At the end of 2023, the Autonomous Region of Madeira had 12,202 farms and a Used Agricultural Area (UAA) of 4,702.9 hectares, of which 1 hectare corresponds to 100 ares or 10,000 m². These are the main conclusions of the Survey on the Structure of Agricultural Holdings 2023 (IEEA 2023), released by the Regional Directorate of Statistics of Madeira (DREM), which given the 2019 Agricultural Census (RA19), reveals that “the number of agricultural holdings fell by 9.8%, while the UAA grew by 2.1%.
DREM says that historically, both agricultural censuses (usually carried out every 10 years) and structural surveys have revealed successive reductions in the UAA area in the Region, a situation this time contradicted in the IEEA2023. Thus, given the growth of the UAA and the reduction in the number of farms in the Autonomous Region of Madeira led to an increase in the average UAA area – calculated by dividing the UAA by the number of farms with UAS (12,186) – which stood at 3,859 m2, a value higher than that found in the 2019 Autonomous Region of Madeira (3,416 m²).
With regards to temporary crops (1,454.1 hectares; -9.3% than in 2019), the decreases in the areas of vegetables (-21.6%), industrial crops (-20.1%), flowers and ornamental plants and in the aggregate of sweet potatoes with yams (in both cases, -18.0%) stand out. Despite these reductions, vegetables continue to be the most relevant within the group of temporary crops, accounting for 38.9% of the total area of this group.
With permanent crops (2,434.2 hectares; +4.8% than in 2019), the increase in the area of subtropical fruit crops stands out, which went from 1,076.4 hectares in 2019 to 1,208.2 hectares in 2023, which corresponds to a growth of 12.3% in the period, mainly driven by the expansion of the banana area. The second most relevant permanent crop is vines, with 623.3 hectares (25.6% of the total), which recorded a decrease of 13.3%. Although with a smaller expression in terms of area, the growth of fresh fruits (+7.1%) and citrus fruits (+56.1%) is also noteworthy.
Another indicator for 2023 is that 86.8% of the UAA was able to be irrigated, if the producer so wished, representing an increase of 0.7 p.p. compared to that recorded in the RA19, and it should be noted that permanent pasture areas have the lowest percentage of irrigable surface (22.5%), while in permanent crops this value reaches 96.9% and in arable land, 96,3%.
Speaking of animals, “this year, there were approximately 5.9 thousand sheep, 4.3 thousand pigs, 3.9 thousand goats and 3.6 thousand cattle on the farms of the Autonomous Region of Madeira, with a slight overall increase in these herds, in the order of 1.8% compared to AR19,” says DREM. It should be noted that the information on the animals refers to the 1st of September 2023.
Finally, the number of people dedicated to the land in 2023; family farming population in the Autonomous Region of Madeira (consisting of the agricultural producer and his household) was 34,532 individuals, 2,399 less than in 2019, representing a decrease of 6.5%.
Estimates for 2024
According to the estimates for the year 2024, provided by the Regional Directorate for Agriculture and Rural Development (DRA) to DREM, that is, “regarding regional agricultural areas and production, potatoes continue to be, among temporary crops, the crop with the highest production volume, totaling 17,353 tonnes, which represents an increase of 4.3% compared to 2023. Sugarcane appears as the second most relevant production in this group, with 8,920 tonnes, a value 60 tonnes higher than that recorded in 2023 (+0.7%).” This is followed by sweet potatoes, with 7,703 tonnes, whose production decreased by 679 tonnes, corresponding to an 8.1% reduction compared to the previous year.
In permanent crops, the 2024 estimates show that “the production of bananas and grapes – Vitis vinifera varieties registered decreases compared to the previous year: bananas totaled 25,688 tons (-3.0%) and grapes 3,232 tons (-20.5%)”, he points out. Regarding bananas marketed by the GESBA company, it should be noted that, in 2024, the extra category represented 83.0% of the total processed, a figure lower than that recorded in 2023 (84.7%). In the case of grapes (according to data from the Institute of Wine, Embroidery and Handicrafts of Madeira – IVBAM, I.P.), 76.3% of total production corresponded to the Tinta Negra variety, compared to 73.2% in 2023.
In 2024, organic farming accounted for 148 farmers working a respective agricultural area of 208.7 hectares in organic production. In addition, 53 farmers were in the process of converting to this type of production, covering an area of 64.7 hectares.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
