Archive:Agricultural census in France
- Data from November 2012. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.
This article is part of a series of country-specific essays on the results of the European Union (EU) Farm structure survey (FSS) 2010. The FSS collects information on the structural characteristics of the agricultural holdings (land use, livestock and labour force) and is carried out by all European Union Member States every 10 years as an Agricultural census, with two or three additional, intermediate sample surveys carried out in-between.
The present analysis of the farm structure includes a comparison with the Agricultural census 2000. In contrast to the FSS 2010, the Agricultural census 2000 did not include information on the “Département d’outre-mer”. Furthermore, in France the Agricultural census 2010 was the first one to collect information on common land. As a result, in order to allow comparison between the two reference years, 2010 data presented throughout this article do not include information on common land and the overseas territories when the analysis is conducted at national level. For the regional analysis, only information on common land was filtered out of the 2010 data set.
Source: Eurostat (ef_kvaareg) (ef_ov_kvaa) (demo_pjan) and FSS 2000 and 2010
Source: Eurostat (ef_kvaareg) (ef_ov_kvaa) and FSS 2000 and 2010
_by_UAA_size_classes_FR_2010.PNG)
Source: Eurostat (ef_kvaareg) (ef_ov_kvaa)
Source: Eurostat (ef_lu_ovcropaa) (ef_oluaareg)
Source: Eurostat (ef_lu_ovcropaa) (ef_oluaareg)
Source: Eurostat (ef_mptenure)
Source: Source: Eurostat (ef_pmhouscatlaa)
Main statistical findings
Key indicators
According to the FSS 2010, there were about 490 000 agricultural holdings in France (see Table 1). Despite the fact that the population of farms decreased by one forth compared to 2000 (- 173 830), in 2010 France was among the EU Member States with the highest number of holdings.
The utilised agricultural area (UAA), on the other hand, remained quite stable over the inter-census decade, only decreasing by 3.2 %: it indicated the value of about 27 million in 2010, whereas 27.8 million hectares of UAA were recorded in 2000. Accordingly, the French agricultural land covered 43 % of the national territory and was found to be the widest across the whole EU-27 in 2010.
As the fall in the number of holdings was sharper than the decrease in the agricultural land, the average size of the holdings strongly increased, from 42 ha per farm in 2000 to 55 ha in 2010. This tendency, common throughout the EU Member States, suggests that the structure of the French agriculture is changing so that big holdings are replacing the smaller ones.
In France, the number of persons regularly working in the agricultural sector dropped by 26.7 % within the decade under analysis. Indeed, 1.3 million people were working on the farms in 2000, whereas the number dropped below the one million threshold in 2010 (966 290). Accordingly, agricultural labour force represented only 3.4 % of the active population [1] of France in 2010.
Although in 2010 France recorded the highest population of livestock among the EU Member States, figures dropped within the two reference years (- 5.7 %): from about 24 million livestock units (LSU) in 2000 to 22.5 LSU in 2010.
Regional key indicators
The regional analysis presented in Table 2 sheds light on the local characteristics of the French agriculture. In terms of the number of holdings, no region appears to play a major role as no territory recorded a double digit share over the total population. Indeed, farms appeared to be distributed quite equally among the whole country, with the exception of the metropolitan area of Il de France, Course and the overseas territories, all of which proved to be less populated. Within this context, the region of Midi-Pyrénées recorded the highest share (9.3 %), as 47 620 farms were recorded within its borders in 2010. The territory of Aquitaine recorded the second highest value (43 060) and accounted for 8.4 % of the French population of farms, a value slightly higher than the one recorded in the region of Rhône (7.6 %) where 39 020 farms were recorded in 2010.
If the agricultural area is taken into account, the regions of Centre and Midi-Pyrénées recorded the highest values. According to the FSS 2010 data, the agricultural area indicated the value of 2.3 million hectares within the territory of Centre, a value which corresponded to 8.5 % of the French UAA in 2010 – the very same figure was recorded in 2000. The agricultural area was slightly smaller in the region of Midi-Pyrénées (see table 2), though it accounted for the same share (8.5 %) of the country’s UAA in 2010. With 2.1 million hectares of agricultural area recorded in 2010, Pays de la Loire was the only other region recording a value higher than the 2 million hectares threshold in 2010: it accounted for 7.8 % of the French agricultural land in 2010.
