KAZALCI OKOLJA

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Changes in the size structure show that concentration processes are continuing regarding the extent of the agricultural land, while in the area of the livestock production these processes have slowed down. Nevertheless, due to its small size on average, the competitiveness of Slovenian farms is low compared to the EU–28 countries. Despite the structural changes, Slovenia lags behind the EU–28 average by about twice in terms of the size of agricultural holdings and in terms of the productivity (0.17 PDM/ha) and thus is ranked in the group of EU member states with the most unfavourable agricultural structure. The gap with countries with more developed agriculture is not narrowing. As many as 60% of agricultural holdings still manage less than 5 hectares of agricultural land, and more than a fifth of all agricultural land is in use in this size class. However, it should be pointed out, that fostering competitiveness and increasing the concentration of agricultural production may result in a reduction in biodiversity and an increase pressure on the environment.


The indicator shows changes in the size structure of agricultural holdings according to their physical or economic size. The concentration of agricultural production is mainly affected by changes in the number of agricultural holdings, land use changes, changes in the number of livestock on livestock holdings, the volume of labour input and changes in the economic size of agricultural holdings. The average size of agricultural holdings in Slovenia and the EU–28 countries that cultivate Utilised Agricultural Area and the average number of livestock units (LU) on agricultural holdings with livestock are shown. Changes in labour and economic size on agricultural holdings are also shown.


Charts

Figure KM34-1: Number of agricultural holdings by UAA size clasess
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2000 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Average size UAA/agricultural holding

5.62

6.36

6.86

Up to 5 ha UAA

53428

45728

41919

5-50 ha UAA

32864

28466

27391

more than 50 ha UAA

175

452

593

Total

86467

74646

69903

Figure KM34-2: Utilized agricultural area by UAA size classes
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2000 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Up to 5 ha UAA

127511

105162

98318

5-50 ha UAA

320073

312522

316202

more than 50 ha UAA

38294

56750

65069

Total

485878

474434

479589

Figure KM34-3: Agricultural holdings with livestock by LU size classes
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2000 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Average size LSU/agricultural holding

6.07

7.19

7.51

Up to 5 LSU

51268

37459

35932

5-50 LSU

25733

20336

18789

more than 50 LSU

451

853

1061

Total

77452

58648

55782

Figure KM34-4: Number of livestock units by LU size classes
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2000 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Up to 5 LSU

95286

63680

55717

5-50 LSU

305847

273645

260896

more than 50 LSU

69365

84227

102072

Total

470498

421553

418684

Figure KM34-5: Number of agricultural holdings by economic farm size classes
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2007 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Average size SO/holding

11746.99

12233.66

16576.87

Up to 8.000 EUR

52267

51461

41107

8.000-25.000 EUR

16417

15644

19175

more than 25.000 EUR

6654

7541

9621

Total

75338

74646

69903

Figure KM34-6: Economic size of agriculltural holdings by economic farm size clasess
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2007 [number]

2010 [number]

2016 [number]

Up to 8.000 EUR

174903

173782

154750

5-50 ha UAA

222471

210709

257778

more than 25.000 EUR

487621

528703

746245

Total

884995

913194

1158773

Figure KM34-7: Annual Work Units by UAA size classes
Sources: 

SORS,AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 10. 10. 2020

Show data

2000 [%]

2010 [%]

2016 [%]

Up to 5 ha UAA

51049

33398

35231

5-30 ha UAA

52812

38291

38649

more than 30 ha UAA

3949

5324

6087

Total

107809

77012

79967

Table KM34-8: Size structure of agricultural holdings in the EU-28 member states in 2016
Sources: 

EUROSTAT, AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 11. 10. 2020

Show data

Number of agricultural holdings [Number]

Utilised agricultural area [Number]

Number of holdings with livestock [Number]

Number of livestock [Number]

Economic size of farms [1000 EUR]

Annual work units [Number]

