The negative change was due to the decrease in the quantities produced, while prices had a smaller impact. The Report also presents an interesting appendix dedicated to the performance of the agricultural sector in the first half of 2020 , a period heavily influenced by the lockdown for Covid-19. From the elaborate it emerges that, in these first months of the year, the Veneto agro-food system was hit less heavily than in other sectors, however the effects of the closure - in the first phase of the emergency - are practically total of the Horeca (Hotel, Restaurant, Catering). Strong repercussions are also affecting exports, despite that of wine in the first three months of 2020 7.4% compared to the same period last year.
The complete report, prepared by Veneto Agriculture technicians, can be downloaded from the following address: https://www.venetoagricoltura.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Rapporto-congiuntura-2019.pdf. In addition, episode no. 102 of RadioVenetoAgricoltura, dedicated to the conjuncture of the agricultural sector, with speeches by the extraordinary Commissioner of Veneto Agricoltura, ing. Alberto Negro , and the head of the Agro-Food Economic Observatory of the same Agency, Dr. Alessandra Liviero .
Let's see in summary the performance of the different sectors , remembering that 2019 was between the two / three hottest years of the last thirty years, with often very negative repercussions on some productions.
Cereals
For cereals, the climatic trend was undoubtedly unfavorable: the high rainfall of May 2019 entailed entrapments in wheat and physiological decompensations in maize, with a consequent decrease in yields per hectare (-13.6% for maize , -12.4% for common wheat and even -23.7% for durum wheat). The 18% increase in areas for maize led to substantial production stability, while the wheat had production losses of -16% (soft) and -33.6% (hard). Barley more or less stable, rice yield increased (5%), despite the contraction of the surface of -4%.
Industrial crops
For industrial crops, soybeans showed an increase of 6.6% compared to 2018, despite the presence of the Asian bedbug. There was a decrease in investments (-19%), production (-13.6%) and also the price, down 6%, which was affected by the product availability of the previous campaign. The adverse seasonal climatic conditions were the main cause of the reduction in sugar beet production yields, down by -3.3% compared to 2018, as well as production (-1.5) and sucrose yield per hectare (-7.9%). Tobacco (-20% yield on a stable surface, - 22% production) and rapeseed (-13% yields, -17% the surface and -28% the production) were also bad. Sunflower investments in 2019 increased to around 4,400 hectares (31.6%), a level never reached before in our region, but yields were down 4% due to the unfavorable climate (production rose by 26, 5%).
Fruit and vegetable crops
In 2019 the areas invested in horticulture returned to about 28,100 hectares, an increase of 6.3% compared to the previous year. It is estimated that horticultural crops in the field, which represent 75% of the vegetables grown in the Veneto region, can be around 20,000 hectares (3.5%), while greenhouse vegetables are estimated at around 4,300 hectares (12.5%). ; tuber plants also increased (3,800 ha, 16.1%). The value of production at basic prices of potatoes and vegetables is estimated at around € 725 million, an increase of approximately 5.6% compared to the previous year. As regards fruit trees, it is estimated that the dedicated areas were equal to 17,800 hectares, with an increase of 0.6%, while the olive tree is up with 5,113 hectares (0.1%). Also in 2019, the value of fresh fruit production recorded € 240.4 million, down by -19.8% compared to the previous year. Asian bedbugs and bad weather in spring have led to sharp drops in overall yields and production, reaching over -60% for the pear tree, -25% for the apples and -35% for the cherry tree. Kiwi production decreased by -40%, while the value of olive production decreased by-87%.
nursery
In 2019 the number of active Veneto companies fell to 1,418 units (-2.3% compared to 2018). The area devoted to nursery gardening also decreased further, which is estimated at around 2,460 hectares (-4.7%). The decrease is due in particular to surfaces in the open air (1,810 ha, -5.7%), while hectares in protected cultivation (645 ha, -1%) record a more contained loss. The overall regional production is down to around 1.59 billion plants (-2.6%): nursery production always represents the predominant share (around 83%), while finished products make up the remaining 17% of production regional. The value of production at basic prices of flowers and plants is estimated by Istat at around 63.5 million euros (11% compared to 2018).
winemaking
The vineyard area in the Veneto was 89,288 hectares, with an annual increase of 2.7%, while production was 13.2 million quintals, with a production decrease of -19.8% compared to 2018, but however with a 19.4% compared to the inauspicious 2017 harvest. Wine production is down 20% compared to 2018, compared to the approximately 10.3 million hectoliters produced. 78.3% of the wine produced in Veneto is of the Doc / Docg type, with another 18% given by Igt. In 2019, Veneto confirmed its apex in Italy for the export of wine, given that alone it represents 36% of the value of the sector. Regional wine exports in the last year were 2.31 billion euros, an increase of 3.2% compared to 2018.
