Better results in 2022 are explained by the rise in the price of agricultural products. Milk, in particular, generates more than 40% of the total value of the country’s agricultural production, according to the agriculture ministry. Photo: Guy Wolff/Maison Moderne

Better results in 2022 are explained by the rise in the price of agricultural products. Milk, in particular, generates more than 40% of the total value of the country’s agricultural production, according to the agriculture ministry. Photo: Guy Wolff/Maison Moderne

After a difficult year in 2021, the operating results of Luxembourg agricultural companies increased 67% according to estimates provided by the rural economy department on Tuesday.

Agriculture minister (LSAP) met with representatives of the agricultural sectors and agro-food processing on 9 January to analyse and discuss the evolution of agricultural markets. Operating results of agricultural companies fell by 10% in 2021 compared to 2020, due to increases in the prices of energy, seeds, fertiliser and livestock prices.

However, the forecast results for 2022 are much more optimistic. The department predicts an increase of 67% in average operating results.

This is due to the prudent management of stocks of fodder and fertilisers, good crisis management by farmers and the government, and the rise in prices of agricultural products--especially milk, which is responsible for over 40% of total agricultural production in Luxembourg. , the country’s statistics agency, 443,000 tonnes of milk were produced in Luxembourg in 2021.

2023 likely to be more volatile

The situation for 2023 is much more uncertain and will likely be more fragile and volatile than the previous year, the ministry said. The year will be impacted by factors such as international politics and climate change. The viticultural sector, for example, experienced a 15% drop in the forecast operating results for 2022 due to the prolonged drought.

The operating results data is based on the results of 521 farms in the grand duchy that are part of the agricultural accounting network of Luxembourg’s ministry of agriculture. According to Statec, there were 1,869 farms in total in Luxembourg in 2021. In 2018, agriculture made up 0.3% of the country’s GDP.

The meeting between the minister and the agricultural sector’s representatives was the fourth since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has contributed to uncertainty in food supply around the world.

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