidential. Confidentiality issues are treated individually with the respective reporting countries due to very small number of operators. These data are not disseminated and flagged with ‘c’ in Eurostat's dissemination database.
8.1. Release calendar
There is no release calendar for annual organic production data collection. Data are disseminated, in general, as soon as they are transmitted and validated.
The deadline for data transmission is fixed in the ESS Agreement on the 30th June n+1 for the Datasets 1-5.
The Member States that signed the ESS Agreement shall provide every fifth year, and for the first time by 30th June 2023 for reference year 2022, a quality report based on ESS Quality Reporting Standards. National quality reports contain information on methodology and quality issues relating to the annual organic production statistics. The information collected is analysed with a view to identify discrepancies, best practices, quality issues and aspects limiting comparability across countries.
The handbook gives guidance on the methodology for collecting data on annual organic production statistics (see the link in annex).
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Overall, there is a currently a certain heterogeneity in practices in the reporting countries. In most countries, a large share of the data comes from the responsible national certification and control bodies. Thus, a special focus is on the methodologies and practices applied to convert these data into official statistics, coherent with the requirements of the ESS Agreement. Eurostat regularly monitors organic production data quality and addresses data quality issues with concerned countries.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
The main users are DG Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI), DG Environment (DG ENV), European Environment Agency (EEA), Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FIBL) and the general public.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
No official user satisfaction survey has been carried out.
12.3. Completeness
Data on organic production are in line with the ESS Agreement provided by eight countries (ES, IT, LV, LT, MT, SK, FI, SE). The other countries deliver organic production data on a voluntary basis.
Regarding the completeness of the organic production statistics for time series starting from 2012 the following information are not available:
General Remarks
There are missing values for AL, IS, ME, MK, RS, TR for all 2012 datasets and also for datasets org_cropar and org_lstspec. For other datasets there are missing values for several countries
For AL data are available only for 2021 for org_coptyp, org_cropar and org_croppro
For ME data are available only from 2016-onwards
Area
No data are available for AT from 2021 onwards
In DE and CH only the total area is reported for the period 2012-2020. From 2021 onwards the total area for individual crops is reported under the dimensions FCONV and UAAXK0000, ARA and PECR under the dimension TOTAL
For IS data are available for the period 2013-2020 with the exception of 2014
Production
No data are available for AT, DK, PT, CH
BE no data are available up to 2015
For DE no data are available for Fresh vegetables (including melons) and strawberries (and subcategories), Berries (excluding strawberries) and Cultivated mushrooms)
For FR data are available for 2016 onwards. Data are not available for Fresh vegetables (including melons) and strawberries and for Permanent crops
For MT data are available from 2013-onwards
For MK data are available from 2021-onwards
For NO data are available from 2021-onwards (for some items in 2013, 2014, 2020 the zero value is provided)
For IS data are available for 2019-2020
Livestock
For IS data are available for 2017-2021
Animal Production
No data are available for PT, AL, CH
For IS data are available for 2013 and for 2018-2021
Aquaculture
No data are available for AL, CH, UK
Several countries report only the parent category F00 Total Fishery Products (DE, FR, HU, LV) or mainly the parent category (IT, IS, LT, NL, PL, SE, SI)
For IS data are available for 2019-2021
Missing data for some optional items:
Carps, barbels and other cyprinids
Sturgeons, paddlefishes
Oysters
Mussels
Aquatic plants
Dicentrarchus labrax (European seabass)
Salmo salar (Atlantic salmon)
Sparus aurata (Gilthead seabream)
Oncorhynchus mykiss (Rainbow trout)
Salmo trutta (Sea trout)
Tonnes live weight
Operators
Missing data for optional items:
Agricultural producers which are also processors
Agricultural producers which are also importers
Agricultural producers - others (n.e.c.)
Aquaculture producers of aquatic plants
Processors which are also importers
Processors - other (n.e.c.)
