Spanish Agriculture: Evolution, Factors, and Policies

Posted on Oct 1, 2024 in Geography

Applications and Uses of Land

The agricultural sector in Spain has been declining since the beginning of the century in various aspects (economic, demographic, etc.). However, there has been an increase in production due to increased yields and productivity. Significant changes such as the dramatic expansion of irrigation, the reduction of cereal cultivation (wheat), and the high growth of fodder, industrial, and fruit crops have transformed the Spanish agricultural economy. It is becoming less focused on agriculture and more on livestock. The distribution of agricultural/livestock production is not evenly spread across the territory. In Spain, we can find a wide variety of agricultural landscapes, from large areas of fallow cereal crops to irrigated areas of intensive crops such as orchards in the Levante region. The importance of irrigation is not merely spatial but also economic, as irrigated crops are the prototype of intensive agriculture, generating employment and high yields. Irrigation has several advantages, such as increased yields and thus income for farmers. However, it also presents problems such as the overuse of water, which can lead to conflicts with domestic, industrial, and tourist demands in water-stressed areas.

Rainfed Agriculture

Rainfed agriculture is related to extensive agriculture, which sometimes still practices fallow arable farming. Within rainfed crops, we can include:

  • Cereals (wheat, barley, oats, etc.) usually alternate with legumes (garbanzo beans, lima beans, etc.) because of their ability to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere to the ground, preventing its depletion.
  • Oilseeds (soybean or sunflower oil)
  • Flax

Cereals are clearly predominant. We can also find the cultivation of olive trees and vineyards, which constitute the Mediterranean trilogy. Legumes are in decline due to low yields and difficulties related to mechanizing their cultivation and the use of herbicides. The sunflower, whose production is destined for oil production, experienced significant growth after Spain’s entry into the EU due to the subsidies it received. However, today, with reduced subsidies, we are seeing a slight decline.

Tree Crops

Among tree crops, the olive tree stands out, followed by less important ones such as almond, hazelnut, and fig. Almond cultivation is primarily concentrated in eastern Andalusia, Murcia, the Balearic Islands, and Catalonia.

Vineyard Irrigation

Irrigation is a farming practice consisting of providing a supplementary water supply to crops where rainfall is insufficient. Irrigated agriculture is associated with intensive farming, mechanization, high consumption of chemical fertilizers, new crops and farming techniques, and, of course, high returns. Within irrigated agriculture, we can distinguish between extensive and intensive irrigation.

  • Extensive irrigation involves providing crops with a supplementary water supply to ensure fruit set and increase yields. It is implemented in the same crops as in dryland farming. These irrigated crops provide a single annual harvest, regulated in their production, but coinciding in time with rainfed crops.
  • Intensive irrigation is practiced in orchards on the Levantine coast, the Canary Islands, and fruit districts of the Ebro, Tagus, Guadiana, and Guadalquivir rivers. These intensive irrigated crops have undergone major changes in farming techniques, including drip irrigation with computerized distribution, high fertilizer consumption, and greater diversification. These practices are more widespread in Andalusia, Murcia, and Valencia. Finally, we can observe a clear specialization in production at the regional level: citrus in Valencia and Murcia (interior), vegetable crops (lettuce, tomatoes, artichokes, etc.) on the coast of Murcia, and fruit trees in the interior valleys of the region.

The basic differences between intensive and extensive cultivation can be summarized as follows: Intensive cultivation is seasonal, while extensive cultivation is not. In some places where intensive farming is practiced, crops are harvested throughout the year, with yields three to four times higher than the average yields of extensive farming.

Fallow

Fallow is a traditional practice of allowing land to rest after the harvest of a crop. Fallow land undergoes several activities (plowing, for example) to break the surface crust and prepare the ground to collect water more effectively in autumn, as well as to destroy weeds. Fallow is an important part of arable land that is outside the production system in the strict sense each crop year. Therefore, we can say that this is an extensive farming practice.

Some Crops: Evolution and Distribution

Cereals and Legumes

Cereals, along with olives and vines, occupy more than 55% of the cultivated area. Production has been increasing due to seed selection, increased fertilizer use, and the expansion of irrigation. The main cereals are:

  • Corn
  • Rice: It is very demanding in water, so its cultivation is limited to specific areas.
  • Wheat and barley: These dry cereals are usually grown in the interior of the peninsula.
  • Legumes: These are alternatives to grains as they contribute to fixing nitrogen in the soil.

Vineyards and Olive Groves

  • Vineyard production is mainly destined for wine production. Yields are low because, in some cases, they occupy areas unsuitable for other uses.
  • Olive grove: Most of the crop is destined for oil production. Upon entry into the EU, this crop increased greatly due to consumer subsidies and production.