Austria

132500

2669750

93920

2432030

6141561460

101740

Belgium

36890

1354250

25440

3772750

8037986420

55350

Bulgaria

202720

4468500

134970

1094240

3842891030

255520

Cyprus

34940

111930

9980

172080

616692170

18740

Czechia

26530

3455410

18680

1756520

5081940920

103270

Denmark

35050

2614600

20670

4128470

10062442040

49480

Estonia

16700

995100

6960

279330

801547060

19880

Finland

49710

2233080

16610

1102310

3514583720

81630

France

456520

27814160

247570

22081990

61343138670

708170

Greece

684950

4553830

238520

2102870

7574803910

457150

Croatia

134460

1562980

91470

754710

2034939130

160460

Ireland

137560

4883650

126590

6199890

6324900700

160740

Italy

1145710

12598160

154680

9467720

51689024310

897090

Latvia

69930

1930880

44970

498640

1221341010

76860

Lithuania

150320

2924600

95300

849990

2226207560

148350

Luxembourg

1970

130650

1540

173600

365008400

3500

Hungary

430000

4670560

261540

2444890

6532474660

394410

Malta

9210

11120

2740

32470

98016860

5340

Germany

276120

16715320

184690

18182310

49249020560

502610

Netherlands

55680

1796260

36960

6819960

23087034100

147200

Poland

1410700

14405650

718240

9443240

25005635420

1649400

Portugal

258980

3641690

172350

2223720

5144206850

313830

Romania

3422030

12502540

2567430

4828780

12105491800

1640120

Slovakia

25660

1889820

16120

621590

1931433530

47190

Slovenia

69900

488400

56580

512120

1158773470

82390

Spain

945020

23229750

216700

14442530

38365605150

822370

Sweden

62940

3012640

34290

1699990

5158678850

55940

United Kingdom

185060

16673270

138050

13340200

25403447340

284940

Table KM34-9: Concentration of agricultural production on agricultural holdings in the EU-28 Member States in 2016
Concentration of agricultural production on agricultural holdings in the EU-28 Member States in 2016
Sources: 

EUROSTAT, AIS calculations

Chart note: 

Data: 11. 10. 2020

Show data

Average size of agricultural holdings [ha]

Average number LSU/holding [Number]

AWU/ha UAA [Number]

Average size of economic size [EUR]

Austria

20.15

25.89

0

46351.41

Belgium

36.71

148.30

0.04

217890.66

Bulgaria

22.04

8.11

0.06

18956.64

Cyprus

3.20

17.24

0.17

17650.03

Czechia

130.25

94.03

0.03

191554.50

Denmark

74.60

199.73

0.02

287088.22

Estonia

59.59

40.13

0.02

47996.83

Finland

44.92

66.36

0.04

70701.74

France

60.93

89.19

0.03

134371.20

Greece

6.65

8.82

0.10

11058.92

Croatia

11.62

8.25

0.10

15134.16

Ireland

35.50

48.98

0.03

45979.21

Italy

11.00

61.21

0.07

45115.28

Latvia

27.61

11.09

0.04

17465.19

Lithuania

19.46

8.92

0.05

14809.79

Luxembourg

66.32

112.73

0.03

185283.45

Hungary

10.86

9.35

0.08

15191.80

Malta

1.21

11.85

0.48

10642.44

Germany

60.54

98.45

0.03

178360.93

Netherlands

32.26

184.52

0.08

414637.83

Poland

10.21

13.15

0.11

17725.69

Portugal

14.06

12.90

0.09

19863.34

Romania

3.65

1.88

0.13

3537.52

Slovakia

73.65

38.56

0.02

75270.21

Slovenia

6.99

9.05

0.17

16577.59

Spain

24.58

66.65

0.04

40597.66

Sweden

47.87

49.58

0.02

81961.85

United Kingdom

90.10

96.63

0.02

137271.41


Goals

Slovenia needs a structure of agricultural holdings that will be economically efficient, environmentally sustainable and which will preserve natural resources and vital countryside. The main objectives of agricultural policy are to improve the size structure of agricultural holdings, to ensure food security and to improve labour productivity on agricultural holdings.


According to the data from the latest sample survey of the structure of agricultural holdings, in 2016 slightly less than 70,000 agricultural holdings were engaged in agricultural activity in Slovenia. Compared to the year 2000, their number decreased by about a fifth or for almost 17 thousand agricultural holdings. In 2016, agricultural holdings used slightly less than 480 thousand hectares of Utilized Agricultural Area (UAA), which is around one percent less than in the year 2000. The average size of agricultural holdings in Slovenia in 2016 was 6.9 hectares of UAA per holding, which is almost a quarter (22%) more than in the year 2000, when it was 5.6 hectares of UAA / holding.

The process of concentration of agricultural land is also indicated by the changes in the size structure of agricultural holdings. The share of holdings with up to 5 hectares of UAA is decreasing. In this size class there are 41,919 agricultural holdings or. 60.0% of all agricultural holdings in Slovenia. These holdings cultivate 98,318 hectares of UAA, which represents 20.5% of all UAA. Compared to the year 2000, the share of holdings in this size class decreased by 1.8 percentage points, while the share of UAA cultivated by these holdings decreased by 5.7 percentage points. In contrast, in the period 2000–2016, the number of holdings in the size class above 50 ha of UAA and the agricultural land cultivated by these holdings increased significantly. In 2016, there were 593 agricultural holdings (3.4 times more than in 2000), which cultivated more than 65 thousand hectares of UAA (69% more than in the year 2000).

