Between 1991 and 2021 the area of grassland in Germany decreased by around 11 %.The area of permanent grassland has almost remained at the same level in recent years.The national implementation of the European Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) aims, among others, at maintaining the 2012 level of (total) grassland area.Effective steps are required to achieve this target. read more
agriculture
Umwelt-Indikator
Indicator: Agricultural nitrogen surplus
The five-year average of nitrogen surplus of the total balance per hectare of utilized agricultural land has decreased by 21 % since 1992.The Federal Government aims to reduce the average nitrogen surplus of the total balance of the years 2028 to 2032 to 70 kilogrammes per hectare of agricultural land.If the current trend continues, the target will be missed. read more
Indicator: Organic farming
According to the data of the German Federal Statistical Office, the share of area under organic farming of agricultural land increased from 2.9 % to 9.6 % from 1999 to 2020.The Federal Government aims to increase the proportion of organically cultivated areas in agricultural land to 20 % by 2030.At the growth rate of recent years, this aim is expected to be missed until 2030. read more
News on Chemicals
Pesticide authorisations undermine environmental protection
Under the current legal situation, pesticides are authorised in Germany even though scientific findings show that they are harmful to the environment. The German authorities are currently unable to effectively protect the environment from harmful pesticides. This should be re-regulated under European law. read more
Soil | Agriculture
Fertilizer
In order to develop and grow, apart from adequate water, plants need nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphate and potassium and trace elements such as copper and zinc. Only if these requirements are met can high yield, high quality crops be obtained. Crop plants obtain nutrients and trace elements from the soil via their root systems, a process in which soil humus content plays an instrumental role.... read more
Climate | Energy
LW-R-6: Agricultural irrigation
2019 Monitoring Report on the German Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change read more
Climate | Energy
LW-I-2: Yield fluctuations
2019 Monitoring Report on the German Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change read more
News on Soil | Agriculture
CAP-Reform 2013: Limited environmental impact, high costs
In 2013, the Common Agricultural Policy was reformed with the aim of reducing negative environmental impacts of agriculture. Accordingly, farmers had to comply with certain environmentally friendly farming measures, the so-called "greening", to receive the EU subsidies. Despite high costs, however, the effects of the reform have remained small. This has been shown by a recent paper by UBA. read more