Agricultural facts: Summary
Updated 31 October 2024
Applies to England
Section 1: Key statistics
Figure 1.1: A map of England split by region
Source:
Key statistics for England
- Total Income from Farming (TIFF)[footnote 1] in England in 2023 was 拢4.5 billion. TIFF decreased in all 8 of England鈥檚 regions with an average decrease of 21% between 2022 and 2023 (Figure 1.2). The largest contributor to England鈥檚 TIFF in 2023 was the East of England (23%) and the smallest contributor was the North East (3.3%).
- Total livestock output was the largest output[footnote 2] in 5 of England鈥檚 8 regions while total crop output was the largest in the other 3 regions (Figure 1.3). Subsidies less tax made up between 5.0% (West Midlands) and 12% (North East) of total outputs for the regions.
- The North East had the largest average farm size in 2023 (145 hectares) while the West Midlands had the smallest (67 hectares). The average English farm size was 88 hectares (Table 1.1).
- In England, the predominant farm types in 2023 were grazing livestock (41% of England鈥檚 holdings) and general cropping (21% of England鈥檚 holdings) farms. Nevertheless, the prevalence of different farm types can vary considerably across England鈥檚 regions. For example, 37% of holdings in the East of England were cereal farms while only 4.5% of holdings were cereal farms in the North West (Figure 1.5).
- Across all farm types, average Farm Business Income (FBI)[footnote 3] in England increased by 12% between 2021/22 and 2022/23 and was 拢96,100 per farm (Table 1.4). The North East had the highest average FBI (拢193,600 per farm) while the South West had the lowest (拢62,800 per farm).
- In 2023, the South West had the highest proportion of England鈥檚 total agricultural labour force (22%) and accounted for the largest share of its regular workers (19%) (Table 1.5). However, the South East (including London) region had the most workers per farm (3.6 workers) and the highest proportion of England鈥檚 casual labour (29%).
Figure 1.2: Total Income from Farming (TIFF) in 2022 and 2023 (拢 million)
Region | 2022 | 2023 |
---|---|---|
North East | 247 | 151 |
North West | 356 | 268 |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 614 | 551 |
East Midlands | 929 | 835 |
West Midlands | 647 | 527 |
East of England | 1,084 | 1,033 |
South East (including London) | 806 | 545 |
South West | 924 | 631 |
Source: Total Income from Farming for the regions of England
Figure 1.3: Outputs and subsidies in 2023 (拢 million)
Region | Total livestock output | Total crop output | Diversification | Other agricultural activities | Subsidies (excluding tax) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 430 (47%) |
258 (28%) |
66 (7.2%) |
45 (4.9%) |
113 (12%) |
North West | 1,907 (73%) |
313 (12%) |
101 (3.9%) |
117 (4.5%) |
175 (6.7%) |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 1,751 (50%) |
1,181 (34%) |
174 (5.0%) |
165 (4.7%) |
205 (5.9%) |
East Midlands | 1,335 (33%) |
2,159 (53%) |
187 (4.6%) |
200 (4.9%) |
212 (5.2%) |
West Midlands | 1,777 (54%) |
1,036 (31%) |
164 (5.0%) |
147 (4.5%) |
166 (5.0%) |
East of England | 1,506 (32%) |
2,451 (52%) |
239 (5.1%) |
233 (5.0%) |
253 (5.4%) |
South East (including London) | 680 (27%) |
1,353 (53%) |
192 (7.5%) |
129 (5.1%) |
202 (7.9%) |
South West | 3,028 (60%) |
1,155 (23%) |
271 (5.4%) |
238 (4.8%) |
322 (6.4%) |
Source: Total Income from Farming for the regions of England
Notes:
-
Proportions are respective to the total output value plus direct payments for each region.
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
-
To improve clarity, the item 鈥淚nseparable non-agricultural activities鈥 has been renamed 鈥淒iversification鈥 from this release onwards.