If the animal livestock is taken into account – in terms of livestock units (LSU) – the distribution of the French agricultural resources appears more distorted, with Bretagne and Pays de la Loire standing out: 4.6 million LSU were recorded within the borders of Bretagne in 2010, a value which corresponded to 20.6 % of the French farm animal population; Pays de la Loire accounted for 15 %, as 3.4 million LSU were registered within its territory.
As exhibited in Table 2, there were about 1 million people regularly working on the farms in France, a value which takes into account the overseas territories but does not include data on common land. Although the agricultural labour force proved to be equally distributed across the country, which is demonstrated by the fact that no region scored double digit shares, Aquitaine was found to account for a remarkable 9.1 % of the French regular agricultural labour force. The second highest share was recorded within the territory of Midi-Pyrénées, where 83 930 people were found to be regularly working on farms in 2010.
With reference to the average area of the agricultural holding, French regions proved to vary to a great extent. Far from being a French peculiarity, this characteristic was observed in many EU Member States. In particular, with the exclusion of the overseas territories which are characterised by small sized farms, 2010 values ranged from the 27.6 hectares per holding of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur to the 113.1 ha of Ile de France.
Agricultural holdings
As exhibited in Figure 1, holdings with 50 to 99.9 hectares of agricultural area were the most common in France. In 2010, 97 780 of them were recorded, a value which corresponded to 19 % of the whole population of agricultural holdings. In addition, those holdings accounted for one fourth of the French agricultural area, as they covered 7.4 million hectares of UAA. Also farms with 100 hectares or more of agricultural land proved to be very important; they were found to take up 57 % of the French agricultural land and represented 18 % of the French population of farms (94 250).
Together, farms with 30 hectares or more of UAA accounted for about half of the entire population of agricultural holdings and covered 91 % of the French UAA in 2010. On the other end of the scale, while representing half of the French population of farms, holdings with up to 29.9 hectares of agricultural area accounted for only 9 % of the country’s UAA.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010
Economic size of the farm
In 2010, the economic size of the French agricultural holdings was EUR 50 724 million (see Table 3). This value, which is calculated by adding all the standard output (SO) per hectare of crop and per head of livestock of the farms, proved to be the highest one recorded within the EU-27. Furthermore, compared to the FSS 2007 (EUR 45 978 million), it indicated an increase of 10.3 %. In particular, remarkable growths were recorded by the highest classes of farms: the ones with a monetary value of EUR 100 000 to 249 999 (+ 6.6 %), those with EUR 250 000 to 499 999 of standard output (+17.6 %) and farms with an economic value of EUR 500 000 or more (+38.9 %). In addition, the three aforementioned categories proved to be by far the most important ones, as together they accounted for 79 % of the standard output of the whole country in 2010 (EUR 40 063 million) – in 2000 they indicated a value of EUR 34 320 million and accounted for 75 %.
As previously observed for the number of holdings and the agricultural area, also in terms of the economic output, the structure of the French agriculture proved to be quite balanced concerning the geographical distribution of its resources. Within this context, Bretagne and Pays de la Loire were the only two territories which recorded values greater than the EUR 5 000 million threshold. According to the FSS 2010, the region of Bretagne indicated the value of EUR 5 834 million and accounted for 11.5 % of the French SO, whereas the region of Pays de la Loire registered a value of EUR 5 182 million, corresponding to 10.2 % of the country’s standard output.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010 and 2007
Agricultural holding by main type of farming
As it regards the number of holdings and the main type of farming, farms specialised in the production of cereals, oilseed and protein crops scored the highest percentage (17 %) in 2010 in France. The second highest share was recorded by holdings dedicated to vineyard production (14 %), confirming the country’s long-standing tradition of the production of wine. Furthermore, holdings specialised in cattle rearing and fattening accounted for 12 % of the total population of farms, whereas holdings dedicated to goats and other grazing livestock (11 %), and those specialised in dairying (10 %), were the only other ones that recorded double digit percentages.
