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Agriculture in Lithuania dates to the Neolithic period, about 3,000 to 1,000 BC. It has been one of Lithuania's most important occupations for many centuries.
As elsewhere, the practice of agriculture in Lithuania during the Neolithic period showed limited scope and was constrained by the availability of tools. There is evidence that its early practitioners employed slash and burn techniques to clear their fields. The use of domestic animals, first seen during the Bronze Age, had become widespread during the Iron Age.
Wheat cultivation in the area has been dated to the 1st century BC; the first evidence of widespread cultivation of rye has been dated to the 1st century AD. Barley probably appeared in the 2nd century BC, while potatoes did not gain popularity until the late 18th century. These crops remain major contributors to the agricultural sector.
Although Lithuania experienced major famines in 1719-1724, 1850, and 1867–68, the country was usually able to sustain itself, and exported much of its output.
The role of the agriculture in independent Lithuania has remained relatively significant throughout the entire Interbellum. After the land reform launched in 1922, which provided 65,000 people with agricultural land, the number of landowners has risen significantly. The establishment of the Academy of Agriculture in Dotnuva in 1924 has contributed significantly to the quality of land exploitation and the high social status of agronomists. The agricultural products have taken a large share in the total export of Lithuania until the 1940s, which contributes to a naming of Interbellum Lithuania an agricultural state.
Lithuanian agriculture was collectivized during the early years of Soviet rule; although as a general rule, this system was unproductive, it became relatively efficient in the late 1950s when Moscow granted the communist leadership in Vilnius greater control of agricultural policy. Lithuanian farm workers were 50% more productive than the Soviet average but much less productive than their Western counterparts. As in other Soviet-dominated areas, about one-third of agricultural production came from private plots of land and not from collective or state farms. Nevertheless, Lithuanian agricultural production was high enough to allow the export of about 50% of total output.
The agricultural sector contributed 24% of GDP in 1992 and employed 19% of the labor force. Lithuania's agriculture, efficient by Soviet standards, was producing a huge surplus that could not be consumed domestically. In 1992, about 48% of the arable land was used for grain, 41% for forage crops, 5% for potatoes, and 3% for flax and sugar beets. Crops accounted for one-third and livestock for two-thirds of the total value of agricultural output.
Significant reforms were introduced in the early 1990s to reestablish private ownership and management in the agricultural sector. Although Lithuania succeeded in privatizing more agricultural land than Estonia or Latvia, agricultural production decreased by more than 50 percent from 1989 to 1994. One problem was that farms were broken up into smallholdings, averaging 8.8 hectares in size, often not large enough to be economically viable. A serious drought in 1994 further reduced agricultural output and cost farmers an estimated 790 million litas in production.
As of 2004, the agricultural sector in Lithuania employed about 227,000 persons; contributed about 6% of its GDP; and occupied about 35,000 km2, of which about 9,000 km2 were abandoned. [1] In 2001 the principal crops were potatoes, 1,054,000 tons; barley, 776,200 tons; wheat, 1,076,300 tons; rye, 231,100 tons; legumes, 52,200 tons, and rapeseed, 64,800 tons. [2] About 46% of its land area was devoted to crops and pastures.
Lithuania produced in 2018:
In addition to smaller productions of other agricultural products, like apple (92 thousand tons), maize (87 thousand tons)and rye (44 thousand tons). [3]
Lithuania's accession to the European Union in 2004 ushered in a new agricultural era. The EU pursues a very high standard of food safety and purity. In 1999, the Seimas (parliament) of Lithuania adopted a Law on Product Safety, and in 2000 it adopted a Law on Food. The reform of the agricultural market has been carried out on the basis of these two laws.
According to a 2006 USDA report, organic farming in Lithuania is expanding rapidly and could account for up to 15 percent of farm area by 2015. [4] In 2005 there were about 1,807 farms certified as organic in Lithuania, with an average size of 0.39 km2. In 2004 organic certified land area covered 430 km2 of farmed area and by 2005 organic farm area had increased to 703.89 km2, or about 1.5 percent of total farm area.
The average Lithuanian organic farm size, 0.39 km2, is about four times the size of the average conventional farm. The largest organic farm is 7 km2. Grass and leguminous crops accounted for 61% of total organic farming in 2005, followed by perennial grasses at 26%. The most significant increase in organic farming has been in berry production. Financial support for organic farming is offered by the EU.