Figure 1.4: Distribution of farms by size in 2023 (percentage of farm holdings)
Region | <5 ha | 5<20 ha | 20<50 ha | 50<100 ha | 鈮100 ha | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 10% | 20% | 17% | 17% | 36% | 100% |
North West | 13% | 25% | 22% | 19% | 21% | 100% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 14% | 23% | 19% | 17% | 26% | 100% |
East Midlands | 12% | 25% | 19% | 16% | 28% | 100% |
West Midlands | 13% | 28% | 21% | 17% | 20% | 100% |
East of England | 13% | 21% | 16% | 16% | 34% | 100% |
South East (including London) | 14% | 29% | 20% | 13% | 23% | 100% |
South West | 12% | 30% | 22% | 17% | 19% | 100% |
England | 13% | 26% | 20% | 17% | 24% | 100% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
鈥渉a鈥 means 鈥渉ectares鈥
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
Table 1.1: Land use in 2023
Region | Total farmed area (thousand hectares) | Average farm size (hectares) | Rented (% of farmed area) | Arable (% of farmed area) | Permanent pasture (% of farmed area) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 606 | 145 | 40% | 32% | 46% |
North West | 941 | 76 | 36% | 22% | 61% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 1,125 | 94 | 32% | 52% | 34% |
East Midlands | 1,172 | 103 | 33% | 70% | 21% |
West Midlands | 912 | 67 | 30% | 54% | 36% |
East of England | 1,397 | 127 | 28% | 79% | 12% |
South East (including London) | 1,099 | 88 | 31% | 56% | 30% |
South West | 1,746 | 69 | 32% | 43% | 46% |
England | 8,999 | 88 | 32% | 53% | 34% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
Arable includes arable crops, uncropped arable land and temporary grass.
-
Rented land must be rented for at least one year.
Table 1.2: Crop area in 2023 as a % of England鈥檚 total
Region | Wheat | Barley | Oats | Maize | Oilseed rape | Sugar beet | Potatoes | Field veg | Hardy nursery stock | Glasshouse | Orchards | Small fruit |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 4.0% | 4.8% | 6.4% | 0.2% | 6.8% | 0.2% | 1.4% | 1.7% | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
North West | 2.0% | 4.7% | 3.5% | 6.5% | 1.6% | 0.8% | 6.4% | 4.3% | 3.2% | 13% | 0.9% | 0.7% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 14% | 15% | 7.3% | 6.2% | 17% | 7.7% | 19% | 17% | 3.7% | 12% | 0.6% | 1.4% |
East Midlands | 20% | 16% | 15% | 16% | 21% | 23% | 15% | 27% | 40% | 8.9% | 1.6% | 3.3% |
West Midlands | 9.7% | 7.2% | 14% | 14% | 12% | 2.8% | 15% | 6.6% | 9.2% | 9.8% | 29% | 19% |
East of England | 28% | 24% | 18% | 16% | 18% | 64% | 33% | 29% | 13% | 20% | 8.1% | 13% |
South East (including London) | 13% | 12% | 19% | 12% | 13% | 0.4% | 2.9% | 7.7% | 12% | 31% | 41% | 53% |
South West | 9.6% | 15% | 16% | 29% | 11% | 1.5% | 7.3% | 6.3% | 19% | 4.6% | 19% | 8.8% |
England | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
-
Further data notes on crops can be found below the relevant tables in the .
Table 1.3: Livestock numbers in 2023 as a % of England鈥檚 total
Region | Cattle | Dairy herd | Beef herd | Pigs | Sheep | Poultry | Laying flock | Table chickens | Turkeys | Goats |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 4.9% | 1.2% | 11% | 3.2% | 13% | 1.5% | 2.7% | 1.5% | 0.1% | 1.5% |
North West | 18% | 26% | 12% | 2.3% | 21% | 8.1% | 12% | 7.8% | 5.9% | 7.1% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 10% | 7.1% | 12% | 40% | 14% | 13% | 14% | 13% | 13% | 22% |
East Midlands | 8.7% | 6.2% | 11% | 9.0% | 8.2% | 17% | 15% | 18% | 30% | 6.7% |
West Midlands | 13% | 15% | 11% | 4.8% | 14% | 19% | 22% | 18% | 7.2% | 11% |
East of England | 3.5% | 1.3% | 6.1% | 28% | 2.4% | 24% | 8.9% | 27% | 39% | 5.0% |
South East (including London) | 7.2% | 4.9% | 9.8% | 4.0% | 7.9% | 5.2% | 11% | 2.7% | 2.9% | 9.8% |
South West | 34% | 39% | 27% | 8.9% | 20% | 13% | 15% | 12% | 2.1% | 37% |
England | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
-
Cattle numbers relate to commercial holdings only.
