Agriculture in Sweden
Encyclopedia
Agriculture in Sweden is of varying importance in different parts of Sweden
. This is due to different soil
s and different climate zones, with many parts of the country being more suitable to forestry
.
Wheat
, rapeseed
and other oil plants, and sugar beet
are common in southern Sweden, while barley
and oat
are more important further north.
Dairy farming is the largest sector in economical terms, and is responsible for 20 per cent of the value of the Swedish agricultural production. Pork and poultry production is also relatively large, while sheep and lamb production is quite small.
Agriculture and animal husbandry
took place in the area today's Sweden already during the stone age
. Barley was the most important crop, but wheat, millet
and flax
were also cultivated. The christianization of Sweden, around the year 1000, led to improvements in agriculture due to the influx of knowledge of more advanced cultivation methods from southern countries. During the entire medieval period, monasterial gardens served to spread foreign plants suitable for cultivation, and agricultural knowledge.
During the age of Gustaf Vasa in the 16th century, who took a personal interest in the improvement of the royal properties, a period of agricultural flourishing started, and Sweden was regularly a cereal
-exporting country. This lasted until the wars of Charles XII
in the early 18th century, which took a heavy toll on the countryside population and meant that the cereal-producing Baltic provinces were lost.
By the mid-18th century land reform
s were initiated (storskiftet) which meant that scattered land plots around villages were progressively redistributed into coherent holdings, which gave the possibility for more rational farming. Swedish scientists also gave attention to the improvement of agriculture, with botanist Carl Linnaeus and agricultural chemist Johan Gottschalk Wallerius
as the foremost representatives. However, the mercantilist
views of the era guided most governmental activities.
In the wake of the Finnish War
of 1808-1809, agricultural improvements received significant interest from the Swedish government and private actors. An important role was played by the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture, which was founded in 1811, as well as by the Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies, which were founded in most Swedish counties around this time. The production of distilled beverages, brännvin
, was regulated and the land reforms were continued. New areas, especially wetland
s, were used for cultivation, and cultivation methods were improved. This was especially true for the production of fodder
, which benefited from the cultivation of nitrogen-fixating plants such as clover
and alfalfa
. Many meadows were converted to farmed land with fodder crops, which significantly improved the amount of fodder available. Improved crop cultivation received most attention in the first half of the 19th century, while improvement of animal husbandry progressively came more in focus later in the century. Selected foreign breeds were purchased and made available in breeding stations.
From the late 1860s, diary production, and in particular production of butter
, became more and more central to the Swedish agricultural economy. A progressively larger portion of the farmland was devoted to fodder production, and the farmed area increased until the 1920s. Milk- and diary-related income was the most important source income for Swedish agricultural business around the turn of the century. This meant that the earlier Swedish cereal exports mostly vanished, and were replaced by imports of cereals for bread making. On the other hand, significant exports of butter started to take place, and later also of pork
and live pigs. In the first years of the 20th century, Sweden exported 16,000-20,000 tons of butter per year.
In the late 1940s, milking machines replaced hand milking and tractors started to replace the use of horses. In the 1950s, a large-scale mechanisation took place, using cheap supplies of petrol fuels. The Swedish agricultural workforce was reduced by 60 percent from 1945 to 1970, and labour was freed up for employment in the industrial sector.
In 1989, Sweden deregulated its agricultural policy
and finally scrapped many subsidies
and price controls which originally had been introduced in the 1930s, when the agricultural sector experienced an economic crisis. In 1995, when Sweden joined the European Union
, the Swedish agricultural sector again became subject to various regulations, via the Common Agricultural Policy
.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. This is due to different soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
s and different climate zones, with many parts of the country being more suitable to forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
.
Wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
, rapeseed
Rapeseed
Rapeseed , also known as rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rappi, rapaseed is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae...
and other oil plants, and sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
are common in southern Sweden, while barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
and oat
Oat
The common oat is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name . While oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats, one of the most common uses is as livestock feed...
are more important further north.
Swedish agriculture in figures
The Swedish agricultural sector (forestry and food industry not included) employs 177 600 people, which is 1.5 per cent of the Swedish workforce. There are 72 000 farms and other agricultural business, which is half the number of 1970. The average farm has 36 hectares (89 acre) of fields.Dairy farming is the largest sector in economical terms, and is responsible for 20 per cent of the value of the Swedish agricultural production. Pork and poultry production is also relatively large, while sheep and lamb production is quite small.
History
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
took place in the area today's Sweden already during the stone age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
. Barley was the most important crop, but wheat, millet
Millet
The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
and flax
Flax
Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...
were also cultivated. The christianization of Sweden, around the year 1000, led to improvements in agriculture due to the influx of knowledge of more advanced cultivation methods from southern countries. During the entire medieval period, monasterial gardens served to spread foreign plants suitable for cultivation, and agricultural knowledge.
