A recent Eurostat report shows that Organic farming in the EU27 covered 7.8 million hectares in 2008, up by 7% compared with 2007. Over a longer time period, the data available for the EU25 show an increase of 21% in the total organic area between 2005 and 2008.
Between 2007 and 2008, the total organic area increased in all Member States, for which data are available, except Italy (-13%). The highest increases were recorded in Spain (+33%), Bulgaria (+22%), Slovakia (+19%), Hungary (+15%) and Greece (+14%). For the longer time period between 2005 and 2008, the highest increases were found in Poland (+94%), Lithuania (+89%), Spain (+63%) andBelgium (+57%). Decreases were registered only in Italy (-6%) and Hungary (-5%).
In 2008, the three main uses for organic land in the EU27 were pastures & meadows (44% of the fully converted organic area in the EU27 excluding Germany), arable crops (37%) and permanent crops (10%). The remaining 9% are fallow and unutilised land.
The most important arable crop in the EU27 was cereals (44% of the fully converted organic area under arable crops), followed by green fodder (42%), other arable crops such as dried pulses, potatoes, sugar beet, arable seeds & seedlings (7%), fresh vegetables and industrial crops (both 4%). Cereals were particularly important in Lithuania (79% of the area under arable crops), Portugal (75%) and Ireland (73%), while the highest proportions of green fodder were found in Latvia (67%), Estonia (66%) and Sweden (58%).
|
Organic area |
Growth in organic area, % |
||||
|
1 000 ha, 2008 |
% of total EU27 organic area, 2008 |
% of total utilised agricultural area, 2007 |
2008/2007 |
2008/2005 |
|
| EU27 |
7 765 |
100.0 |
4.1 |
7.4 |
- |
| Ireland |
43 |
0.6 |
1.0 |
4.1 |
22.6 |
|
|
Fully converted area under arable crops (1 000 ha) |
Of which (%): |
||||
|
Cereals |
Green fodder
|
Fresh vegetables
|
Industrial crops
|
Other arable crops
|
||
|
EU27 |
2 195.4 |
44.1 |
42.1 |
3.7 |
3.5 |
6.6 |
|
Ireland |
1.5 |
72.7 |
0.0 |
0.7 |
26.7 |
0.0 |
The full report can be downloaded here - Organic area up by 21% in the EU between 2005 and 2008
Comments are open at the bottom for you to add your thoughts. Any and all input welcomed.