Fruit Trees

Fruit trees have experienced tremendous growth as they are crops whose production is for export, and demand has increased due to the rising standard of living. Citrus fruits rank first in Spanish exports. Other fruit trees, such as almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, carob, and figs, are far behind the olive tree. Almonds are mainly a rainfed crop. The rest of the fruits, such as pear, apple, peach, cherry, fig, and banana, cover an area similar to citrus fruits.

Vegetables and Tubers

They occupy a reduced percentage of the cultivated area, and their evolution is diverse. While vegetables are gaining importance, tubers are not. Crops are spread throughout the country, with a major concentration of asparagus in Navarra and La Rioja, melons in Ciudad Real and Toledo, and tomatoes in Almeria, Murcia, and Badajoz. These crops are for export and are subject to large price fluctuations depending on supply and demand.

Industrial Crops

Industrial crops are those products that need to be industrially processed before consumption, such as sugar, textiles, oil, and spices.

  • Sunflower is the most important, and its spectacular growth has been possible thanks to fallow cultivation and reduced subsidies from the EU.
  • Sugar beet is the second most important crop, and its cultivation has also increased.
  • Cotton is currently in decline.
  • Tobacco is also in decline due to the fight against smoking, which results in the loss of subsidies.
  • Other industrial crops include pepper, hemp, soy, anise, hops, and saffron.

Forage Crops

These are crops for livestock feed.

Spatial Factors of Production

Agricultural activity is based on the economic exploitation of the natural environment while ensuring profitable and competitive production. The main physical aspects that affect agricultural activity are altitude, relief, soil, and climate.

Relief and Altitude

One of the most significant physical features of Spain is its high average altitude. The mountainous nature and arrangement of the relief also play a role.

Soil

Soil is the natural formation of the Earth’s surface, a mobile structure of variable thickness resulting from the transformation of the underlying bedrock under the influence of different physical, chemical, and biological processes. In dry Iberia (Mediterranean Spain), we can distinguish two types of soils depending on the substrate they settle on:

  • On limestone substrates, we can find several types of basic soils, including:
    • Red soils, characteristic of Ciudad Real and Badajoz, present a typical color due to their high content of minerals, especially iron. These soils are rich enough to practice agriculture.
    • Subdesert gray soils of the Ebro Valley
    • Black soils are best suited for agriculture because they are high in humus.
  • On siliceous substrates, we find poor soils that are highly acidic, brown, and have little humus, presenting a low suitability for agriculture.

In wet Iberia (Atlantic Spain), evolved soils are due to climate and vegetation cover. We can find several types:

  • Brown siliceous soils are located in the western half and are unsuitable for agriculture because they are acidic.
  • Brown soils and limestone soils in the eastern half are more suitable for agriculture.

Climate

Climate is a crucial factor. It influences temperature, precipitation, fog, and sunlight, all of which affect agricultural activity.

  • Atlantic Domain
  • Warm Mediterranean Domain: Stretching along the Mediterranean coastal plains, it is characterized by high temperatures and adequate sunlight but has a significant shortage of rainfall.
  • Cold Mediterranean Domain: Inland Spain has a continental Mediterranean climate.

Human Factors

Socioeconomic Factors

Land Ownership

The structure of land ownership is characterized by the dominance of large estates (latifundia) and small farms (minifundia), with a shortage of medium-sized holdings. Large estates can be found in Andalusia, Aragon, Extremadura, Salamanca, and some provinces in the southern Submeseta.

Farm or Tenure

Tenure is the relationship between the landowner and the farmer who cultivates the land. The owner is not always the one who cultivates it, so we can distinguish between:

  • Direct operation system: When the farmer, businessman, and landowner are the same person.
  • Indirect operation system: When the owner and the farmer/businessman are different people. In this case, we can find two different situations:
    • Sharecropping: The owner provides the land, machinery, seeds, fertilizers, and pays taxes, while the farmer provides their labor. This system is declining.
    • Lease: The owner rents or transfers the land to the farmer, who cultivates it in exchange for money. This system is experiencing positive growth.

The number of farms has decreased, especially smaller ones. This reduction has been accompanied by a growth in the average farm size, which was 31 hectares in 2005. Additionally, there has been a reduction in the number of parcels per farm. A farm plot is the smallest unit of a farm, defined by its shape, boundaries, ownership, crop types, and cultivation systems. Land consolidation policies, the rural exodus, and its consequences have played a major role in this evolution. The size of farms continues to show a duality between large estates and smallholdings.

  • A smallholding is a farm of small size that allows for adequate exploitation.
  • A large estate is a large farm (over 100 hectares). It is characterized by the absence of the owner, low yield, extensive farming or livestock practices, low wages, and low investment.

