Archive:Agricultural products

Data from September 2011, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.

Europe has a wide diversity in terms of natural environments, climates and farming practices that feed through into a wide array of food and drink products for human consumption and animal feed, as well as providing inputs for non-food processes. Indeed, agricultural products form a major part of the cultural identity of Europe's people and regions.

Figure 1: Indices of the agricultural production of crops, EU-27 (1)
(2000=100) - Source: Eurostat (apro_cpp_crop)

With this in mind, European Union (EU) legislation has been developed to protect particular food and drink product names which are linked to a territory or to a production method, aiming to provide guarantees as to the origin and authenticity of products.

Main statistical findings

Table 1: Agricultural production of crops, 2009
(1 000 tonnes) - Source: Eurostat (apro_cpp_crop)

Figure 2: Production of cereals, EU-27, 2009 (1)
(%, based on tonnes) - Source: Eurostat (apro_cpp_crop)

Figure 3: Production of vegetables, EU-27, 2009 (1)
(%, based on tonnes) - Source: Eurostat (apro_cpp_fruveg)

Figure 4: Breakdown of production of fruit, EU-27, 2009 (1)
(% of total, based on tonnes) - Source: Eurostat (apro_cpp_fruveg)

Table 2: Agricultural production related to animals, 2009
(1 000 tonnes) - Source: Eurostat (apro_mt_pann)

Figure 5: Utilisation of milk, EU-27, 2009 (1)
(%) - Source: Eurostat (apro_mk_pobta)

Crops

In 2009, the EU-27 produced 295.8 million tonnes of cereals (including rice). Despite the vagaries of the weather, cereal production in the EU-27 was relatively stable between 2000 and 2007 (see Figure 1), albeit with notably higher harvests in 2004. The production of cereals rose again sharply in 2008, to attain a level that was close to that recorded in 2004, before falling somewhat in 2009 (although the production of cereals remained 6.5 % higher than in 2000).

There was a strong rise (48.9 %) in the production of oilseeds between 2000 and 2009, which could be contrasted with a relatively steady decline in the production of potatoes (down by 24.4 % between 2000 and 2009) and a fall in the production of sugar beet (-16.7 % over the same period, with a marked reduction in 2006).

A comparison between 2008 and 2009 shows that EU-27 production of cereals fell by 6.1 %. Sugar beet and oilseed production increased by 16.5 % and 6.3 % respectively, while there was a modest increase in the production of potatoes (1.4 %).

France and Germany were by far the largest cereal, sugar beet and oilseed producers, together accounting for 40.5 % of the EU-27’s cereal production in 2009, 53.0 % of its sugar beet production and 44.7 % of its oilseed production (see Table 1). The production of potatoes was more widely spread, with Germany recording the highest production (18.7 % of the EU-27 total in 2009), while Poland, the Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom each accounted for between 10.3 % and 15.5 % of the total. France was, by far, the leading producer of pulses and textile crops in 2009.

Figure 2 presents a breakdown of the production of cereals in the EU-27 in 2009. Almost half (47.0 %) of the total production of cereals was accounted for by wheat, while around one fifth of the total was composed of barley (21.0 %) and grain maize (19.5 %); rice production in the EU-27 was considerably lower (1.0 % of EU-27 cereals production).

In the EU-27, the most important vegetables in terms of production were tomatoes, onions and carrots, while the most important fruits were apples, oranges and peaches (see Figures 3 and 4 respectively). In 2009, Italy and Spain had the largest vegetable and fruit production among EU Member States. Italy produced around 11.6 million tonnes of vegetables, while Spain produced approximately 9.9 million tonnes. These two Member States jointly produced 19.9 million tonnes of dessert fruit, which equated to more than 56 % of the EU-27’s production.

The bulk of fruit and fresh vegetable production was concentrated in a few Member States. For example, some 56.9 % of EU-27 apple production in 2009 was located in Poland, Italy and France, whilst more than 83 % of oranges were produced in Spain and Italy. About two thirds of all the tomatoes produced in the EU-27 originated from Italy and Spain in 2009, whilst 43.6 % of the onions produced in the EU-27 came from the Netherlands and Spain.

Meat and milk

Table 2 summarises agricultural production related to animals. The principal meat product in the EU-27 is pig meat (21.3 million tonnes in 2009), where the weight of production was almost three times as high as for beef/veal (7.7 million tonnes); the production of sheep meat in the EU-27 was relatively modest (0.7 million tonnes).

A quarter (24.7 %) of the EU-27’s pig meat production came from Germany, the next highest contributions coming from Spain (15.5 %) and France (9.4 %), while the 7.6 % share for Poland and the 7.4 % share for Denmark were also notable. A little under one fifth (19.0 %) of the beef/veal produced in the EU-27 originated from France in 2009, with Germany and Italy the only other Member States to report production in excess of one million tonnes; Ireland reported a relatively high share of the EU-27’s production of cattle meat.

