(Finance) – In 2024, agricultural production and added value will increase (in volume, respectively, +1.4% and +3.5%). The volumes produced increased especially in crops (+1.5%) and in the livestock sector (+0.6%), while agricultural services activities decreased (-1.5%). The positive trend in secondary activities continues ( +5.2%). Favorable year for fruit (+5.4%), fresh vegetables (+3.8%) and wine (+3.5%); in decline cereals (-7.1%), olive oil (-5%) and fodder (-2.5%). The prices of crop products increased (+2.9%), while those of the livestock sector fell (-2.2%). The decrease in prices of goods and services used in the sector was also significant (-4.5%). The drop in labor input employed in the agricultural sector (-2.6%) was more significant than the average (-0.9%) of the other EU27 countries. In the EU27, slight increase in production volume (+0.5%) and added value (+0.2%): Italy is the country with the highest agricultural added value. This is what stands out the Istat in the preliminary estimate of the economic performance of the agricultural sector for 2024.
Production is growing in value and volume, intermediate costs are decreasing
Estimates for 2024 showed a 1.4% increase in the volumes of goods produced by the agricultural sector and a 0.8% growth in related sales prices. Therefore, the value at current prices of the sector’s overall production increased by 2.2%, reaching 74.6 billion euros (it was 73.0 billion euros in 2023). The reduction in intermediate costs (-1.0% in volume), associated with a significant contraction in the prices of the goods and services used (-4.5%), strengthened the positive trend in value added at the basic prices of the sector, which it increased by 3.5% in volume and 9.0% in value, reaching 42.4 billion euros in 2024, from 38.9 billion the previous year. Work units employed in agriculture decreased by 2.6% due to a marked decline
(-4.4%) of self-employed workers not offset by the slight increase in employed workers (+0.9%). With the increase in production subsidies received by the sector (+2.5%) and the substantial stability of depreciation (-0.1%), factor income in value showed an increase of 11.3% in 2024 and, consequently, the agricultural income indicator recorded a notable increase (+12.5%).
Crops: favorable year for fruit, vegetables and wine
The estimates for 2024 outline a positive year for the entire crop (+1.5% in volume). Product volumes of potatoes (+13.0%), fruit (+5.4%; in particular, +11.5% fresh fruit), fresh vegetables (+3.8%) and wine (+11.5%) increased. +3.5%); the quantities produced of cereals (-7.1%) and olive oil (-5.0%) fell sharply, while the decline in fodder (-2.5%) was more modest. The prices of crop products showed an average increase of 2.9%. Significant increases were recorded for potatoes, olive oil and wine, while the prices of cereals and fodder fell significantly.
Livestock sector: slight growth in production with decreasing prices
Activity in the livestock sector was substantially stable, recording a slight increase in overall volumes produced in 2024 (+0.6% compared to the previous year). In particular, positive results concerned beef (+1.5% in volume) and, among the derived zootechnical products, milk (+1.1%) and eggs (+0.5%). With prices in the sector falling (-2.2%), the production in value of the sector fell by 1.6%.
Secondary activities are still growing while agricultural services are slowing down
Estimates for 2024 indicate an increase in volume production for secondary non-agricultural activities of 5.2% (+2.6% in value, in the presence of a 2.5% reduction in prices). The sector was mainly driven by agritourism activities and the production of renewable energy. However, a negative trend is observed for agricultural services activities, whose production in volume decreased by 1.5%, while that in value increased by 1.0%, as a result of an increase of 2 .5% of the prices of the services produced.
Intermediate consumption: the quantities and prices of inputs decrease
In 2024, estimates showed a decrease in the quantities of goods and services used in the agricultural sector (-1.0%) and, thanks to a 4.5% contraction in the prices of goods and services purchased, a significant reduction in spending incurred for intermediate consumption (-5.5%), which fell to 32.2 billion euros, from 34.0 the previous year. The greatest savings were recorded in expenses incurred for feed and energy products. The joint trend in the prices of products sold (output) and those purchased (input) has determined an improvement in the terms of trade for the agricultural sector, defined by the ratio between the output price index (+0.8% ) and that of input (-4.5%).
Italy achieves European leadership in agricultural added value
Based on preliminary estimates, in 2024 the production of the agricultural sector of the EU27 countries showed an increase in volume of 0.5% but, due to the decrease in the prices of the products sold, a reduction in value of 1.5% was recorded , falling to 529 billion euros compared to the 536.9 billion achieved in the previous year. After the increases of the last three years, in 2024 a 2.0% decrease in producer prices (measured in terms of base price) and a more marked decline in the prices of goods and services purchased (-6.4%) is estimated at European level ). Intermediate consumption decreased in value by 5.7%, while a modest increase of 0.8% in volume was observed. Consequently, gross value added increased compared to the previous year by 0.2% in volume and 4.4% in value, going from 223.7 billion euros in 2023 to 233.6 billion in 2024. In growth of the volumes produced in the EU in 2024, the positive performances of Spain (+10.6%), Portugal (+4.4%), Poland (+1.6%) and Italy stand out (+1.4%); the worst results were recorded, however, in Hungary (-4.4%), Romania (-4.3%) and France (-3.5%). The 2024 ranking of the value of production at current prices confirms France in first position (88.4 billion euros, -7.7% compared to 2023), followed by Germany (75.4 billion euros, -0.9% ), Italy (74.6 billion euros, +2.2%) and Spain (68.4 billion euros, +4.3%).
In terms of added valuehowever, Italy conquers European leadership in 2024 (42.4 billion euros, +9.0% compared to 2023), followed by Spain (39.5 billion euros, +16.2%) and France ( 35.1 billion euros, -7.2%), which in 2023 held the record.
Regarding the main sectors, estimates indicate a positive year for 2024 in the EU27 for olive oil (+9.1% in volume), with strongly expanding production in Spain (+22.6%) and Greece (+5, 9%). Good performances were also recorded for potatoes (+7.8%), fodder (+7.2%), fruit (+4.5%) and fresh vegetables (+2.1). However, there was a significant reduction in the volumes of wine produced
(-10.2%), mainly due to the collapse recorded in France (-22.8%). Negative trends are also observed for the horticultural sector (-4.2%) and for cereals (-3.1%).
Satisfactory results are achieved in livestock production (+0.9% in volume) and, in particular, for meat (+1.4%). Secondary and service activities, however, suffered a slight decline in production (-0.5%).
THE greater decreases in producer prices they were recorded in Spain (-5.7%), Denmark (-5.3%), Portugal (-4.7%), Poland (-4.3%) and France (-4.3%), while they increased in Greece (+7.8%), Ireland (+4.9%) and Italy (+0.8%).
In 2024, the reduction in expenditure on intermediate consumption for the EU27 as a whole (-5.7% in value compared to the previous year) was generalized, but more significant in Spain (-8.5%), France (-8.0%), Romania (-7.7%) and Denmark (-7.2%). The prices of goods and services used fell by 6.4% on average for the EU27, with the largest decreases in Spain and France.
It has reduced over the year the impact of intermediate consumption on the value of production which, for the EU27 as a whole, fell to 55.8% from 58.3% in 2023 (-2.5 percentage points). The highest incidences were detected in Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Portugal and France, while they were below the EU27 average for Italy, Spain, Greece and Romania.
The trend of the agricultural income indicator, which measures labor productivity in agriculture, highlights a positive increase for the EU27 for 2024 (+1.6%). A particularly positive trend is observed in Portugal (+14.7%), Italy (+12.5%), Greece (+11%) and Spain (+9.2%) while the most significant decreases were recorded in Romania (-16.8%), Poland (-12.5%), France (-8.9%).