How important is agriculture in Germany?
Food, jobs, electricity: German agriculture is about far more than arable farming and livestock breeding. Discover the key questions and answers here.
Is agriculture an important sector of the Germany economy?
Yes, agriculture, forestry and fishing achieve annual gross value creation of 35.6 billion euros. Germany ranks fourth in terms of global agricultural exports, with around a third of its total agricultural production being exported.
How many farms are there in Germany?
There are around 255,000 farms in Germany. That said, the number of farms has fallen by half in the past 25 years. The smaller a farm is, the more difficult it is to make it profitable. The number of large farms with between 200 and 500 hectares of land is growing, however.
How many people work in Germany’s agricultural sector?
The farms employ around 877,000 people.
How many organic farms are there?
There are roughly 36,000 organic farms in Germany. They farm 11.5 percent of the agricultural land.
Which agricultural products are produced in Germany?
First and foremost, Germany produces grain (such as wheat, barley, corn and rye), oilseeds (such as rapeseed), potatoes, sugar beet and fruit and vegetables, as well as animal products such as cow milk, meat (pork, beef, poultry) and eggs. In 2024, 39 million tons of grain, 32 million tons of cow milk, 12.7 million tons of potatoes, 6.9 million tons of meat and 15.2 billion eggs were produced.
How large are farms in Germany?
On average, a farm has around 63 hectares of land. The largest farms, with an average of 283 hectares, are to be found in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
Where is most of Germany’s agricultural land to be found?
Bavaria is the country’s number one with around 32,500 square kilometres, followed by Lower Saxony with 27,500 square kilometres. With just 35 square kilometres, Berlin is the state with the least agricultural land.
Who does the agricultural land belong to?
Around 80 percent of the agricultural land is in private ownership. Eleven percent of the agricultural land is owned by the public sector or churches, while eight percent is in the hands of agricultural companies.
How many animals live on farms?
In Germany, around 21.5 million pigs and 10.5 million cows, including 3.6 million dairy cows, are kept. 156 million hens, 9 million turkeys and 1.6 million ducks are also reared on farms.
How much electricity is generated by farms in Germany?
Farmers operate roughly a quarter of the five million photovoltaic installations in Germany. Germany’s largest agricultural PV farm is to be found in Tützpatz in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: 76 megawatts of electricity are generated there on an area of 93 hectares. In addition, around 9,600 biogas systems produce more than 5,600 megawatts of electricity, covering 5.4 percent of German electricity consumption.
