The cultivation of organic vegetables has increased in recent years. This probably also has something to do with the cultivation of heavy vegetables.
Farmers in Germany produced more organic vegetables last year. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the harvest volume increased by 11 percent compared to 2022, and the organically farmed acreage increased by 3 percent.
The authority also attributed the significant increase in harvest quantities to the expanded cultivation of heavier vegetables such as beets and onions. Compared to the average for the years 2017 to 2022, the organically produced harvest increased by 25 percent and the cultivated area by 15 percent. 15 percent of the total vegetable cultivation area is now cultivated organically and 12 percent of the harvest.
3.9 million tons of vegetables harvested
According to the information, a total of around 5,970 agricultural businesses in Germany harvested 3.9 million tonnes of vegetables last year. That was a good 4 percent more than the year before. The cultivated area, however, fell by 3 percent to 122,800 hectares.
The largest harvest of a good 796,700 tons (plus 2 percent) was for carrots, which differ primarily in size and shape. Edible onions followed in second place with 666,300 tons (plus 15 percent). Despite the continued decline in cultivated area, white cabbage came in third place, followed by pickled cucumbers and ice cream lettuce.
The largest open-air vegetable growing areas were in North Rhine-Westphalia with a good 26,200 hectares, followed by Lower Saxony with 22,000 hectares, Rhineland-Palatinate with 16,900 hectares and Bavaria with almost 16,400 hectares.
Source: Stern
