Photo: BMLFUW/Kern / BMLF...
Plant and animal production
Foodstuffs like cereals, vegetables, meat, milk, butter and honey are produced by Austria’s farmers. Production in Austria stands for high-quality, seasonal foodstuffs and shorter transport routes and thus for sustainability and climate protection.
High degrees of self-sufficiency are reached for the individual foodstuffs. Production is divided into plant and animal production.Plant production
Environmentally compatible land management
According to which directives is plant production practised in Austria? A large portion of the Austrian farmers work according to the principle of sustainable farming in “harmony with nature”. The holistic philosophy to promote environmentally compatible and extensive forms of management on the basis of the eco-social agricultural policy has already become a tradition in our country.
This is obvious from the fact that three quarters of all agricultural enterprises with agriculturally utilised land take part in the agri-environmental programme. In 2006 126,600 enterprises participated. The areas involved in the environmental programme (not including mountain pastures) total some 2.22 million hectares, i.e. 87.6 percent of Austria's agriculturally utilised area. This allows an almost area-wide ecologisation of Austria’s agriculture.
The major objectives of the Austrian Agri-environmental programme are to continue or implement an environmentally compatible management of agricultural areas in order to protect and improve the environment as well as to preserve natural habitats and to safeguard the positive impacts on the groundwater. By means of a diversified crop rotation the agricultural landscape in Austria puts new life into the cultivated landscape and ensures a species-rich fauna and flora also in the arable land.
In 2006, Austria had totally 20,162 organic farms with an agriculturally utilised area of approximately 361,000 hectares; this accounts for approximately 15 percent of the agriculturally utilised area (not including alpine pastures). This means that more than 10 percent of all Austrian agricultural and forestry enterprises are organic farms. With these figures, Austria holds a top position among the EU countries.
Safeguarding biodiversity
Austria ranks among the signatory states of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Biotope diversity (plant communities, water biotopes etc.) apart, particularly species diversity and the sub-specific (genetic) diversity (varieties, breeds etc.) are vitally influenced by agriculture and forestry. In order to avoid the genetic loss of agricultural breeding and species material, genetic material of Austria’s agricultural crop species are maintained ex situ in an all-Austrian network of public gene banks. Of particular importance are also the forest gene banks.
In addition, also the preservation in situ, i.e. on the natural site, is vital for the conservation of the biological diversity. Apart from naturally occurring wild plants, this is particularly true for regional and local varieties of agricultural crops. These are frequently considered "special crops" (e.g. German wheat varieties) and are of significant cultural value (e.g. individual stands of fruit trees that mark the landscape).
Cereal growing – Austria’s granaries
The emphasis in domestic plant production is on the cultivation of cereals. The area used for cereal cultivation comprised some 777,000 hectares in 2006. The centre of high-quality cereal production is the Marchfeld region, the granary of Austria located in the east of the country. In 2006 domestic cereal production amounted to approximately 4.4 million tonnes, 1.7 million tonnes of which were maize, 1.3 million tonnes common wheat and 0.9 million tonnes barley. Durum wheat has been cultivated for decades in Austria's eastern regions, which have just the right climatic conditions for this crop.
Healthy soils with oilseeds and protein plants (grain legumes)
The cultivation of oilseeds and protein plants has been booming considerably since the mid-nineties, prompting a higher rate of self-sufficiency with vegetable oils and an improvement in the domestic forage base. According to 2006 figures the area under oilseeds (winter and summer rapeseed, sunflower, soybeans, oil squash, poppy and other oil crops such as linseed flax, safflower, sesame etc.) totalled approximately 130,000 hectares in Austria.
The area for grain legumes (grain peas, field beans and other legumes like, for example, lentils) amounted to approx. 41,000 hectares in 2006. The cultivation of other arable crops and of special crops such as poppy, oil squash, linseed flax, hops as well as medicinal, aromatic and culinary plants can be traced back to old, regional traditions in Austria and provides many farmers with an important additional income.
Root crops – Potatoes and sugar beet
In 2006 the area under potatoes totalled about 22,000 hectares in Austra. This area yielded some 655,000 tonnes. Potato production meets the domestic demand for edible potatoes, industrial potatoes, seed potatoes, and fodder potatoes at 96 percent. Sugar beet cultivation on some 39,000 hectares yielded a harvest of approximately 2.5 million tonnes of sugar beets in 2006. All in all, Austria saw the production of some 489,000 tonnes of white sugar in 2006.
Trend towards organic fruit and vegetable farming
Vegetable and fruit growing as well as horticulture are predominantly practised in the climatically more clement eastern and southern Provinces, the number of organic farms being continuously on the rise.
The range of vegetable varieties produced includes for example onions, carrots, salads, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, Chinese cabbage, celery, spinach, red beets, red pepper, squash, sugar maize, cauliflower, zucchinis, and asparagus. Fresh, high-quality vegetables from organic farming provide also a basis for durable products and frozen food, which are gaining importance Europe-wide.
Vegetable growing with cultivating areas on fields covered approximately 11,200 hectares in 2006. Near conurbations, above all in the vicinity of Vienna, vegetable production is supplemented by horticultural businesses. A substantial percentage of the total vegetable farmland is already managed in line with stringent organic principles.
In 2006, 10,100 hectares of land were used for fruit growing in Austria. About 835,000 tonnes of fruit were harvested in intensive and extensive fruit farming. Apples, plums, peaches, apricots, pears, and garden strawberries are of major importance.