Dairy production has a diverse structure across the Member States, in terms of farm and dairy herd sizes, as well as milk yields. The total collection of cows’ milk in the EU-27 in 2009 amounted to 133.5 million tonnes. Figure 5 shows that over one third (34.8 %) of the milk utilised in the EU-27 in 2009 was converted into cheese, with butter accounting for the next highest proportion (23.7 %); approximately one eighth (12.6 %) of the milk utilised in the EU-27 was used for drinking milk.

Germany recorded the highest share (21.1 %) of EU-27 milk collected in 2009 and also accounted for the highest proportions of EU-27 butter (25.2 %) and cheese (22.8 %) production.

Data sources and availability

Annual statistics on the production of a range of specific crops are covered by Council Regulations, although the data for fresh fruit and vegetables are collected under various informal agreements with the EU Member States.

Agricultural production of crops is harvested production (excluding losses to the harvest). The harvested production includes marketed quantities, as well as quantities consumed directly on the farm, losses and waste on the holding, and losses during transport, storage and packaging. The statistics on crop production in this article relate to harvested production.

Statistics on milk, eggs and meat products are compiled according to Community legislation. Milk production covers farm production of milk from cows, sheep, goats and buffaloes. A distinction is made between milk collected by dairies and milk production on the farm. Milk collection is only a part of the total use of milk production on the farm, the remainder generally includes own consumption, direct sale and cattle feed.

Meat production is based on the carcass weight of meat fit for human consumption. The concept of carcass weight is generally the weight of the slaughtered animal’s cold body, although the precise definition varies according to the animal under consideration.

Context

Information on agricultural products may be used to analyse developments within agricultural markets in order to help distinguish between cycles and changing production patterns; these statistics can also be used to study how markets respond to policy actions. Agricultural product data also provides information on the supply side of agriculture, furthering understanding as regards price developments which are of particular interest to agricultural commodity traders and policy analysts.

In October 2007, the Council adopted legislation to establish a single common market organisation for agricultural products (Regulation 1234/2007). This was designed to reduce the volume of legislation in the farming sector, to improve legislative transparency, and to make agricultural policy more easily accessible. Between the start of 2008 and the start of 2009, the single common market organisation replaced 21 individual markets for a variety of different products such as fruit and vegetables, cereals, meats, eggs, dairy products, sugar or wine.

Despite reforms of the common agricultural policy (CAP) in 2003 and 2008, farm subsidies consume more than 40 % of the EU’s annual spending. During the summer of 2010 a consultation process was organised in relation to the development of future agricultural policy. This identified three key areas for the stakeholders consulted, namely, food security, environmental concerns, and rural diversity. In November 2010 the European Commission released a Communication (COM(2010 672) providing a blueprint for developing agricultural policy, titled ‘The CAP towards 2020: meeting the food, natural resources and territorial challenges of the future’. The document details some of the main challenges facing the EU’s agricultural sector in the coming decade – for example, how to preserve the EU’s food production so as to guarantee long-term food security, while supporting farming communities that provide a diverse range of quality products, and ensuring environmental, water, animal and plant health requirements are met.

Further Eurostat information

Publications

Main tables

Agriculture, see:

Agricultural products (t_apro)

Crops products (t_apro_cp)

Poultry farming (t_apro_ec)

Milk and milk products (t_apro_mk)

Animal production (t_apro_mt)

Database

Agriculture, see:

Agricultural products (apro)

Crops products (apro_cp)

Poultry farming (apro_ec)

Milk and milk products (apro_mk)

Animal production (apro_mt)

Dedicated section

Agriculture

Methodology/Metadata

Crops products (ESMS metadata file - apro_cp_esms)
Livestocks (ESMS metadata file - apro_mt_ls_esms)
Meat production (ESMS metadata file - apro_mt_p_esms)
Milk and milk products (ESMS metadata file - apro_mk_esms)
Poultry farming (ESMS metadata file - apro_ec_esms)

Other information

Crop statistics are governed by:

Regulation 837/90 on the statistical information to be supplied by the Member States on cereals production;
Regulation 959/93 on statistical information on crop products other than cereals;
Regulation 543/2009 concerning crop statistics.

Milk statistics are governed by:

Directive 96/16/EC of 19 March 1996 on statistical surveys of milk and milk products;
Directive 2003/107/EC of 5 December 2003 amending Council Directive 96/16/EC.

For porcine, bovine, ovine and caprine species, the rules for producing statistics are stipulated in:

Directive 93/23/EC of 1 June 1993 on the statistical surveys to be carried out on pig production;
Directive 93/24/EC of 1 June 1993 on the statistical surveys to be carried out on bovine animal production;
Directive 93/25/EC of 1 June 1993 on the statistical surveys to be carried out on sheep and goat stocks;
Decision 2004/760/EC of 26 October 2004 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/23/EEC (pig population and production);
Decision 2004/761/EC of 26 October 2004 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/24/EEC (cattle population and production);
Decision 2004/747/EC of 26 October 2004 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/25/EEC (sheep and goat stocks).

Source data for tables and figures (MS Excel)

Agricultural products: tables and figures