Huge changes in agricultural practice were instituted under the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. 95% of all privately owned companies were nationalized, and 95% of farms were nationalized. No one could own more than 50 hectares of land. Collectivization worked for some but not others. Larger farms were organized on 3 levels of hierarchy which actually reduced worker participation in decision making. A massive trend during the early part of the collectivization period was that younger workers left for better jobs in the cities and productivity fell. Reforms in the 1970s saw more investment and improvements began to appear gradually. There were record harvests in the 1980s.
Agriculture in Russia is an important part of the economy of the Russian Federation. The agricultural sector survived a severe transition decline in the early 1990s as it struggled to transform from a command economy to a market-oriented system. Following the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, large collective and state farms – the backbone of Soviet agriculture – had to contend with the sudden loss of state-guaranteed marketing and supply channels and a changing legal environment that created pressure for reorganization and restructuring. In less than ten years, livestock inventories declined by half, pulling down demand for feed grains, and the area planted to grains dropped by 25%.
Agriculture in Belarus can be divided into two segments: livestock production and crop production. Crop production slightly outweighs livestock production in the country's product mix, accounting for around 55% of gross agricultural output since 1995. Agriculture accounted for 7.9% GDP in 2013, while over the same year that sector accounted for only 3% GDP in the EU.
Canada is one of the largest agricultural producers and exporters in the world. As with other developed nations, the proportion of the population agriculture employed and agricultural GDP as a percentage of the national GDP fell dramatically over the 20th century, but it remains an important element of the Canadian economy. A wide range of agriculture is practised in Canada, from sprawling wheat fields of the prairies to summer produce of the Okanagan valley. In the federal government, overview of Canadian agriculture is the responsibility of the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food.
Agriculture in Kyrgyzstan is a significant sector of the economy. According to the CIA World Factbook, it comprises 18% of the total GDP and occupies 48% of the total labor force. Only 6.8% of the total land area is used for crop cultivation, but 44% of the land is used as pastures for livestock. Because of the many mountains of Kyrgyzstan, animal husbandry remains a significant part of the agricultural economy.
Tajikistan is a highly agrarian country, with its rural population at more than 70% and agriculture accounting for 60% of employment and around 20% of GDP in 2020. As is typical of economies dependent on agriculture, Tajikistan has a low income per capita: Soviet Tajikistan was the poorest republic with a staggering 45% of its population in the lowest income “septile”. In 2006 Tajikistan still had the lowest income per capita among the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries: $1,410 compared with nearly $12,000 for Russia. The low income and the high agrarian profile justify and drive the efforts for agricultural reform since 1991 in the hope of improving the population's well-being.
China primarily produces rice, wheat, potatoes, tomato, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed, corn and soybeans.
Although agriculture is the second-largest sector in the economy, Libya depends on imports in most foods. Climatic conditions and poor soils limit farm output, and domestic food production meets about 25% of demand. Domestic conditions limit output, while income and population growth have increased food consumption. Because of low rainfall, agricultural projects like the Kufra Oasis rely on underground water sources. Libya's primary agricultural water source remains the Great Man-made River (GMMR), but significant resources are being invested in desalinization research to meet growing demand. Libyan agricultural projects and policies are overseen by a General Inspector; there is no Ministry of Agriculture, per se.
Agriculture in Algeria composes 25% of Algeria's economy and 12% of its GDP in 2010. Prior to Algeria’ colonization in 1830, nonindustrial agriculture provided sustenance for its population of approximately 2-3 million. Domestic agriculture production included wheat, barley, citrus fruits, dates, nuts, and olives. After 1830, colonizers introduced 2200 individual farms operated by private sectors. Colonial farmers continued to produce a variety of fruits, nuts, wheat, vegetables. Algeria became a large producer of wine during the late 19th century due to a crop epidemic that spread across France. Algeria's agriculture evolved after independence was achieved in 1962. The industry experienced multiple policy changes modernize and decry on food imports. Today, Algeria's agriculture industry continues to expand modern irrigation and size of cultivable land.
Armenia has 2.1 million hectares of agricultural land, 72% of the country's land area. Most of this, however, is mountain pastures, and cultivable land is 480,000 hectares, or 16% of the country's area. In 2006, 46% of the work force was employed in agriculture, and agriculture contributed 21% of the country's GDP. In 1991 Armenia imported about 65 percent of its food.
