Organic farming in figures

Organic farming is not only in demand among consumers – the number of farmers practising organic farming is rising as well. Every 4^th hectare in Austria and a high proportion of livestock enjoy this particularly ecological and animal-friendly form of farming. The following figures provide an informative insight into organic farming in Austria.

Farms and areas

As of 2022, there are 25,081 organic farms in Austria, which is 183 more organic farms than in 2021. This corresponds to a 23.4 percent share in all IACS farms. By Province, the largest increase in organic farms is, with 8 percent, recorded in Vienna. In the other Federal Provinces, the increase is between 1-2 percent. With 50 percent, Salzburg has the highest proportion of organic farms among all IACS farms, followed by Vienna with 33 percent and Burgenland with just under 29 percent.

In 2022, more than a quarter (27.7 percent) of the utilised agricultural area (UAA) were managed according to organic farming principles in Austria, which is in total around 705.800 hectares of the UAA. Compared to 2021, this corresponds to an increase in area of around 11,400 hectares or 1.6 percent, of which 7,700 hectares is arable land, 2,500 hectares is permanent grassland and the remaining areas are vineyards (+ 1,050 hectares) and orchards (+ 130 hectares).

Major arable crops

The following crops have a high share of organic areas: Lentils with 98 percent (total growing area in 2022: 1,498 hectares), followed by broad beans with 80 percent (total growing area in 2022: 5,970 hectares), alfalfa with 75 percent (total growing area in 2022: 14,160 hectares), winter spelt with 74 percent (total growing area in 2022: 24,948 hectares), and buckwheat with 73 percent (total growing area in 2022: 1,329 hectares). 38 percent of the soya beans are cultivated on organic arable land (total acreage 2022: 93,174 hectares).

Organic livestock

In 2022, the proportion of organically reared animals varied significantly depending on the different types of livestock.
For ducks and goats, the share of animals under organic farming is around 56 percent, respectively 53 percent, of the livestock reared. While, for the average of the total bovine livestock, the organic share makes up 23 percent, more than 42 percent of the suckler cows are kept on organic farms, but only 23 percent of the dairy cows. For sheep, the share of organic animals is 30 percent. In Austria, 28 percent of the broiler chickens and 27 percent of all geese are fattened on organic farms.

For more information, please see the Green Report (“Grüner Bericht”). (in German only)