In terms of the economic size, agricultural holdings specialised in vineyard production proved to be the most important, as they accounted for 19 % of the whole country’s agricultural output in 2010. Farms specialised in dairy farming recorded the second highest share (13 %), followed by those dedicated to the production of cereals, oilseed and protein crops (12 %). Agricultural holdings specialised in general field cropping accounted for 8 % of the French agricultural output and were found to be the first that fell below the 10 % threshold in 2010.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010
Land use
The Utilised Agricultural Area (UAA) is the total area used by the farm, regardless of the type of tenure or whether it is used as a part of common land. The agricultural area is made up of four major components: arable land, permanent grassland and meadow, permanent crops and kitchen gardens. In France, the UAA as well as the share of its main components remained quite stable over the inter-census timeframe.
In 2010 arable land accounted for 67.9 % of the total agricultural area, while permanent grassland and meadow shared 28.3 % (see Table 4). Accordingly, those two categories together covered 26 million hectares of UAA and accounted for 96.2 % of the French agricultural area in 2010 – their share was of 95.6 % in 2000, when they took up about 27 million hectares.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010
Arable land
In France, arable land is essentially taken up by cereals, fodder crops and industrial crops, which together accounted for 61 % of the whole agricultural area in 2010. In particular, 9.2 million hectares were dedicated to the production of cereals: this value, which in 2010 corresponded to 34.2 % of the French agricultural land, represented a + 2.2 % increase compared to 2000. Also the area dedicated to fodder crops grew between the two reference years (+5.1 %), so that this harvest indicated the value of 4.9 million hectares in 2010 and shared 18.2 % of the French UAA. Within the category of arable land, industrial crops displayed the highest increase (+14.1 %), as the area dedicated to their production rose from 2.1 million hectares in 2000 to 2.3 million ha in 2010.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010
Permanent grassland
In France, the area of permanent grassland decreased by 8.2 % over the inter-census decade, though its relative share over the total agricultural area only moved from about 30 % to 28 % (- 681 700 ha). Also its composition did not change significantly, as the land dedicated to pasture and meadow still played the main role in 2010 accounting for 23 % of the UAA – the corresponding value was 25 % in 2000. The area of rough grazing indicated the value of 5 % in both reference years.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2010
Livestock
Statistics on livestock use two different units of measurement, the number of heads (number of animals) and the livestock units (LSU), with the latter allowing comparison between different types of livestock.
As exhibited in Table 5, about 22.5 million LSU were recorded in France in 2010. This value, which was found to be the highest within the EU-27, neither take into account the holdings with common land nor the ones located in the overseas territories of Guadalupe, Martinique, Guyane and La Réunion[2] . In relative terms, there were 0.36 LSU per inhabitant in 2010; the corresponding value was slightly higher in 2000 (0.41), as the French population increased (6.6%) while the livestock decreased (-5.7 %) over the inter-census period.
According to the FSS 2010, the cattle were by far the most important livestock in France: they indicated the value of about 14 million LSU and represented 61 % of the farm animal’s population, a value which indicated a 6 % decrease compared to 2000. Poultry were the second most important type of farm animal and accounted for 19 % of the French livestock in 2010, when 4.3 million LSU were recorded; in 2000 the corresponding value was 4.5 million LSU (-5.7 %). Also pigs, whose numbers proved to be rather stable over the period under analysis, recorded values worth mentioning: 3.2 millions of LSU, accounting for 14.2 % of the French LSU in 2010.
As the decrease in the number of farms with livestock (36 %) was sharper than the fall in the number of agricultural holdings (26.2 %), the relative weight of the number of holdings with livestock over the total population of farms dropped within the 2000-2010 timeframe, from 70 % to 61 %. In particular, figures decreased for every class of farms with livestock, with the exception of the two largest ones: the number of farms with 100 to 499 LSU increased by 8 % and the figures for farms with 500 LSU or more grew by 20 %. On the contrary, agricultural holdings with 20 to 49 LSU recorded the biggest drop (39.4 %), followed by those with 5 to 9 LSU (39 %).