Other operators
Other operators - traders
Other operators - traders - wholesalers
Other operators - traders - retailers
Other operators n.e.c.
For FR data are available for the period 2012-2017
For IS data are available for 2012-2020, no data are available for 2013
Processors of organic products
Missing data for optional items
Only a few countries report for the units Tonne and Euro and for some years only:
BG, MT for unit Euro
BG, EE, FI, HR, IE, LV, MK, MT, RS and SK for unit Tonne
For FR data are available for 2012-2017
For IS data are available for 2018-2021
13.1. Accuracy - overall
Data for Organic statistics need to be transmitted to Eurostat using the new predefined Excel template. There is one Excel template for the ORG domain with seven worksheets (see the link in annex). In case of uncertainties, data providers are directly contacted to check the data and to confirm or to correct them.
Data which have been corrected by the data providers are subject to an immediate revision in the dissemination database.
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Not assessed.
14.1. Timeliness
The transmission deadline is laid down in the ESS Agreement on Organic production statistics. The Member States that have signed the above Agreement should transmit to Eurostat the data requested in datasets 1-5 by 30th June n+1. The other countries are submitting the data on voluntary basis.
14.2. Punctuality
Most data deliveries are on time. Most of the delayed data transmission are late by some weeks only.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
The harmonised template for data collection intends to guarantee a certain geographical comparability between Member States. The national practices, based on the principle of subsidiarity, can have a limiting effect on the compatibility.
15.2. Comparability - over time
The comparability over time within reporting countries is mostly ensured. For the majority of the countries, data are available for at least the past 10 years.
Regarding the dataset 'org_cpreact', the definition for 'Manufacture of food products' differs starting with the reference year 2018. Since 2018, only manufacturers of food products are included under this variable (following NACE classification). From 2012 to 2017, 'Manufacture of food products' includes manufacturers of food products and beverages.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Data from the agricultural census and related intermediate structure surveys or the annual crops statistics can be used for cross-checking purposes. These data are also available in the relevant domains on Eurostat's website.
The annual organic production statistics and the agricultural structure survey data are the two main sources of organic farming data, both with their own aims and measurement approaches, which may lead in some cases to differences in the published data.
The annual organic production statistics is in most countries based mainly on administrative data provided by national organic certification and control bodies, covering production units certified and under conversion to organic. The agricultural structure data census covers the full agricultural population of the EU every 10 years and a sample of farms two times in between (see Regulation (EU) 2018/1091), and the farming sector as a whole. It is compiled by the national statistical institutes, with data directly from farms or from administrative registers to which the farms provided information. Comparison between the two data sources should be performed with caution, since certain differences in definitions of variables, concepts, surveys design and timing of the collections can cause discrepancies in the data. Differences in number of animals for example are usually due to the time of the year when the data were collected from each of the data sources.
Annual organic statistics are more suitable to measure the variables related to agricultural production officially considered certified organic or under conversion; they also contain more breakdowns related to organic production items and operators. The agricultural structure data is more adequate to present the overall picture of the agriculture in EU and the main trends on the farms over time, with a special focus on structural farming data.
A comparison of the two data sources regarding organic farming growth rate shows that both sources are broadly comparable when analysing the trend of the organic farming growth in EU.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Data validation is performed by Eurostat to eliminate possible consistency errors.
Coherence amongst the various tables and within the tables is thoroughly checked.
The data are collected by the reporting countries mainly via administrative data provided by national certification and control bodies. The exact cost of the data collection is not known by Eurostat.
The data are transmitted on dates stipulated by the ESS agreement (see 14.1 'Timelines'), i.e. on the 30th June n+1 for the data set out in Datasets 1-5.
Data revisions or updates of the quality reports can be sent at any time.
All reported errors (once validated) result in corrections of the disseminated data.
Reported errors are corrected in the disseminated data as soon as the correct data have been validated.
