Farmers' assessment in focus in turbulent times

In order to understand the basic economic situation of agriculture, an economic classification of the farms was made. The self-assessment of the economic condition in the respective farm branches (compare graphic 1) made it clear that in particular the profitability and the (future) business development of the pig farming branch were assessed negatively. As a reminder, liquidity was still sufficient before the influence of the pandemic and African swine fever in 2020 due to good marketing, but this deteriorated considerably in 2021.

If we look not only at the economic situation but also at the current propensity of farms to invest, we see a very differentiated picture, especially when comparing Germany with international voices. The difference in the pig sector is conspicuous here (compare graphic 2). The uncertainties caused by the lack of framework conditions in Germany due to the changes in production processes and political and social demands lead to national obstacles in the propensity to invest of, for example, pig farms. The situation is very tense and an indicator of structural change in the German processing industry.

But arable farming also has to face new challenges with regard to volatile input and market prices in order to meet the objectives of the Common Agricultural Policy and the issues of sustainability. These are listed in a model in graphic 3. The focus here is primarily on increasing efficiency in production in order to be able to manage increased fertilizer and energy costs. However, the development of innovative business models was also very frequently listed and pursued by the participants. However, it is also striking that about 13 % of the farms are considering giving up the business because the framework conditions have become more complicated.

In addition to the findings for the technical work, it is essential for the DLG to understand which technical and constructional trends are consolidating in agriculture and where the future-oriented innovations can be found. This is particularly important in the technical support of events and trade fairs. The aim is to be at the cutting edge of topics and to always be a competent discussion partner for the players in the entire agricultural sector.

For example, trends in crop production, dairy farming and pig farming are of particular interest to all areas of the DLG. In arable farming, important trends in site-specific fertilisation and efficient tyres can be identified (see graphic 4). What is exciting in the analyses is that the answers in the groups of practical agriculture, consulting/science and industry differ from each other, sometimes considerably.