During the age of Gustaf Vasa in the 16th century, who took a personal interest in the improvement of the royal properties, a period of agricultural flourishing started, and Sweden was regularly a cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
-exporting country. This lasted until the wars of Charles XII
Charles XII of Sweden
Charles XII also Carl of Sweden, , Latinized to Carolus Rex, Turkish: Demirbaş Şarl, also known as Charles the Habitué was the King of the Swedish Empire from 1697 to 1718...
in the early 18th century, which took a heavy toll on the countryside population and meant that the cereal-producing Baltic provinces were lost.
By the mid-18th century land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
s were initiated (storskiftet) which meant that scattered land plots around villages were progressively redistributed into coherent holdings, which gave the possibility for more rational farming. Swedish scientists also gave attention to the improvement of agriculture, with botanist Carl Linnaeus and agricultural chemist Johan Gottschalk Wallerius
Johan Gottschalk Wallerius
Johan Gottschalk Wallerius was a Swedish chemist and mineralogist.Wallerius was born in Stora Mellösa in Närke, entered Uppsala University in 1725, and graduated as magister in 1731 after studies of mathematics, physics and medicine. He continued his studies at Lund University, where he received...
as the foremost representatives. However, the mercantilist
Mercantilism
Mercantilism is the economic doctrine in which government control of foreign trade is of paramount importance for ensuring the prosperity and security of the state. In particular, it demands a positive balance of trade. Mercantilism dominated Western European economic policy and discourse from...
views of the era guided most governmental activities.
In the wake of the Finnish War
Finnish War
The Finnish War was fought between Sweden and the Russian Empire from February 1808 to September 1809. As a result of the war, the eastern third of Sweden was established as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland within the Russian Empire...
of 1808-1809, agricultural improvements received significant interest from the Swedish government and private actors. An important role was played by the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture, which was founded in 1811, as well as by the Rural Economy and Agricultural Societies, which were founded in most Swedish counties around this time. The production of distilled beverages, brännvin
Brännvin
Brännvin is a Swedish word for liquor distilled from potatoes, grain, or wood cellulose; it may be flavored or unflavored. The term includes vodka and akvavit, but akvavit is always flavored....
, was regulated and the land reforms were continued. New areas, especially wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s, were used for cultivation, and cultivation methods were improved. This was especially true for the production of fodder
Fodder
Fodder or animal feed is any agricultural foodstuff used specifically to feed domesticated livestock such as cattle, goats, sheep, horses, chickens and pigs. Most animal feed is from plants but some is of animal origin...
, which benefited from the cultivation of nitrogen-fixating plants such as clover
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
and alfalfa
Alfalfa
Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...
. Many meadows were converted to farmed land with fodder crops, which significantly improved the amount of fodder available. Improved crop cultivation received most attention in the first half of the 19th century, while improvement of animal husbandry progressively came more in focus later in the century. Selected foreign breeds were purchased and made available in breeding stations.
From the late 1860s, diary production, and in particular production of butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
, became more and more central to the Swedish agricultural economy. A progressively larger portion of the farmland was devoted to fodder production, and the farmed area increased until the 1920s. Milk- and diary-related income was the most important source income for Swedish agricultural business around the turn of the century. This meant that the earlier Swedish cereal exports mostly vanished, and were replaced by imports of cereals for bread making. On the other hand, significant exports of butter started to take place, and later also of pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
and live pigs. In the first years of the 20th century, Sweden exported 16,000-20,000 tons of butter per year.
In the late 1940s, milking machines replaced hand milking and tractors started to replace the use of horses. In the 1950s, a large-scale mechanisation took place, using cheap supplies of petrol fuels. The Swedish agricultural workforce was reduced by 60 percent from 1945 to 1970, and labour was freed up for employment in the industrial sector.
In 1989, Sweden deregulated its agricultural policy
Agricultural policy
Agricultural policy describes a set of laws relating to domestic agriculture and imports of foreign agricultural products. Governments usually implement agricultural policies with the goal of achieving a specific outcome in the domestic agricultural product markets...
and finally scrapped many subsidies
Subsidy
A subsidy is an assistance paid to a business or economic sector. Most subsidies are made by the government to producers or distributors in an industry to prevent the decline of that industry or an increase in the prices of its products or simply to encourage it to hire more labor A subsidy (also...
and price controls which originally had been introduced in the 1930s, when the agricultural sector experienced an economic crisis. In 1995, when Sweden joined the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, the Swedish agricultural sector again became subject to various regulations, via the Common Agricultural Policy
Common Agricultural Policy
The Common Agricultural Policy is a system of European Union agricultural subsidies and programmes. It represents 48% of the EU's budget, €49.8 billion in 2006 ....
.