Data may be published even if data set is not complete and some data are missing for certain countries. They are replaced with final data once they are transmitted and validated.
Whenever new data are provided and validated, the already disseminated data are updated.
18.1. Source data
Organic production data are provided mainly by national certification and control bodies.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Annual data collection.
18.3. Data collection
Data are collected in most countries by national certification and control bodies and reported through the harmonised template for data collection via eDamis, one Excel template composed of seven worksheets (see the link in annex).
18.4. Data validation
The Member States are responsible for checking and validating the data before the submission to Eurostat. Validation at Eurostat level concerns data consistency, coherence and completeness that may lead to requests for data revision or for an explanation by the data providers.
18.5. Data compilation
The Member States send the national data to Eurostat. Eurostat is responsible for calculation of the EU-aggregates. EU-aggregates are calculated as far as national data are available for all Member States.
For historical data (from 1997 until 2011), EU-aggregates are available for 2 datasets:
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (until 2011) (org_cropar_h1)
Share of organic crop area out of the total utilised agricultural area (until 2011) (org_cropar_h2)
From 2012 data onwards, EU-aggregates are available for 3 datasets:
Organic operators by status of the registration process (from 2012 onwards) (org_coptyp)
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (from 2012 onwards) (org_cropar)
Organic farming can be defined as a method of production which places the highest emphasis on environmental protection and, with regard to livestock production, on animal welfare considerations. It avoids or largely reduces the use of synthetic chemical inputs such as fertilisers, pesticides, additives and medicinal products. The production of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and their use in animal feed are forbidden. It is as a part of a sustainable farming system and a viable alternative to the more traditional approaches to agriculture.
Organic farming differs from other agricultural production methods in the application of regulated standards (production rules), compulsory control schemes and a specific labelling scheme.
The collected statistics cover the following data:
Number of certified organic operators such as producers (agricultural holdings, aquaculture production units), processors, importers, exporters and other operators (wholesalers, retailers, etc.)
Number of manufactures processing products issued from organic farming (based on NACE classification)
Organic crop area under conversion and organic crop area and production from fully converted area
Number of certified organic livestock
Volume of organic products of animal origin (meat, eggs, milk, dairy and honey)
Volume of organic aquaculture production
Organic production statistics started to be collected, processed and disseminated by Eurostat for the reference year 1997 on the basis of gentlemen’s agreements (voluntary data transmission agreements). From the reference year 2008 and until 2020 included, the data collection was based on the Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008 implementing the Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products. This data was collected as summary tables to display an overview of the uptake of organic farming within the European Union, the United Kingdom, Iceland and Norway. Switzerland and some candidate countries (Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey) also provide data on a voluntary basis.
In order to better fit the legal requirements imposed by the Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008, a new version of the template for organic production data collection has been drafted by a task force organised by Eurostat in 2011 on organic farming.
However, a new Regulation (EU) 2018/848 on organic production and labelling of organic products adopted in 2020 and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, does not contain a legal basis for collecting agricultural statistics. Therefore, starting from the reference year 2021 onwards, data on organic production are submitted to Eurostat based on the ESS Agreement.
The current template for data collection, which includes qualitative and quantitative improvements to the data collected, has been in use since the 2012 data collection. The template is available on CircaBC (see the link in annex) and is composed of 7 different tables and it has been updated every year to take into account the different needs and improvements in the data collection.
Data collected between 2012 and 2022 are disseminated via 7 datasets:
Organic operators by status of the registration process (org_coptyp)
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (org_cropar)
Organic production of animal products (until 2011) (org_aprod_h)
Processors of organic products by NACE Rev. 2 activity (C) (2008-2011) (org_cpreact_h)
Processors and importers of organic products by NACE Rev. 1.1 activity (D) (until 2007) (org_cpreact_nr1)
An indicator for sustainable development is calculated to provide information on the share of organic area in the total area (Utilised Agricultural Area - UAA). The data on the UAA are provided by crop production statistics (apro_cpsh1).
