Project
Analyses of the economic situation of organic farms
Analysis of the economic situation of organic farms
According to the Federal Government, the area of organically farmed land in Germany should continue to grow. This presupposes that organic production is also profitable for the farms. The accounting results from the BMEL Farm Accountancy Data Network provide important indications as to whether this has been the case in recent years.
Background and Objective
The economic performance of organic farming has a major influence on the development of the organic sector. The income development in organic farms is therefore analysed every year on the basis of bookkeeping results from the German Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN).
In order to be able to assess the financial situation of organic farming in Germany, the income of organically managed FADN farms is compared to the income of comparable conventional farms. Since the regional distribution and the farm structures of organic farms differ significantly, it does not make sense to compare the average organic farms with the average of all conventional farms. That is why every organic farm is only comparable to conventional farms with similar locational conditions (for example same region and farm type, similar soil conditions) and similar equipment (for example similar amount of land, similar amount of dairy cows). The selected conventional individual farms are aggregated into one group for comparison so that for each organic farm a conventional comparison group is available.
Preliminary Results
In the accounting year 2022/23 organic FADN farms achieved a profit plus labour costs per average working unit (AWU) of on average of € 45 240. Comparable conventional farms yield an average profit plus labour cost per AWU of € 56 614, an increase of about 45 percent.
This means that the average income of the conventional comparison group exceeded the income of the organic FADN farms by € 11 374. This is only the sixth time - out of a total of 28 years - that the average income of the conventional comparison group has exceeded the average income of the organic farms.
For the 2022/23 accounting year the data of 437 organic farms and 1 739 comparable conventional farms were analysed.
Thünen-Contact
Duration
Permanent task 1.1996
More Information
Project status:
ongoing
Publications to the project
- 0
Kuhnert H, Offermann F (2024) Analyse der wirtschaftlichen Lage ökologisch wirtschaftender Betriebe im Wirtschaftsjahr 2022/23. Braunschweig: Thünen-Institut für Betriebswirtschaft, 11 p
- 1
Kuhnert H, Offermann F (2023) Analyse der wirtschaftlichen Lage ökologisch wirtschaftender Betriebe im Wirtschaftsjahr 2021/22. Braunschweig: Thünen-Institut für Betriebswirtschaft, 7 p
- 2
Sanders J (2014) Analyse der wirtschaftlichen Lage ökologisch wirtschaftender Betriebe im Wirtschaftsjahr 2012/13. Braunschweig: Thünen-Institut für Betriebswirtschaft, 8 p
- 3
Sanders J (2014) Ökologischer Landbau - eine Wachstumsstrategie für landwirtschaftliche Betriebe in Deutschland? HLBS Rep 32(4):136-137
- 4
Sanders J (2013) Wirtschaftlichkeit des ökologischen Landbaus: Einkommen bleiben stabil. In: Zahlen, Daten, Fakten : die Bio-Branche 2013. Berlin: Bund Ökologische Lebensmittelwirtschaft
- 5
Sanders J (2012) Ökolandbau ist für Landwirte attraktiv. Forschungsrep Spezial Ökol Landbau 2012:10-11
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Sanders J, Offermann F, Nieberg H (2012) Wirtschaftlichkeit des ökologischen Landbaus in Deutschland unter veränderten agrarpolitischen Rahmenbedingungen. Braunschweig: vTI, 120 p, Landbauforsch SH 364
- 7
Nieberg H, Sanders J, Offermann F (2010) Biobauern sehen optimistisch in die Zukunft : Umfrage unter Ökolandwirten. Bauernzeitg (Brandenburg):40-42
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Sanders J, Nieberg H, Offermann F (2010) Einkommensentwicklung konventioneller und ökologischer Betriebe. Agra Europe (Bonn) 51(8):S1-3
- 9
Sanders J, Nieberg H, Offermann F (2010) Is organic farming still financially attractive in Switzerland? : Paper prepared for the SGA-Jahrestagung, Tänikon, 25.3.2010-26.3.2010. Tänikon: SGA, 2 p
- 10
Sanders J, Nieberg H, Offermann F (2010) Ökolandbau lohnt sich. B&B Agrar 63(2):33-35
- 11
Nieberg H, Sanders J, Offermann F (2010) Umfrage unter Ökolandwirten : Biobauern sehen optimistisch in die Zukunft. In: Blicke in die Zukunft : Visionen für die Landwirtschaft von übermorgen. Berlin: Deutscher Bauernverl, pp 40-42
- 12
Offermann F, Nieberg H (2000) Economic performance of organic farms in Europe. Stuttgart-Hohenheim: Institut für Landwirtschaftliche Betriebslehre, XVIII, 198 p, Organic Farming Europe 5
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