Agricultural Workforce

In terms of geographical distribution, there are communities where the agricultural workforce has little importance, such as Madrid and the Basque Country, in contrast to the increased importance in Extremadura, La Rioja, Murcia, and Galicia. The rural exodus has left the countryside with an aging population and mostly unskilled labor, which in many cases hinders innovation and slows down the mechanization of the industry.

Technical Progress

The rate of mechanization is measured by the use of machines for different agricultural tasks such as plowing and harvesting, or in livestock farming with machine milking. Fertilizer consumption continues to increase, and the use of selected seeds has also been crucial in achieving better yields. Genetic manipulation of crops (GM crops) is producing earlier crops that are more resistant to drought and pests, resulting in higher yields and even new crops. New techniques such as crop cultivation under plastic (greenhouses and padded crops), sanded crops, and hydroponics have also been introduced.

  • Crop cultivation under plastic is a harvesting system based on establishing a plastic cover, usually arched, which helps create conditions of higher temperature and humidity than the surrounding environment, allowing for faster crop development and multiple harvests per year.
  • Sanded crops involve superimposing a layer of sand over fertile soil to prevent water evaporation in areas with strong sunlight. This is the case for horticultural crops in southeastern Spain and the Canary Islands.
  • Hydroponics is a technique of growing plants without soil in containers. It consists of using an inert substrate where the roots develop, and the nutrients needed for plant development are provided dissolved in water. This system is increasingly used in Spain, especially for vegetable cultivation in Almeria and Murcia. Hydroponics has several advantages, such as faster growth and maturation.

The expansion of irrigation and new irrigation techniques, such as drip and sprinkler irrigation, have allowed for cultivation in arid areas and the intensification of others. In parallel, water-saving policies are being developed.

  • Irrigation is a cultivation system in which crops receive an extra amount of water because natural humidity is insufficient. Irrigation allows for extending cultivation to previously barren or desert areas and promotes the development of more remunerative intensive farming. Different types of irrigation systems exist:
    • Traditional irrigation: This system involves flooding the entire cultivated area. It requires a complex irrigation system of canals, ditches, dams, ponds, and wells. This system is destined to disappear because it wastes water compared to other irrigation systems, especially in water-scarce areas.
    • Sprinkler irrigation: This system reproduces the conditions of rain.
    • Drip irrigation: This system involves a water metering system with pipes and valves that open when the humidity is below the required level.
  • Rainfed agriculture is a cultivation system in which crops rely only on rainfall and humidity for water, without any supplementary irrigation.

Intensive agriculture or livestock farming is a system that achieves high yields per unit area. These high yields can result from a heavy accumulation of labor.

Agricultural Policy

Some of the problems that need to be addressed in Spanish agriculture include:

  • High degree of land ownership concentration in certain areas.
  • Minifundismo (small farms) and the dispersal of plots.
  • Use of outdated farming techniques.
  • Low agricultural yields.

The agricultural policy followed in Spain is the result of a confluence of sectoral policies, often uncoordinated, carried out by different institutions and agencies. These policies are far from achieving adequate rural development, although progress has been made towards that goal.

Expansion of Irrigation and Water Policy

The first steps in this area can be traced back to the Public Works Plan, the Gasset Plan, and the Irrigation Act.

Settlement Policy

Launched during the Franco dictatorship and led by the INC (National Institute of Colonization) and IRYDA, these policies aimed to revive agricultural activity and address existing problems.

Land Consolidation

Land consolidation is a set of operations aimed at redistributing rural plots, grouping them into larger and more regular units to facilitate cultivation and access.

Pricing Policy

Conducted by the FORPPA Fund (Guidance and Regulation of Agricultural Products and Prices), this interventionist policy by the state set prices for certain products, such as wheat, during the postwar period. With the arrival of democracy, agricultural policy aims to:

  • Support only those farms that can be competitive and eliminate the rest.
  • Regulate sharecropping and ensure maximum stability of leases.
  • Facilitate the incorporation of young people into agriculture.
  • Expand irrigation, capitalize and modernize farms, boost rural industries, and improve the marketing of products.

Spain’s entry into the EU meant that its agricultural policy became part of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which emerged in 1962 with the following objectives:

  • Increase agricultural production to reduce food dependency.
  • Ensure a fair standard of living for farmers.
  • Stabilize markets by avoiding price fluctuations.
  • Supply consumers at reasonable prices.

To achieve these objectives, the following mechanisms were established:

  • Increased production through guaranteed higher selling prices and technological improvements.

It became necessary to increase exports, which resulted in a decline in prices in the international market. Therefore, it became necessary to reform the CAP to better adapt to the European and international agricultural reality.