Facts & Figures
Area-based support payments for organic farming
Heike Kuhnert | 24.04.2023
Organic farming is considered particularly sustainable. Its maintenance and significant expansion have been politically sought and financially supported for many years at EU level, in Germany, and in many other EU countries, especially through area-based support payments.
In Germany, organic farming has been supported by area-based support payments since 1989 in West Germany and since 1991 in East Germany. Since the beginnings of area-based support, the range of subsidies for organic farming has expanded significantly. The Federal Government and the governments of the federal states (Länder) now offer a variety of measures aimed at promoting organic production, the organic food industry and the demand for organic products. There are considerable differences between the Länder.
Nevertheless, the area-based support payments under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) continues to play a central role among the various support measures for the organic sector. The EU, the Federal Government, and the Länder are involved in the content and financial design of this support measure for organic farming.
Länder have a significant influence on the area-based support payments in Germany
One of the innovations that were introduced by the EU in connection with the CAP funding period from 2023 to 2027 is the national CAP Strategic Plan, that was to be provided by every EU member state. In their strategic plans, the member states define the national structure of EU agricultural support; this includes the concrete agricultural policy goals, the measures for their implementation and the distribution of the planned support funds to the individual support measures. The strategic plans cover the support funds of the first and second pillars of the CAP. The first pillar is the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF), the second pillar is the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).
The EAFRD support measures of the Länder are therefore now part of the national CAP strategic plan. The design and implementation of EAFRD support measures remain the responsibility of the Länder. As area-based support for organic farming is provided through the EAFRD, the Länder have considerable influence on the design of this support measure for organic farming.
The interaction between the EU, the Federal Government and the Länder in agricultural support is complex. Details on the design and financing of organic farming premiums within the framework of this so-called multi-level policy can be found in the report “Area-based support payments for organic farming in Germany within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the funding period 2023 to 2027”
Overview of area-based support payments for organic farming in Germany 2023 to 2027
The area-based payments are intended to compensate for the income disadvantage of organic farming. In particular, the phase of conversion to organic farming is a time-consuming and risky period for farm managers, which usually entails yield losses ─ for example, through changes in crop rotation and the abandonment of common inputs such as mineral nitrogen fertilizers or pesticides that are not permitted in organic farming. Against this background, almost all Länder grant a higher premium for a limited period for the introduction of organic farming (also called conversion or conversion period) than for maintaining organic farming. Since the income disadvantage per hectare of cultivated area varies for the different types of crops, the amount of the premium is usually also graded according to arable land, grassland, horticulture and permanent crops.
The tabular presentation and the figures provide an overview of the area-based support payments for organic farming in the Länder. The information is current as of the end of January 2023. The overviews were compiled on the basis of the CAP Strategic Plan of the Federal Republic of Germany, version 1.2 of 22 November 2022, and the information provided by the Länder on their websites.
Further information on the eligibility requirements for receiving area-based organic farming support and links to the corresponding funding information of the Länder can also be found in the report “Area-based support payments for organic farming in Germany within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the funding period 2023 to 2027”
Table 1: Overwiev of area-based support payments for conversion to and maintenance of organic farming practices in the German Länder for the funding peroid 2023 to 2027 (as of 31 January 2023)
Figure 1 to 4: Area-based support payments for conversion to and maintenance of organic farming practices on differentiated by type of crop in the German Länder for the funding peroid 2023 to 2027 (as of 31 January 2023)
Learn more about policy support of organic farming
- Heike Kuhnert, Uta Devries (2023) Area-based support payments for organic farming in Germany within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the funding period 2023 to 2027. Braunschweig: Thünen Institute of Farm Economics
- Nic Lampkin, Jürn Sanders (2022) Policy support for organic farming in the European Union 2010-2020. Braunschweig: Thünen Working Paper 200.
- Information of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture about its strategy for boosting organic farming in Germany
- Information of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture about the German CAP strategic-plan
- Stefan Becker, Regina Grajewski, Pia Rehburg (2022) Where does the CAP money go? Design and priorities of the draft CAP Strategic Plans 2023–2027. Braunschweig: Thünen Working Paper 191a.
- Hiltrud Nieberg, Heike Kuhnert, Jürn Sanders (2011) Förderung des ökologischen Landbaus in Deutschland – Stand, Entwicklung und internationale Perspektive. Braunschweig: Landbauforschung Sonderheft 347. (Only in German)
Organic subsidy calculator
On the website www.oekolandbau.de, farmers interested in conversion can use the organic subsidy calculator to calculate the area payment they can expect for their farm.