Animal Husbandry
The deliveries of milk in Veneto recorded, in 2019, a drop of almost 2% (-1.95%), equal to 1.16 million tons. The value of production at the base prices of the sector is calculated by Istat at 432 million euros, an increase compared to 2018 (3.6%), thanks to the rise in the price of raw milk at the stall. In fact, the price registered an average value of 39.21 euro / hl (8%). At 1 December 2019 the number of dairy cows in the Veneto was 135,329 heads (-5.6%). On the beef cattle side, meat production decreased by 1.8%, stopping at 168,400 tons, in line with the national trend (-1.4%). The value of Veneto production at basic prices, calculated by Istat, was almost 410 million euros (-1.75%). The number of slaughtered animals of Venetian origin reaches around 786,000 animals, equal to 30.7% of the national total.
Fishing and aquaculture
The fish farms in the Veneto were 3,092, a value that remained stable compared to 2018, while the fleet, with 652 vessels, recorded a slight drop of -0.9%. In the last year the local fishery production caught by the Venetian marineries and landed in the six regional fish markets was around 20,915 tons, since it determines an increase in the quantities of 5.7% compared to 2018. Like the volumes, also the collections resulting from the sales of the local product are increasing, given that the value of approximately 50.7 million euro corresponds to an increase of 4.7% per year. Overall transits on the markets also increased in quantity (1.8%), but not in value (-1.5%).
First estimates for 2020
The Veneto Agriculture technicians have elaborated, with very short working times, even the very first production estimates of the agricultural sector in the first months of 2020, a period heavily conditioned by the emergency for Covid-19. Let's see them in extreme summary.
As regards the sowing intentions , there is a substantial stability of investments. With regard to autumn-winter cereals, the areas cultivated with common wheat, with slight increases compared to about 90,000 hectares in 2019, and barley, while durum wheat, which would fall below 10,000 hectares (with an estimated drop between -25 and -30%). For spring sown crops , sugar beet areas should remain stable at around 10,000 hectares, while investments in grain maize are estimated to decrease, whose surfaces should drop to around 150,000 / 155,000 hectares (-5% approximately), in favor of soybean areas which are expected to grow to about 140,000 hectares (5%) and other minor crops, in particular sunflower, sorghum and rapeseed.
The bad spring weather trend in 2020 damaged some fruit crops , in particular apricot, plum and peach, while the production yields of cherry, apple and pear trees were clearly recovering, which had recorded significant decreases in 2019.
The Veneto vineyard is currently in good health. 2020 production will not be abundant and the harvest is announced a few days earlier than the last vintages (in this regard, we recall that all the forecast data will be presented on 6 August on the occasion of the "historic" focus of the Veneto Agriculture Wine Triptych , scheduled on the ZOOM platform from 10 to 12). In response to the concerns related to Covid-19 and the consequent problems due to transport restrictions and border closures, the latest statistics of Veneto's foreign trade in wine for the first quarter of 2020 see our region export wine for over 542 million euros , with a further rise, compared to the same period of the previous year, of 7.4%. Veneto confirms its first place in the Italian ranking for wine exports, with a 36% share of total national exports.
The domestic and Veneto livestock meat sector suffered the effects of the lockdown, albeit in different ways depending on the production chain. For beef cattle the calf was immediately penalized, more connected to the Horeca canal and less to family spending, and adult cattle, minus the veal. The average prices of veal went from € 3.9 / kg in January to € 3.5 / kg in May (-10%), a situation that is continuing. The pig sector is among the most affected, highlighting both structural and organizational weaknesses. From the end of February, a situation of over-supply by breeders was created, as slaughterhouses and processing companies had to slow down the processing rate for anti-contagion measures (-20% approximately). Added to this is the closure of the Horeca channel, which absorbs over 20% of sales.
Since the last month of March, there has been a generalized decrease in production in the sea fishing sector, also due to the continuing closure of the usual commercial activities, sales outlets for fish, primarily catering and tourism. The fish market of Chioggia, together with that of Venice among the main ones at the national level, saw the quantities of fish products transited by -48.6% in March alone compared to the same month of 2019, a loss that rises to -56.6% in terms of collections, while the drop in the average producer price is more contained (-15.6%). On the Venice market, the situation is not so different, given that in March there were decreases in volume of -45.9%, which was echoed by a decrease in revenues of -43.4%, while it kept the average price (4.4%).