Wine from Austria – High quality
In Lower Austria, Burgenland, Styria, and Vienna viticulture has a very long tradition and goes back to Roman Age. The quantity harvested 2006 from a total wine-growing area of approximately 44,000 hectares of (yielding) vineyards was about 2.2 million hectolitres.
The ratio of cultivated red grape to white grape varieties is about 60:40 in 2006. In terms of white wine, which presently accounts for about 60 percent of the wine harvest, the variety Grüner Veltliner is the most important one, followed by the Welschriesling variety. The Zweigelt variety dominates among red wine, right before Blaufränkisch and Blauer Portugieser.
Numerous international awards testify the high quality of the wines vinified. Apart from the many years of experience in wine growing, important preconditions for these standards are also the strict quality criteria set forth by the Austrian Wine Act.
As regards export, the regional typicity of quality wines is playing a major role. For not until a wine has a corresponding profile of origin will it be unique on the international market. For this reason Austria relies not only on its quality wine concept “DAC”, but at the same time places a consistent focus on the significance and the expressiveness of a wine’s origin. DAC stands for “Districtus Austriae Controllatus”. The labelling refers to controlled, regionally typical high-quality wines such as the Weinviertel DAC.
Animal production
Livestock keeping and milk production
As approximately 54 percent (2005) of Austria’s utilisable agricultural land (including alpine pastures and mountain pastures) are permanent grassland, cattle farming and dairy farming are the most important lines of production. Totally approximately 80,200 cattle farms kept about 2 million heads of cattle in 2006, of which approx. 800,000 were cows.
Especially for mountain farmers milk and cattle production constitute the major sources of income. Beef production covers 140 percent of the domestic demand. The small-scaled structure of animal husbandry – on average only 25 head of cattle are kept per farm – but also the high share of grassland as well as mountain grazing guarantee a high-quality beef production.
Rigorous provisions regarding animal protection are another feature of Austrian animal production. They require farmers to hold their animals in a way which satisfies their respective needs.
An important criterion is the principle "quality instead of quantity". The natural conditions for production, the manageable production structures and the farm-based ownership structure are the determining factors for the essential role which extensive livestock farming is playing in Austria.
Long-life dual-purpose cattle as breeding purpose
In Austria predominantly livestock with a combined milk – meat breeding purpose are bred. Livestock breeding is subject to animal breeding laws and is organised by the breeding associations. In addition to improving the milk and meat performance and the meat quality, also characteristics like the fertility and longevity of animals are considered in breeding programmes.
With its exemplary regulations for animal production Austria has done pioneer work in the organic farming sector within the EU - natural production conditions which guarantee a high image of the domestic milk and meat production.
There are presently about 2,150 meat cattle breeders with approximately 18,500 herd book cows. Approximately one third of all holdings with cattle are members of one of the 19 regional cattle breeders' associations. The Simmental breed is playing a prominent role.
Milk – Quality at a high level
Today, Austria ranks among the most innovative milk and cheese nations worldwide. The quality of raw milk is very high. The quality-based philosophy and the spirit of innovation among dairy and cheese producers have leveraged Austria's market into a strong position.
All in all, approximately 45,900 dairy farms with a mathematical average of 11.5 cows per holding keep totally 527,400 dairy cows.
In 2006, 85 percent of the total milk production, i.e. approx. 2.7 million tonnes of cow milk, were delivered to Austrian dairies. The remaining quantity of cow milk was marketed directly at the dairy farms, consumed by farmers or fed. The quality of raw milk is very high in Austria.
Pigs – Quality through extensive pig farming
In the flat and hilly lands of eastern Austria pig keeping on the basis of maize feeding is predominant.
In 2006, approximately 45,000 farms kept about 3.1 million heads of pigs, which means that Austria is self-sufficient at 100 percent in this field. Lower and Upper Austria as well as Styria continue to be the main areas of pig farming. Domestic pig farming meets most of the demand for breeding animals. Breeding focuses on meat quantity and quality as well as on the resistance of the animals. This is also rewarded by the consumers. Also in the case of pork, controlled domestic quality is given priority.
Poultry – Trend towards floor management and free-range management
Poulty keeping is a highly specialised line of business. In 2003 in about 70,700 holdings approximately 12.35 million animals were held. In 2005, about 114,000 tonnes of poultry meat and 1.48 billion eggs, with a rising trend towards floor management and free-range management, were produced. The degree of self-sufficiency is 84 percent for chicken and 74 percent for eggs. The Animal Protection Act of 2004 has stipulated a ban on keeping layer hens in battery cages as from 2009.
Sheep – Upward trend continues
Due to extensive grassland management, sheep farming has been growing in importance in Austria in recent years. Stocks have been continuously rising since the mid-seventies and, in 2006, totals approximately 312,000 head; there are some 14,850 sheep keepers. The majority of the lamb produced in Austria is sold via direct marketing.
In western Austria, the traditional mountain sheep keeping region, Alpine sheep farming is the main form. Also goat-keeping is practised there. At present, over 9,100 goat holders keep 53,000 head.
Horses – Building on traditions
The growing interest in equestrian sports has stopped the downward trend in horse keeping in Austria in recent years. In 2006 about 87,000 horses were counted. In addition to the major breeds Haflinger, Noriker, Austrian Warmblood, and the world-famous Lipizzan, 40 more horse breeds are kept by recognised horse-breeding associations. Only recently, draft horses have again been specially trained to transport wood on steep terrain; this low-impact working technique keeps the forest floor from being destroyed.
22.02.2008, Lebensministerium Öffentlichkeitsarbeit