News Agribusiness
French farms see income fall
Income on a French farm has fallen in 2019 compared to 2018, according to new figures from the French Court of Auditors. This decline is expected to continue in 2020.
The average current income (after all repayments and depreciation, but before deducting taxes) of medium and large agricultural holdings in France averages out at €54.720. That is a decrease of 1,4% compared to 2018. Per unpaid labor force, this value comes to €29.760, which is 2,4% lower than in 2018.
Big differences
On farms where grain and rapeseed are the main crops, the value fell by no less than 6% compared to 2018. The increased yield per hectare could not compensate for the combination of lower prices and higher costs. Dairy farmers have benefited from the good prices. They saw their result increase by 9%. The biggest plus, however, was visible in pig farming. The value per unpaid employee more than doubled to €132.230.
The results between farms show great differences. About 25% of the companies had an income below €23.320 and at 4,5% the result was even negative. The 25% best performing companies resulted in €70.580 or more. The gap between the fewest and the best companies was the largest in 2019 with €177.300 in pig farming.
Further decline expected
The provisional figures for 2020 show that a further decline is in the offing. In the preliminary figures, the French statistical office assumes a contraction of 2,1% in agricultural production. All developments related to the corona crisis may further exacerbate this decline. After deduction of rental charges, remuneration and interest payments, the gross result per unpaid person would decrease in real terms in 2020 by 8,5%. The fruit and vegetable sector in particular was hit hard by the lockdown in the spring.
Earlier on told Cor Pierik, head of agriculture at the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), believes that agricultural income in the Netherlands has also taken a downward path in 2020. Here too, this is mainly the result of the corona crisis, as a result of which various sales markets have disappeared.
Jurphaas Lugtenburg
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