KAZALCI OKOLJA

Key message
Neutral

In Slovenia, the intensity of agricultural production increased moderately in the period 2000–2023. The main reasons for this are the continuous decrease of the number of agricultural holdings and the relatively stable volume of agricultural production. The concentration took place primarily in the direction of improving the labour intensity of agricultural production or reducing the labour input per unit of area or product. In the period 2000-2020 the stocking density per hectare of utilized agricultural area is slightly decreased. Similar to that in selected EU member states (Belgium, Austria and Greece). Slovenia lags behind selected European Union member states in terms of average milk production, average yield of wheat and spelt and maize. The processes of concentration and intensification of production take place significantly faster in these European countries, due to a more favourable land and size structure.


The intensity of agriculture is an indicator that reflects the level of increase in productivity of agricultural production, which is expressed per unit of agricultural area or per head of animal. It consists of four indicators for the selected key production orientations in Slovenia. For livestock production, it is calculated as the number of head of livestock units (LU) per hectare of utilized agricultural area (UAA) and the average milk production per dairy cow. For crop production, it is calculated as the average yield of wheat and spelt per hectare of UAA and the average yield of maize per hectare of UAA.


Charts

Figure KM04-1: Intensity of stocking and production: the average yield of wheat and maize per hectare, milk yield and number of livestock units per hectare of utilised agricultural area in the period 2000–2023
Sources:

SORS, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
Wheat and spelt[t/ha] Maize[t/ha] Stocking rate[LU/ha UAA] Milk yield[t/cow]
2000 4.30 5.90 0.97 4.63
2001 4.60 5.40 0 4.81
2002 4.90 8.20 0 5.20
2003 3.50 5.10 0.94 5.06
2004 4.50 7.80 0 4.85
2005 4.70 8.30 0.87 5.48
2006 4.20 6.90 0 5.71
2007 4.20 7.50 0.89 5.73
2008 4.50 7.30 0 5.76
2009 4 7.80 0 5.53
2010 4.80 8.50 0.89 5.52
2011 5.20 8.70 0 5.52
2012 5.40 7.10 0 5.59
2013 4.40 5.40 0.84 5.43
2014 5.20 9.10 0 5.72
2015 5.10 9 0 5.60
2016 5.20 9.50 0.87 6.02
2017 5 7.10 0 5.95
2018 4.40 9.50 0 6.12
2019 5.20 9.30 0 6.18
2020 5.80 10.80 0.86 6.36
2021 5.80 9.40 0 6.34
2022 5.50 6.70 0.86 6.71
2023 5.10 8.80 0 6.39
Figure KM04-2: Agricultural holdings in Slovenia by number of livestock in 2000, 2010, 2016 and 2020
Sources:

SORS, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
2000[number] 2010[number] 2016[number] 2020[number] Number of holdings - 2000[number] Number of holdings - 2010[number] Number of holdings - 2016[number] Number of holdings - 2020[number] Livestock breeding - 2000[number] Livestock breeding - 2010[number] Livestock breeding - 2016[number] Livestock breeding - 2020[number]
Cattle 8.91 13.08 14.82 16.72 56097 36119 32805 28492 499546 472333 486014 476383
Pigs 13.49 14.45 12.07 19.30 44623 26441 22649 12200 601953 382031 273359 235475
Sheep 22.18 22.28 21.94 22.80 4330 6181 6150 5017 96027 137737 134929 114382
Goats 6.15 8.27 8.39 8.11 4775 4214 4598 3379 29385 34864 38564 27411
LU 6.07 7.19 7.51 9.09 77452 58648 55782 44976 470498 421553 418684 408683
Figure KM04-3: Agricultural holdings in Slovenia by average production area of wheat and maize in the period 2000–2020
Sources:

SORS, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
Wheat and spelt[ha per holding] Maize[ha per holding] Wheat and spelt[number of holdings] Wheat and spelt[ha] Maize[number of holdings] Maize[ha]
2000 1.20 1.10 30905 38257 44826 48009
2003 1.40 1.20 25457 35585 36141 44137
2005 1.40 1.20 22100 30059 34212 42369
2007 1.50 1.40 21014 32040 28844 40905
2010 1.70 1.50 18690 31946 24795 36433
2013 1.80 1.70 18635 32959 24670 42375
2016 2.10 1.70 16086 33016 21242 36985
2020 2.40 2.10 11338 27286 18818 39829
Figure KM04-4: Number of livestock units (LU) per hectare of utilised agricultural area (UAA) in Slovenia and selected EU countries in 2000, 2010, 2016 and 2020
Sources:

Eurostat, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
2000[LU/ha UAA] 2010[LU/ha UAA] 2016[LU/ha UAA] 2020[LU/ha UAA]
Belgium 3.10 2.80 2.80 2.70
Slovenia 1.30 1 1 1
Austria 0.80 0.90 1 0.90
Greece 0.70 0.50 0.70 0.70
Figure KM04-5: Average milk yield of cows in Slovenia and selected EU countries in the period 2000–2023
Sources:

Eurostat, 2024

Show data
Dairy cows - Slovenia[number] Milk production - Slovenia[t] Slovenia[kg/cow] Dairy cows - Austria[number] Milk production - Austria[t] Austria[kg/cow] Dairy cows - Belgium[number] Milk production - Belgium[t] Belgium[kg/cow] Dairy cows - Greece[number] Milk production - Greece[t] Greece[kg/cow]
2000 140240 649000 4627.78 621000 3233100 5206.28 629400 3425000 5441.69 180000 789300 4385
2001 135810 653000 4808.19 597980 3299600 5517.91 611320 3357000 5491.40 172000 778100 4523.84
2002 139980 686000 4900.70 588970 3292200 5589.76 591010 3160000 5346.78 152000 758200 4988.16
2003 130710 664400 5083.01 557880 3229900 5789.60 572140 3127000 5465.45 149000 767800 5153.02
2004 134010 650400 4853.37 537950 3137300 5831.95 570610 3120000 5467.83 150000 762200 5081.33
2005 120270 659030 5479.59 534420 3113700 5826.32 548150 3082000 5622.55 152260 761300 5000
2006 112510 642260 5708.47 527420 3146700 5966.21 531910 2917000 5484.01 167750 763800 4553.20
2007 117170 666470 5688.06 524500 3155100 6015.44 524290 2943000 5613.31 150000 774000 5160
2008 113450 653680 5761.83 530230 3195900 6027.38 517770 2892000 5585.49 154000 787200 5111.69
2009 113100 625520 5530.68 532980 3229800 6059.89 517680 2996000 5787.36 145000 752800 5191.72
2010 109470 603930 5516.85 532740 3257700 6114.99 517740 3111000 6008.81 144000 743660 5164.31
2011 109070 601590 5515.63 527390 3307130 6270.75 510650 3151000 6170.57 130000 757000 5823.08
2012 111020 620940 5593.05 523370 3382100 6462.16 503540 3116000 6188.19 132000 765500 5799.24
2013 109570 595500 5434.88 529560 3393060 6407.32 515990 3529000 6839.28 130000 730600 5620
2014 107840 616580 5717.54 537740 3493860 6497.30 519090 3710000 7147.12 135000 769000 5696.30
2015 112840 631670 5597.93 534100 3537760 6623.78 528780 3826000 7235.52 111000 770000 6936.94
2016 107840 649680 6024.48 539870 3627610 6719.41 530590 3933000 7412.50 106000 706000 6660.38
2017 108830 647990 5954.15 543420 3712730 6832.16 519160 4060000 7820.33 97000 670000 6907.22
2018 102710 628930 6123.36 532870 3821190 7170.96 529250 4195000 7926.31 95000 654800 6892.63
2019 100840 623020 6178.30 524070 3781340 7215.33 537960 4293000 7980.15 86000 659380 7667.21
2020 99210 630650 6356.72 524780 3815470 7270.61 537940 4457000 8285.31 90000 683460 7594
2021 100920 639930 6340.96 526460 3830140 7275.27 537250 4438000 8260.59 91300 710930 7786.75
2022 93250 625350 6706.17 550550 3942500 7161.02 543680 4572000 8409.36 80500 691250 8586.96
2023 94690 605290 6392.33 543030 3678790 6774.56 535550 4695000 8766.69 89400 669620 7490.16
Figure KM04-6: Average production of wheat in Slovenia, and selected EU countries in the period 2000–2023
Sources:

Eurostat, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
Slovenia[t/ha] Austria[t/ha] Belgium[t/ha] Greece[t/ha]
2000 4.25 4.44 7.87 2.34
2001 4.60 5.21 8.00 2.05
2002 4.89 4.94 8.22 2.09
2003 3.45 4.35 8.63 2.00
2004 4.53 5.89 8.90 2.21
2005 4.70 5.00 8.33 2.12
2006 4.19 4.88 8.22 2.40
2007 4.16 4.75 7.75 2.14
2008 4.53 5.66 8.56 3.08
2009 3.96 4.93 9.34 2.86
2010 4.80 5.01 8.85 3.20
2011 5.18 5.85 8.36 3.55
2012 5.44 4.14 8.39 2.91
2013 4.35 5.37 9.15 2.96
2014 5.23 5.92 8.98 3.19
2015 5.11 5.66 9.33 2.44
2016 5.19 6.19 6.64 3.10
2017 5.03 4.83 8.56 2.46
2018 4.38 4.65 8.49 2.65
2019 5.23 5.74 9.34 2.79
2020 5.80 5.92 8.95 3.08
2021 5.77 5.53 7.79 2.82
2022 5.47 5.80 9.06 2.92
2023 5.07 6.19 8.61 3.15
Figure KM04-7: Average production of grain maize in Slovenia, and selected EU countries in the period 2000–2023
Sources:

Eurostat, 2024; calculations by AIS

Show data
Maize area - Slovenia[ha] Maize harvest - Slovenia[t] Slovenia[t/ha] Maize area - Austria[ha] Maize harvest - Austria[t] Austria[t/ha] Maize area - Belgium[ha] Maize harvest - Belgium[t] Belgium[t/ha] Maize area - Greece[ha] Maize harvest - Greece[t] Greece[t/ha]
2000 48010 282390 5.88 164100 1617500 9.86 35783 394630 11.03 208250 1932130 9.28
2001 47570 257550 5.41 171400 1493000 8.71 40555 457680 11.29 210390 1984220 9.43
2002 45530 371370 8.16 172200 1666600 9.68 47392 421470 8.89 225470 2093080 9.28
2003 44140 224220 5.08 173300 1452100 8.38 52723 457950 8.69 249020 2302970 9.25
2004 46000 357620 7.77 178700 1653700 9.25 52200 507270 9.72 251410 2308070 9.18
2005 42370 351170 8.29 167200 1724800 10.32 54300 510970 9.41 241420 2264770 9.38
2006 39840 276110 6.93 159300 1471700 9.24 56500 468760 8.30 179130 1719390 9.60
2007 40910 308260 7.54 170900 1696500 9.93 58200 544490 9.36 190340 2012710 10.57
2008 43700 319900 7.32 194100 2147200 11.06 72015 682050 9.47 240100 2581370 10.75
2009 38610 302600 7.84 178500 1890500 10.59 66700 652120 9.78 235260 2540370 10.80
2010 36430 311120 8.54 201140 1955990 9.72 69800 589780 8.45 181050 1996640 11.03
2011 40190 349030 8.68 217100 2453130 11.30 72030 688750 9.56 181880 2292810 12.61
2012 39170 277360 7.08 219700 2351370 10.70 67200 569820 8.48 183950 2098590 11.41
2013 41860 226630 5.41 201920 1639020 8.12 74170 663260 8.94 183010 2240040 12.24
2014 38330 350730 9.15 216320 2334390 10.79 62830 640960 10.20 159780 1904740 11.92
2015 37740 338710 8.97 188730 1637910 8.68 58400 548720 9.40 152050 1610450 10.59
2016 36390 346210 9.51 195250 2179590 11.16 52100 389050 7.47 139480 1512660 10.84
2017 38290 272180 7.11 209480 2075980 9.91 49000 503920 10.28 132490 1306510 9.86
2018 37080 350490 9.45 209900 2130340 10.15 53990 376550 6.97 113450 1205980 10.63
2019 38880 360360 9.27 220690 2298880 10.42 48640 429220 8.82 115500 1233620 10.68
2020 39830 429850 10.79 212600 2411930 11.34 51880 421010 8.12 116780 1178050 10.09
2021 41400 388830 9.39 218200 2434900 11.16 48220 449890 9.33 120090 1350250 11.24
2022 41560 277820 6.68 215330 2113960 9.82 62870 500390 7.96 126750 1340950 10.58
2023 44250 389030 8.79 212000 2105060 9.93 52470 514670 9.81 106370 1010750 9.50
Figure KM04-8: Number of LU per hectare of UAA by municipalities
Sources:

SORS, 2024; calculations by AIS


Goals

World agriculture, and also European and Slovenian agriculture, is once again facing the challenge of ensuring global food security. According to United Nations forecasts, the population will increase to 9 billion by 2050. In order to feed such a large number of people, it would be necessary to double the current volume of agricultural production. Due to limited natural resources, such an increase in production will increase the pressure on agricultural land and the availability of water, but we can also expect greater negative effects on the environment due to the higher intensity of production. Agricultural intensity is a process that can be one of the biggest pressures in uncontrolled conditions on nature and the environment, so there are several conflicting objectives in this regard:

  • We need technologically advanced and competitive agriculture and agri-food industry that ensures safe and high-quality food, in accordance with the diverse agrarian structure, natural resources, food policy guidelines, nutritional guidelines, local development and creative new solutions. (Resolution on the national program on strategic directions for the development of Slovenian agriculture and food industry "Our food, countryside and natural resources from 2021").
  • Eradicating hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture (Agenda 2030).
  • Promoting environmental sustainability and reducing key pressures on the environment and climate related to production and consumption, especially in the fields of energy, industrial development, infrastructure and mobility, and the food system (EU environment action programme to 2030).

According to provisional data from the latest Census of Agricultural Holdings, in 2020 there were 68,331 agricultural holdings in Slovenia. As many as two thirds of them were engaged in animal husbandry, with more than half (63%) of them engaged in cattle breeding. The number of livestock farms decreased by almost half (-42%) in the period 2000–2020.

The average Slovenian livestock farm breed 9.1 LU in 2020, which is 50% more than in 2000. As in other EU countries, the livestock density is decreasing in Slovenia as well, only in the period 2000–2020 it decreased by 20%. The presentation of the number of large livestock unit per hectare of utilised agricultural area (LSU/UAA) at the municipal level in 2020 shows a relatively atypical and scattered spatial distribution of areas with different weights which is the result of a large share of grassland in the structure of agricultural land use.

Despite the rapid decline in the number of dairy oriented holdings and the decline in the number of dairy cows on these holdings, the average number of cows per holding is increasing. The reason for this is the abandonment of milk processing on small/self-sufficient holdings. The average number of dairy cows per holding increased significantly in the period 2000-2020, due to the increase in the number of cows on specialized dairy holdings. If in 2000 those holdings raised an average of 5 dairy cows, in 2020 holdings with dairy cows raised an average of 18 dairy cows.

Average milk production per dairy cow (milk yield) in the period 2000-2023 in Slovenia was 5,662 kg. In the same period, the average milk yield per dairy cow was 6.657 kg in Belgium, 6.359 kg in Austria and 5.991 kg in Greece. We can see that Slovenia still lags behind selected member states of the European Union, where the processes of concentration and intensification of production take place significantly faster.

Wheat and maize for grain are the most important crops in Slovenia. In 2020 11,338 (wheat and spelt) and 27,286 (maize) agricultural holdings were engaged in their production. Between 2000 and 2020, the number of agricultural holdings engaged in wheat and spelt production decreased by 63% and those engaged in maize production by 58%. In the observed period the total area under wheat and spelt decreased by 29% while in the case of maize, the areas decreased by 17%. The concentration of production per holding has greatly increased. The average production area of ​​wheat and spelt and the average production area of maize per agricultural holding practically doubled in the period 2000–2020.

The average yield of wheat and spelt in the period between 2000 and 2023 was 4.8 t/ha. The lowest was in 2003, when it was 3.5 t/ha, while the highest was in 2020, when it was 5.8 t/ha. Compared to selected European countries, Slovenia lags behind Belgium (8.5 t/ha) and Austria (5.3 t/ha), while Greece produces an average of 2.7 t/ha of wheat and spelt.

The average yield of grain corn in the considered period 2000-2023 was 7.9 t/ha. The worst year was 2003, when 5.1 t/ha were produced, while the highest hectare yield of corn was in 2020, when 10.8 t/ha were produced in Slovenia. Also in the production of corn, Slovenia lags behind selected EU countries. In the period 2000-2023, an average of 10.4 t/ha was produced in Greece, 10.0 t/ha in Austria and 9.2 tons of corn per hectare in Belgium.

Year-to-year fluctuations in hectare yields of wheat and spelt and grain maize are mainly the result of weather conditions.

Slovenian agriculture is facing an unfavourable ownership and size structure of agricultural holdings, which largely prevents an increase in the intensity and competitiveness of agricultural production. Some agricultural policy measures and the use of new technological solutions (land operations, optimization of feed rations, lower use of plant protection products, improvement of soil properties etc.) can contribute to increasing the intensity, while reducing negative pressures on the environment.


Methodology