-
Sheep numbers include lambs
Figure 1.5: Distribution of farms by type in 2023 (percentage of farm holdings)
Region | Cereals | General Cropping | Horticulture | Dairy | Grazing Livestock | Mixed | Pigs, Poultry & Other | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 19% | 14% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 52% | 9.4% | 3.5% | 100% |
North West | 4.5% | 20% | 2.4% | 11% | 55% | 4.5% | 3.6% | 100% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 21% | 17% | 2.0% | 3.5% | 40% | 8.6% | 7.4% | 100% |
East Midlands | 27% | 20% | 3.0% | 3.3% | 34% | 7.1% | 5.2% | 100% |
West Midlands | 14% | 21% | 3.9% | 5.3% | 44% | 7.8% | 4.2% | 100% |
East of England | 37% | 26% | 4.7% | 0.5% | 18% | 4.9% | 9.1% | 100% |
South East (including London) | 19% | 23% | 6.3% | 1.9% | 40% | 6.8% | 3.7% | 100% |
South West | 8.6% | 22% | 4.0% | 7.6% | 47% | 7.6% | 3.6% | 100% |
England | 17% | 21% | 3.7% | 5.0% | 41% | 7.0% | 4.9% | 100% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
-
鈥淥ther鈥 refers to unclassified farm types.
Table 1.4: Farm Business Income in 2022/23 (拢 per farm)
Region | All farm types | Cereals | General cropping | Horticulture | Dairy | Grazing livestock | Mixed | Specialist pigs | Specialist poultry |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 193,600 (卤119,900) |
334,200 (卤271,700) |
[x] | [x] | [x] | 57,200 (卤26,500) |
192,700 (卤109,600) |
[x] | [x] |
North West | 96,600 (卤27,400) |
123,700 (卤83,400) |
55,000 (卤75,400) |
[x] | 282,400 (卤88,600) |
31,100 (卤13,000) |
33,600 (卤49,700) |
[x] | 146,000 (卤204,200) |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 79,600 (卤23,300) |
111,500 (卤50,500) |
170,300 (卤55,000) |
[x] | 197,600 (卤68,000) |
13,800 (卤8,400) |
78,300 (卤99,900) |
117,300 (卤60,000) |
96,800 (卤154,900) |
East Midlands | 124,400 (卤32,000) |
153,000 (卤57,900) |
180,100 (卤115,900) |
[x] | 245,100 (卤89,300) |
20,300 (卤9,000) |
52,100 (卤32,800) |
[x] | [x] |
West Midlands | 87,100 (卤21,100) |
106,700 (卤46,800) |
61,000 (卤68,800) |
165,200 (卤284,400) |
186,700 (卤58,600) |
22,900 (卤14,400) |
62,900 (卤23,400) |
104,100 (卤46,600) |
54,300 (卤35,800) |
East of England | 122,200 (卤34,700) |
126,900 (卤48,300) |
177,100 (卤88,500) |
50,700 (卤115,500) |
[x] | 6,200 (卤28,800) |
117,700 (卤156,400) |
109,200 (卤87,000) |
[x] |
South East (including London) | 102,700 (卤31,300) |
179,700 (卤76,100) |
200,700 (卤214,600) |
81,700 (卤78,300) |
233,500 (卤90,800) |
20,900 (卤10,200) |
110,900 (卤75,700) |
[x] | [x] |
South West | 62,800 (卤14,300) |
128,400 (卤57,700) |
28,700 (卤32,500) |
78,700 (卤114,900) |
225,200 (卤58,000) |
21,200 (卤6,600) |
39,400 (卤19,700) |
-22,800 (卤89,800) |
86,900 (卤67,200) |
England | 96,100 (卤9,000) |
150,400 (卤24,700) |
125,200 (卤35,900) |
95,600 (卤59,800) |
229,200 (卤28,200) |
22,900 (卤4,100) |
68,000 (卤19,600) |
67,900 (卤42,300) |
105,900 (卤51,500) |
Source: Defra, Farm Business Survey (regional breakdown not published elsewhere)
Notes:
-
鈥淸x]鈥 means 鈥渘ot available鈥.