Among the French territories, Bretagne and Pays de la Loire proved to be the most important regions and were the only ones that scored double digit shares over the total number of livestock in 2010. In particular, about 4.7 million LSU were recorded in Bretagne – which accounted for 21 % of the whole French livestock – and 3.4 million in the territory of Pays de la Loire, a value which corresponded to 15 % of the French livestock.
See detailed data at Nuts 2 level for 2010 and 2000
Labour force
According to the FSS 2010, 966 290 people were working on the French farms. Despite this being one of the highest figures recorded among the EU Member States, it represented a decrease of 26.7 % compared to 2000, when over a million people were working in the agricultural sector. In terms of annual work unit (AWU), the decrease was less severe (-23 %), as figures dropped from 855 660 AWU in 2000 to 660 780 AWU in 2010.
Among the French territories, the region of Aquitaine recorded the highest number of agricultural employees working on a regular basis: there were 92 610 of them in 2010 accounting for 9.1 % of the French regular labour force. The territory of Midi-Pyrénées registered the second highest share (8.3 %), as 83 930 people were found to be employed on a regular basis on the farms within its borders, while Rhône-Alpes and Pays de la Loire recorded the third highest percentage (7.3 %).
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level on holders' age and gender for 2010 and 2000
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level on type of labour force for 2010 and 2000
Management practices
Type of tenure
In France, three fourths of the agricultural area, about 21 million hectares, were farmed by tenants in 2010. As exhibited in Table 7, particularly high percentages of land under this type of tenure were recorded in Champagne-Ardenne (88.1 %) and Picardie (87 %). On the contrary, in Guyane only a marginal 5 % of the agricultural area was found to be farmed by tenants in 2010.
In France, 6.5 million hectares of UAA (23.6 %) were farmed by the persons who owned that land in 2010. In particular, the region of Champagne-Ardenne recorded the lowest share (11.1 %) together with the northern territory of Nord-Pas-de-Calais (12.1 %). On the other end of the scale, the overseas territory of Guyane registered the highest share, as 89.2 % of its agricultural area was found to be under this type of tenure in 2010.
The French agricultural area utilised in partnership by the landlord and the sharecropper under a written or oral share-farming contract – or the area utilised under other modes of tenure – covered a marginal 1.2 %, corresponding to 332 230 hectares. Among the French territories, remarkable values were recorded in the overseas territory of Guadalupe, were the land under this type of tenure was found to take up 10.6 % of the UAA, as well as Martinique where it accounted for 9.4 %.
Irrigation
In France, the total irrigable area decreased by 11.1 % within the period under analysis (from 2.6 ha to 2.3 ha). On the contrary, the irrigated area, which includes all the green houses and partially the kitchen gardens (depending on the characteristics of their irrigation), remained fairly stable (+ 0.5 %). However, when analysing data on irrigation, it should be kept in mind that the extent of the irrigated area varied over the years according to the weather conditions.
In terms of the type of crops, the harvest that had the largest share of irrigation water was maize (grain and green). According to the FSS 2010, this kind of crop took up 749 510 ha of irrigated area and accounted for 47.1 % of the total irrigated area in France. With 252 860 ha of irrigated area, cereals (excluding maize and rice) were the second most irrigated crop (15.9 %), followed by fruit and berry plantation – 104 140 ha, corresponding to 6.6 % of the total irrigated area – and other crops on arable land – 101 370 hectares, accounting for 6.4 % of the total irrigated area.
In terms of the volume of water, 2 711 millions cubic metres of water were used to irrigate the agricultural area in France. In relative terms, 36 076 cubic metres of water per hectare of agricultural land were used in 2010, a value calculated taking into account the area irrigated in the 12 months prior to the survey. Within this context, it must be remembered that the water used for irrigating the kitchen gardens was partially included in the calculation, depending on the characteristics of the irrigation. On the contrary, the water used for irrigating the areas under glass was always recorded as irrigation water. Furthermore, the value of irrigation water is quite accurate as water counters are compulsory in France. When interviewees could not answer the question (about 10 % of the cases), they were asked to make an estimation.