In datasets listed above, the flag 'n' can be combined with the statistical value 0. In this case, it means that the value reported by the country is not equal to 0 (the statistical value is between 0 and 0.5 of the unit of measure used in the dataset).
Detailed information on the organic production data collection can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
28 February 2024
According to Regulation (EU) 2018/848, ‘organic production’ means the use, including during the conversion period referred to in Article 10, of production methods that comply with the Regulation at all stages of production, preparation and distribution. ‘Organic product’ means a product resulting from organic production, other than a product produced during the conversion period referred to in Article 10. The products of hunting or fishing of wild animals are not considered as organic products.
Organic farming differs from other agricultural production methods in the application of regulated standards (production rules), compulsory control schemes and a specific labelling scheme.
Detailed information on the statistical concepts and definitions used in the organic production data collection can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
Detailed information on the statistical unit of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
Detailed information on the statistical population of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
Data in Organic production statistics cover both the EU Member States that signed the ESS agreement and the countries that submit the data voluntarily. The data refer to national level (NUTS level 0).
The reference period is the calendar year N, starting on 1 January N and finishing on 31 December N.
Data for Organic statistics need to be transmitted to Eurostat using the new predefined Excel template. There is one Excel template for the ORG domain with seven worksheets (see the link in annex). In case of uncertainties, data providers are directly contacted to check the data and to confirm or to correct them.
Data which have been corrected by the data providers are subject to an immediate revision in the dissemination database.
The following units of measure are used to collect statistics on organic production:
Certified registered organic operators (referring to their main or secondary activity) expressed in number of operators
Certified registered organic processors who manufacture organic products (as their main or secondary activity) expressed in number of processors
Certified organic crop area (under conversion and fully converted) expressed in hectares
Certified organic crop production from fully converted area expressed in 1 000 kg
Certified organic livestock expressed in heads of live animals
Production of certified organic products of animal origin expressed in 1 000 kg of carcass weight and in thousand eggs
Production of certified organic milk products (produced on farms or processed on farms or by dairy enterprises) and honey and products of bee-keeping, expressed in 1 000 kg of products obtained
Certified organic aquaculture sold by producers expressed in 1 000 kg live weight
Detailed information on the unit of measure of each indicator can be found in the Organic production statistics handbook - 2023 edition (see the link in annex).
The Member States send the national data to Eurostat. Eurostat is responsible for calculation of the EU-aggregates. EU-aggregates are calculated as far as national data are available for all Member States.
For historical data (from 1997 until 2011), EU-aggregates are available for 2 datasets:
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (until 2011) (org_cropar_h1)
Share of organic crop area out of the total utilised agricultural area (until 2011) (org_cropar_h2)
From 2012 data onwards, EU-aggregates are available for 3 datasets:
Organic operators by status of the registration process (from 2012 onwards) (org_coptyp)
Organic crop area by agricultural production methods and crops (from 2012 onwards) (org_cropar)
Organic production data are provided mainly by national certification and control bodies.
The data are annual.
Eurostat disseminates the data after their reception and validation (see 8.1 'Release calendar').
The transmission deadline is laid down in the ESS Agreement on Organic production statistics. The Member States that have signed the above Agreement should transmit to Eurostat the data requested in datasets 1-5 by 30th June n+1. The other countries are submitting the data on voluntary basis.
The harmonised template for data collection intends to guarantee a certain geographical comparability between Member States. The national practices, based on the principle of subsidiarity, can have a limiting effect on the compatibility.
The comparability over time within reporting countries is mostly ensured. For the majority of the countries, data are available for at least the past 10 years.
Regarding the dataset 'org_cpreact', the definition for 'Manufacture of food products' differs starting with the reference year 2018. Since 2018, only manufacturers of food products are included under this variable (following NACE classification). From 2012 to 2017, 'Manufacture of food products' includes manufacturers of food products and beverages.
