
There are more
than 186 000 organic farms across Europe, cultivating an area of 9.6 million
hectares, i.e. 5.4% of the total agricultural area in the European Union (EU),
the report "Facts and Figures on Organic Farming" issued today by the
European Commission points out.
The report gives an overview of organic
agriculture in Europe based on the data available and its evolution over recent
years. It shows in particular that organic holdings are overall bigger than
conventional farms in the EU and their managers are younger. Permanent pasture
represents the biggest share of the organic area (about 45%), followed by
cereals (around 15%) and permanent crops (about 13%). Besides poultry, which
registers the highest number of animal organic heads, the rest of organic
livestock is led by sheep (46%) and bovines (30%) at European level.
Full report:
http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/markets-and-prices/more-reports/pdf/organic-2013_en.pdf