In 2016, slightly less than 56,000 agricultural holdings in Slovenia were engaged in livestock production, which is 21,670 holdings or a good quarter (28%) less than in the year 2000. These holdings together reared slightly less than 420,000 head of livestock units (LU), which is 11% less than in the year 2000. Livestock holdings reared on average 7.5 LU, which is almost a quarter more (23.6%) than in the year 2000, when they reared 6.1 LU per holding. The number of LU decreased in all size classes. In the year 2016, almost two thirds of all livestock holdings were in the size class up to 5 LU, and their share decreased by 2.2 percentage points compared to the year 2000. In 2016, these holdings reared slightly less than 56 thousand LU, which is 41.5% less than in the year 2000. In the period 2000–2016, the number of holdings in the size class over 50 LU more than doubled. In the year 2016 these holdings reared 102 thousand LU, which is almost a quarter of all LU. In comparison with the year 2000 the share of LU in this size class increased by almost 10 percentage points.

In the year 2016, the input of work in the Slovenian agriculture, including seasonal and occasional employment and machine services, expressed in Annual Work Units (AWU), amounted to 79,967 AWU. This is a more than a quarter less (–26%) than according to the 2000 Farm Structure Survey. The average number of AWUs per agricultural holding in 2016 was 1.14 AWU/holding, while in the year 2000 it was 1.24 PDM/holding. In the year 2016, the input of labour per unit of utilized agricultural area was 17 AWU/100 hectares of UAA. Compared to the year 2000, when the labour input per unit of utilized agricultural area was 22 AWU/100 hectares of UAA, the labour intensity improved significantly.

In the year 2016, Slovenian agricultural holdings achieved a total standard income of EUR 1.15 billion. Almost 60% of agricultural holdings was in the size classes up to EUR 8,000, which is 10 percentage points more than in the year 2000. These agricultural holdings together generated 13% of standard income. In 2007, agricultural holdings in this size classes generated almost 20% of standard income. An around quarter of holdings and 22% of standard income were in classes of economic size between EUR 8,000 and 25,000. In 2007, agricultural holdings in this size classes generated almost 25% of standard income. In the year 2016, only around tenth of agricultural holdings (14%) reached an economic size of over EUR 25,000, and almost two thirds of standard income were generated in this size class. In 2007, more than half (55.0% of standard income) was generated in this size class.

In the year 2016, the average agricultural holding in the EU–28 cultivated 16.6 hectares of UAA. The largest agricultural holdings are in the Czech Republic, where they cultivate an average of 132 hectares per agricultural holding, followed by the United Kingdom (with 91 ha) and Slovakia (with 79 ha). The smallest agricultural holdings are in Malta, where they cultivate on average only slightly more than a hectare of UAA per holding, and in Cyprus and Romania, where they cultivate just over 3 hectares of UAA. With 6.9 ha of UAA per agricultural holding, Slovenia belongs to the group of countries with the lowest average size of agricultural holdings.

In the year 2016, 5.7 million agricultural holdings were engaged in livestock farming in the European Union, which is 55% of all those engaged in agricultural production. Together, they reared just over 131 million head of livestock. In 2016, livestock farms in the EU–28 reared an average of 22.9 LU, which is more than twice as much as in Slovenia, where they reared 9.1 LU per holding. In terms of concentration, traditional livestock countries, such as Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, are in the forefront, with an average of more than 100 LU per agricultural holding.

In the EU–28, just over 9 million AWU worked on agricultural holdings in 2016. The average agricultural holding in the EU–28 employs 0.9 AWU. The Czech Republic has the highest number of AWUs per agricultural holding (3.9 AWUs), followed by the Netherlands (2.6 AWUs) and Slovakia (1.8 AWUs). Compared to the EU–28, Slovenia also has above-average employment on agricultural holdings (1.1 AWUs). The lowest employment is in Cyprus and Romania, where on average less than 0.5 AWUs are employed per agricultural holding.

In 2016, the average economic size, measured by standard income per agricultural holding, in the EU–28 was EUR 35,000. Among EU–28 countries, the Netherlands leads with more than EUR 400,000 of standard output per agricultural holding, while in Romania the average economic size is just over € EUR 3,500 per holding. With around EUR 16,500 per agricultural holding, Slovenia is one of the EU member states that lag far behind the EU–28 average.

A comparison of the data from the 2000 Census of agricultural holdings and a sample survey of the structure of agricultural holdings from 2016 shows that the processes of concentration of agricultural production in Slovenia are ongoing mainly because of reduced number of agricultural holdings and improving of labour productivity. Despite the fact that the average size, labour productivity and economic size of agricultural holdings improved significantly, we still lag far behind the EU-28 average. Given that structural changes are taking place slowly, the continuation of these trends will not significantly increase the burden on the environment.