-
The Farm Business Survey year runs from March to February.
-
Excludes farms with less than 25,000 euros of standard output.
-
Values in parentheses indicate the 95% confidence intervals.
-
Values are rounded to the nearest 拢100
Table 1.5: Agricultural labour force in 2023 (number of people)
Region | Total labour | Average labour per farm | Total labour as % of England | Regular workers as % of England | Casual workers as % of England |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
North East | 10,123 | 2.4 | 3.5% | 3.0% | 1.5% |
North West | 32,962 | 2.7 | 11% | 11% | 5.9% |
Yorkshire and the Humber | 31,058 | 2.6 | 11% | 10% | 6.0% |
East Midlands | 32,071 | 2.8 | 11% | 12% | 9.5% |
West Midlands | 39,825 | 2.9 | 14% | 12% | 19% |
East of England | 36,116 | 3.3 | 12% | 16% | 14% |
South East (including London) | 45,592 | 3.6 | 16% | 18% | 29% |
South West | 64,655 | 2.6 | 22% | 19% | 15% |
England | 292,401 | 2.9 | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Source: Defra, June Survey
Notes:
-
Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.
-
Total labour includes farmers, partners, directors, spouses, salaried managers, regular and casual workers.
-
Casual workers are those usually employed for less than 20 weeks of the year.
-
Number of workers per farm calculations are averages based on the total number of farm holdings in the region.
-
Part time workers are those employed for less than 39 hours a week.
-
Percentage calculations for full and part time workers do not include salaried managers.
Section 2: Data notes
Figures are for commercial holdings as at June 2023 (unless stated otherwise). Commercial holdings are those with levels of farming activity above a specified threshold as detailed in this publication鈥檚 guidance note. For further information about the June Survey of Agriculture and Horticulture please visit our survey notes and guidance page on 伊人直播.
鈥淩egion鈥 in this statistical notice refers to 1 (ITL1) for England. The ITL1 regions for Greater London and the South East have been combined in this statistical notice due to the fact that London has such a small farming infrastructure.
Section 3: Other geographical breakdowns
Defra June Survey data aggregated at other geographical classifications can be found in the Structure of the agricultural industry in England and the UK at June statistical data set on 伊人直播.
England regional data for aggregate agricultural accounts (including data at ITL2 and ITL3) can be found in the Total Income from Farming for the regions of England publication on 伊人直播.
English county data for farm accounts from the Farm Business Survey can be found on the .
Section 4: Contact details
Responsible statistician: Thomas Pearson
Team: Farming Statistics - Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Email: AUK_stats_team@defra.gov.uk
For media queries between 9am and 5pm on weekdays:
Telephone: 0330 041 6560
Email: newsdesk@defra.gov.uk
-
Total Income from Farming (TIFF) is the net income to farms once costs have been accounted for, so is calculated as 鈥渙utputs & subsidies鈥 minus 鈥渋nputs & costs鈥. More information on aggregate agricultural accounts can be found on 伊人直播.听鈫
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Output is the total value (at market prices) of commodities produced without considering production costs or any additional income received through subsidies. More information on aggregate agricultural accounts can be found on 伊人直播.听鈫
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In simple terms, Farm Business Income (FBI) is the output generated by the farm business minus total farm costs. More information on Farm Business Income can be found on 伊人直播.听鈫