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.

According to provisional data from the latest Census of Agricultural Holdings, in 2020 there were 67,927 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 9.2 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 2000–2016 it decreased by 17%. The presentation of the number of large livestock

According to the provisional data from the latest Census of Agricultural Holdings, in 2020 there were 67,927 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 stocking density at the municipal level in 2010 shows a relatively atypical and dispersed spatial distribution.

Despite a very rapid decline in dairy-oriented holdings and a slightly less pronounced decline in the number of dairy cows, total production volume continues to grow with regular annual fluctuations. The reason is a marked increase in the concentration of milk production - the average number of dairy cows per agricultural holding in the period 2000–2016 increased by 114%, while the intensity of production also increased.

The average milk production per dairy cow (milk yield) in the period 2000–2019 in Slovenia increased by 1,553 kg or by 34%. Over the same period, average milk yield increased by 39% in Austria, by 49% in Belgium and by as much as 75% in Greece.

With almost 6,200 kg of milk per cow in 2019, Slovenia lags far behind some other Member States of the European Union, where the processes of concentration and intensification of production are much faster.

Wheat and maize for grain are the most important crops in Slovenia, and in 2020 11,589 (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 intensity of wheat production, measured by the amount of yield per hectare, in Slovenia is at the level of the long-term average and is 0,51 tonne lower than in Austria and as much as 3,8 tonne per hectare lower than in Belgium. The yield per hectare in Slovenia has not changed significantly for several years. It is similar with maize, except that the annual fluctuation is slightly bigger due to climatic factors.

Slovenian agriculture is facing an unfavourable ownership and size structure, 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.