Agriculture in Portugal is based on small to medium-sized family-owned dispersed units; however, the sector also includes larger-scale intensive farming export-oriented agrobusinesses backed by companies. The extent of cooperative organisation has been reaching a greater importance with globalization. Portugal produces a wide variety of products, including green vegetables, rice, corn, wheat, barley, olives, oilseeds, nuts, cherries, bilberry, table grapes and edible mushrooms. Forestry has also played an important economic role among the rural communities and industry. In 2013, the gross agricultural product accounted for 2.4% of the GDP. Portugal is the largest world producer of both cork and carob, as well as the third largest exporter of chestnut and the third largest European producer of pulp. Portugal is among the top ten largest olive oil producers in the world and is the fourth biggest exporter. The country is also one of the world's largest exporters of wine, being reputed for its fine wines. The land area of slightly more than 9.2 million hectares was classified as follows : 2,755 arable land and permanent crops, 530 permanent pasture, 3,640 forest and woodland, and 2,270 other land.
Agriculture in Cyprus constituted the backbone of its economy when it achieved its independence in 1960. It mostly consisted of small farms, and sometimes even subsistence farms. During the 1960s, irrigation projects made possible vegetable and fruit exports; increasingly commercialized farming was able to meet the demands for meat, dairy products, and wine from the British and United Nations troops stationed on the island and from the growing number of tourists.
Like the rest of the economy, agriculture in Estonia has been in great flux since the degeneration of the collective and state farm systems.
In 2021, Germany was the third largest importer and exporter of consumer oriented agricultural products worldwide, and by far the most important European market for foreign producers. The retail market's key characteristics are consolidation, market saturation, strong competition and low prices. Germany is an attractive and cost-efficient location in the center of the EU. While many consumers are very price sensitive, the market also provides many wealthy consumers who follow value-for-money concepts. These consumers are looking for premium quality products and are willing to pay higher prices. Germany still has some of the lowest food prices in Europe, and German citizens spend only about 14 percent of their income on food and beverages. Low food prices are a result of high competition between discounters and the grocery retail sale segment.
Prior to World War II, agriculture in Bulgaria was the leading sector in the Bulgarian economy. In 1939, agriculture contributed 65 percent of Net material product (NMP), and four out of every five Bulgarians were employed in agriculture. The importance and organization of Bulgarian agriculture changed drastically after the war, however. By 1958, the Bulgarian Communist Party (BCP) had collectivized a high percentage of Bulgarian farms; in the next three decades, the state used various forms of organization to improve productivity, but none succeeded. Meanwhile, private plots remained productive and often alleviated agricultural shortages during the Todor Zhivkov era.
Poland's agricultural sector is vital for European and Global market because it produces a variety of agricultural, horticultural and animal origin products. The surface area of agricultural land in Poland is 15.4 million ha, which constitutes nearly 50% of the total area of the country.
Agriculture in Spain is important to the national economy. The primary sector activities accounting for agriculture, husbandry, fishing and silviculture represented a 2.7% of the Spanish GDP in 2017, with an additional 2.5% represented by the agrofood industry.
In 2018, Latvia produced 1.4 million tons of wheat; 426 thousand tons of potatoes; 306 thousand tons of barley; 229 thousand tons of rapeseed; 188 thousand tons of oat; 81 thousand tons of rye; 80 thousand tons of beans; and smaller quantities of other agricultural products.
Moldova is an agrarian-industrial state, with agricultural land occupying 2,499,000 hectares in a total area of 3,384,600 hectares. It is estimated that 1,810,500 of these hectares are arable. Moldova is located in Eastern Europe, and is landlocked, bordering Romania and Ukraine. Moldova's agricultural sector benefits from a geographical proximity to large markets, namely the European Union. As a share of GDP, agriculture has declined from 56% in 1995 to 13.8% in 2013. Data from 2015 estimated that agriculture accounted for 12% of Moldova's GDP. Agriculture as a sector is export-oriented, with the composition of Moldova's total exports containing agriculture and the agri-food sector as a main component. 70% of agri-food exports in 2012 included beverages, edible fruits and nuts, oilseeds, vegetable preparations and cereals. Here, fruits, vegetables and nuts were attributed to 33% of Moldova's exports for 2011–2013. Moldova is also one of the top ten apple exporters in the world. However, because of the long-term emphasis on fruit, vegetables are often imported.
Agriculture in Finland is characterized by the northern climate and self-sufficiency in most major agricultural products. Its economic role is declining in terms of GNP and employment in primary production, but together with the food industry and forestry with which it is linked, it forms a significant part of the Finnish economy. The number of farms has steadily declined for the last decades. Between 2000 and 2012 their number fell from almost 80,000 in 2000 to about 60,000, while the amount of arable land has slightly increased to a total of almost 2.3 million hectares. Agriculture employed 125,000 people in 2010, which is a drop of 30 percent from 2000.