The amount of water used in agriculture strongly depends on the region and its peculiarities. Accordingly, values remarkably lower than the national average were recorded by the regions of Lorraine (5 441 cubic metre per hectare), Limousin (6 792 cubic metre per ha) and Nord-Pas-de-Calais (8 263 cubic metre per hectare). On the contrary, values higher than the average were recorded for Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (68 591 cubic metre per ha), Champagne-Ardenne (46 442 cubic metre per ha) and Poitou-Charentes (45 709 cubic metre per ha).
Animal housing
Among the 27 EU Member States, France proved to have one of the highest populations of holdings with cattle. According to the FSS 2010, there were 199 620 holdings farming 19.5 millions heads of cattle, which were hosted in about 19.5 million places.
Both in terms of the number of holdings and the number of places, the most common type of animal housing was found to be the one where animals are loose with solid dung and manure (see Table 9). In France, the aforementioned type of housing was recorded for 147 750 holdings and accounted for about 15 million places.
If the number of places is taken into account, the second most frequent type of animal housing proved to be the one were cattle are hosted loose with slurry (2.2 million). On the contrary, in terms of holdings, the second most common type of housing was found to be the one were animals are tied with solid dung and liquid manure (49 690 holdings).
Other gainful activities
In 2010, there were 48 320 holdings with other gainful activities in France, a figure which corresponded to 9.4 % of the total population of holdings. Accordingly, France proved to be among the EU Member States with the highest number of holdings with activities other than farm work, directly related to the holding and having an economic impact on the holding.
Information on other gainful activities was collected by eleven category types depending on their characteristics – one holding could register more than one activity. As exhibited in Table 10, processing of farm products (17 490 farms) was the most common extra source of income, followed by contractual work – which could take the form of contractual agricultural work (12 100 holdings) and contractual non-agricultural work (2 690 farms). Moreover, tourism (12 140 farms) proved to be quite relevant as other gainful activity.
The highest populations of holdings with other gainful activities were recorded within the territories of Rhône-Alps (5 900 holdings), Midi-Pyrénées (4 230 holdings) and Aquitaine (3 910 farms). Conversely, the overseas territories, the metropolitan region of Ile de France (680 farms) and the island of Corse (730 farms) recorded the lowest values.
See detailed data at NUTS 2 level for 2000
Organic farming
Organic agriculture is an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil biological activity. It is based on the minimal use of off-farm inputs and on the management practices that restore, maintain or enhance ecological harmony.
Although not steadily, the UAA under organic farming in France increased over the period under analysis, accounting for 1.8 % of the whole UAA of the country in 2010. As showed in Table 10, it grew from 385 980 hectares in 2003 to 496 860 in 2010 (+29 %) – no data are available for 2000.
See detailed data at Nuts 2 level for 2010, 2007, 2005, 2003 and 2000
Data sources and availability
Methodological notes France – Agricultural census 2010
In France, the Agricultural Census 2010 was carried out by the Statistics Department of the Ministry of Agriculture in compliance with the EU regulations.
Survey on agricultural production methods (SAPM)
In 2010 a unique survey was carried out together with the Agricultural census, the Survey on agricultural productions methods (SAPM). This survey collected data at regional level needed to establish agri-environmental indicators as indicated in COM final 508/2006 and to evaluate the greening of the Common agricultural policy.
Data were collected according to the specifications listed in Annex V of the above mentioned regulation, namely data on tillage methods, soil conservation, landscape features, animal grazing, animal housing, manure application, manure storage and treatment facilities and irrigation.
In France, the SAPM was conducted as an exhaustive survey: the same threshold applied to the Agricultural census was used for the Survey on Agricultural Production Methods. Accordingly, the smallest holdings, which all together contributed to less than 2 % of the total UAA and to less than 2 % of the total number of livestock of the country, did not enter the target population.
Reference period
Information related to the production methods and the labour force was collected with reference to the agricultural year 2009-2010: from 1st of November 2009 to the 31st of October 2010. Data on livestock were collected as of the 31st of November 2010. Information on the support for rural development was collected with reference to the years 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Threshold for agricultural holdings
In France, the same threshold was used for surveying both the FSS and the SAPM. In particular, the target population included all the farms with at least one hectare of agricultural land, as it was the case in the previous waves of the FSS. Furthermore, agricultural holdings with less than one hectare of agricultural land complying with a set of physical thresholds were also included in the target population of both the FSS and the SAPM. The physical thresholds – related to the hectares of certain types of crops or heads of cattle – set for the Département d’autre-mer differ from the ones used for continental France.
