The average price of agricultural products fell by 6%
July 4, 2024
2 minutes reading time
In the first quarter of 2024, agricultural prices in the EU fell for both products and non-investment inputs, according to a market report by Eurostat. The average price of agricultural products fell by 6% in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter in 2023. Over the same period, the average price of goods and services currently consumed in agriculture (non-investment inputs) fell by 11%.
After a period of disruption that saw agricultural prices rise sharply in 2021 and the first three quarters of 2022, the pace of growth slowed and prices began to decline. Recent declines in agricultural production and input costs are trending toward calmer pre-disturbance levels.
Source datasets: apri_pi20_outq and apri_pi20_inq
Price trends for the various agricultural products in the first quarter of 2024 were varied and contradictory. The average price of cereals fell particularly sharply, by 28%. The price of milk fell by 12%, that of eggs and industrial crops (oilseeds, protein crops, raw tobacco, sugar beet, etc.) by 10%, and that of fresh vegetables by 6% (with the price of tomatoes falling particularly sharply by 33%).
In contrast, the average price of potatoes increased by 22% and that of fresh fruit by 20% (despite a sharp 44% drop in lemon and lime prices). This is partly due to the anticipated impact of adverse weather conditions on harvest volumes.
Among non-investment-related intermediate goods, the largest price declines were recorded for fertilizers and soil improvers (-31%), animal feed (-16%) and energy and lubricants (-12%).
In most EU countries, prices are falling in the quarter
At national level, most EU countries (21 out of 25 with available data) recorded a decrease in agricultural producer prices in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter of 2023. The largest price decreases were observed in Hungary (-24%), Bulgaria and Romania (both -18%), and Slovakia and the Czech Republic (both -17%).
In contrast, prices rose in five southern EU countries. The biggest increase was in Greece (+20%). In Malta and Spain (+4%) and Portugal and Cyprus (+1%), the increases were more moderate.
Source datasets: apri_pi20_outq and apri_pi20_inq
For non-investment inputs (such as energy, fertilisers or feed), 24 of the 25 EU countries for which data are available recorded decreases in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the first quarter of 2023. The largest decreases were recorded in Croatia (-20%), Hungary (-19%) and the Netherlands and Ireland (both -17%). Portugal was the only EU country to record an increase (+2%).
