Land Use and Agricultural Markets in Germany

Germany is a large northern European country, with a total territory of over 357.000 square kilometers, which is almost the same size as the state of Montana. Geographically, Germany is dominated by lowlands in the north and its territory gets increasingly mountainous as it progresses south towards the Alps. With a total population of almost 81 million citizens, Germany is the most populous country in Western Europe. Similarly, more than 75% of the German population lives in major cities and other urban settings, namely Berlin, Hamburg, and Munich.

Currently, Germany’s annual gross domestic product (GDP) is of almost US$4 trillion, representing the fifth largest national economy in the world. Similarly, Germany is a member of the group of twenty (G20) richest economies in the world. Furthermore, Germany has experienced positive economic growth upwards of 1.5% throughout recent years. The German national economy is divided into 1% agriculture, 30% manufacturing, and 69% services. However, the agriculture industry utilizes about 48% of the national territory, while another 32% is forested. Likewise, the German agricultural industry employs 2% of the national labor force, while manufacturing employs about 25% and services employ another 73%.

In terms of natural resources, Germany has coal, lignite, natural gas, iron ore, copper, nickel, uranium, potash, salt, construction materials, timber, and arable land. Within manufacturing, Germany’s advanced industry is focused on iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, heavy machinery, machine tools, high-end electronics, vehicles & automobiles, food & beverages, shipbuilding, and textiles. Meanwhile, the country’s agricultural industry has as main products potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages, milk products, cattle, pigs, and poultry. Furthermore, as a founding member of the European Union, Germany benefits from subsidies and industry protections under the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Similarly, the country has used the Euro as its official currency since its creation in 1999. This article explores the status of agricultural markets in Germany.

Land Use and Agricultural Markets in Germany

In terms of trade, Germany’s main partners are fellow EU members, particularly the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Austria, and Poland, as well as the United States and China. Throughout recent years, the average per capita protein intake of animal origin amongst the German population has been of 62 grams daily. Meanwhile, cereals, roots, and tubers supply about 28% of the average German food energy intake.

Simultaneously, land use in Germany has evolved throughout the last half century. During the early 1960s, pastures and meadows in Germany covered almost 7 million hectares, while arable land totaled more than 12 million hectares and permanent crops accounted for approximately 500.000 hectares. In 2014, pastures and meadows in Germany accounted for some 4.6 million hectares, while arable land represented almost 12 million hectares and permanent crops covered approximately 200.000 hectares.

Similarly, the domestic cereals market in Germany has evolved throughout the last half century. During the early 1960s, Germany devoted well over 7 million hectares of land to the production of cereals and produced an average of more than 20 million metric tons annually. Meanwhile, in 2014, Germany devoted some 6.5 million hectares of land to cereals production and yielded over 52 million metric tons.

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