Common land
Common land is the land that does not directly belong to any agricultural holding but on which common rights apply. It can consist of pasture, horticultural or other land. The treatment of the common land used by an agricultural holding might differ from country to country.
In France, information on the area of common land was collected for the first time within the context of the Agricultural census 2010. The French common land comprises about 750 000 hectares of permanent grassland used for common pasture. This pasture is managed by different kinds of agricultural holdings for which only information on UAA and labour force was collected.
Geo-reference of the holding
Information on the geographical location of the agricultural holdings was collected through a specific question of the questionnaire.
Economic size
From FSS 2007 onwards, the Standard output (SO), a new classification of the economic size of the holding, is used. The SO has replaced the Standard gross margin (SGM) used before. Nonetheless, for comparability reasons, in FSS 2007 both classifications are available.
Volume of irrigation water
This characteristic was calculated for the first time in 2010 within the context of the SAPM. Water meters are mandatory in France, therefore interviewees had no problems responding to the questions related to the volume of water used for irrigation. If, for any reason, they could not respond – roughly 10 % of cases – they were invited to make estimations. Furthermore, the water used for the green houses was included in the calculation. On the contrary, the water used for irrigating the kitchen gardens was included or excluded depending on the irrigation system used.
Other methodological issues
The Agricultural census 2000 did not include information on the “Département d’outre-mer”; it only collected data on the “France metropolitan”. On the contrary, data on the overseas regions[3] were collected for the Agricultural census 2010. Furthermore, data on common land were not collected in 2000. In order to allow comparison between 2000 and 2010, 2010 data presented throughout this article do not include information on common land and the overseas territories when the analysis is conducted at national level. As it concerns the regional analysis, only information on the common land was not included in 2010 data.
Context
European Commission Rural development policy aims to improve competitiveness in agriculture and forestry, the environment and the countryside, as well as to improve the quality of life in rural areas, and to encourage the diversification of rural economies.
As agriculture has been modernised and the importance of industry and services within the economy has increased, agriculture has become much less important as a source of jobs. Consequently, increasing emphasis is placed on the role farmers can play in rural development, including forestry, biodiversity and the diversification of the rural economy, in order to create alternative jobs and provide environmental protection in rural areas.
The FSS continues to adapt in order to provide timely and relevant data to help analyse and follow these developments.
Further Eurostat information
Publications
- Agriculture, fishery and forestry statistics — Main results – 2010-11 - 2012 edition
- Farm Structure Survey in France - 2007 - Issue number 84/2009
- Farm Structure in France - 2005 - Issue number 42/2007
- Structure of Agricultural Holdings - France 2003 - Statistics in focus 8/2005
Main tables
- Agriculture, see:
- Structure of agricultural holdings (t_ef)
Database
- Agriculture, see:
- Structure of agricultural holdings (ef)
Dedicated section
Methodology / Metadata
- Structure of agricultural holdings (ESMS metadata file - ef_esms)
- Methodological Report – FSS 2010 Austria
- Methodological Report – FSS 2007 Austria
Source data for tables and figures (MS Excel)
Other information
- Regulation 1166/2008 of 19 November 2008 on farm structure surveys and the survey on agricultural production methods and repealing Council Regulation 571/88
- Regulation 1200/2009 of 30 November 2009 implementing Regulation 1166/2008 on farm structure surveys and the survey on agricultural production methods, as regards livestock unit coefficients and definitions of the characteristics
See also
- census 2010 Agricultural census 2010
- structure All farm structure articles by country (2007)
- structure statistics Farm structure statistics
External links
Notes
- ↑ A value calculated over the total number of active people aged 15 to 64, as it is reported by the 4th quarter 2010 of the EU Labour force survey (LFS) Population by sex, age, nationality and labour status (1 000)
- ↑ The territories of Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélemy and Mayotte were not included in both the FSS 2000 and the FSS 2010.
- ↑ The territories of Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélemy and Mayotte were not included in the survey in both the reference years.