estonian agriculture, rural economy and food industry

4.
in ownership relations, a situation has emerged in
Estonia where one owner can own 2 to 15 or even
more separate parcels of land; however, it is very
difficult to make economic use of the land.
In 2000, reconstruction projects for 185 ha of
polders and 118 ha of sprinkled areas were prepared
in cooperation between the Estonian company
PB Maa ja Vesi and the Finnish company
Salaojakeskus Ry.
Until 1995, land improvement systems were
included in the balance sheets of the local land
amelioration bureaux. In the course of land restitution,
land improvement systems that were located
on the lands of owners, were granted to the
owners free of charge. Twenty-two per cent of the
drainage systems had been transferred to land
owners by the end of 2000.
It is more benificial for land owners to manage
the land improvement systems collectively as a
single system can cover the lands of several owners.
The first land and water association (LWA) was
founded in 1993. Since 1995, the state has supported
the foundation and activities of LWAs. One
hundred LWAs had been registered by the end of
2000. For improved efficiency, local unions and a
Federation of Land and Water Association have
been established.
Another problem of Estonian agriculture is the
acidity of soils. The estimated area of soils in need
of liming is 200,000–300,000 ha. Acidic soils need
to be limed every five years. In the prices of 2000,
the liming of one hectare cost 800–2,500 kroons.
The state supports liming of soils in an average
amount of 14–17 million EEK a year.
Transition to a market economy
changed the structure of livestock
farming
The reduction in the total livestock production in
1993–1999 was greater than the reduction in total
plant production. Due to transitioning to new market
conditions, the relative share of agriculture decreased
and brought about structural changes in livestock
production. The changes are also reflected in domestic
and foreign demand for foodstuff (Table 5).
The number of sheep and goats and the number
of bovine animals have decreased the most
over the last ten years: 78% and 65% respectively.
The negative effect is also apparent in land
use: Pastures and grasslands have fallen out of
use; they are covered with weeds and will
eventually overgrow with bushes.
Dairy farming is the main source
of income for agricultural holdings
Dairy farming is the main source of income for
agricultural holdings despite the fact that the total
yield of milk has decreased 1.6 times in the last ten
years. The total milk yield in the year 2000 was
629,000 t (1,093,000 t in 1991) (Figure 2).
The total milk yield has decreased due to the
decrease in the number of bovine animals;
however, yields per cow have increased since 1994
and continue to grow.
Yields per cow are improving partly due to the
remaining herds consisting of the best performing
cattle and milk producers having started paying
more attention to balanced feed rations and to the
quality of feedstuff, particularly silage production.
TABLE 5.
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
(Source: ESO)
FIGURE 2.
'000 tonnes
Bovines
708,3
614,6
463,2
419,5
370,4
343,0
325,6
307,5
267,3
252,8
Number of animals as of 31 December ('000)
Pigs
798,6
541,1
424,3
459,8
448,8
298,4
306,3
326,4
285,7
300,2
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Milk ('000 t)
Sheep and goats
142,8
124,2
83,3
61,5
49,8
39,2
35,6
30,8
30,9
32,2
Horses
7,8
6,6
5,2
5,0
4,6
4,2
4,2
3,9
3,9
4,2
Yield per cow (kg/year)
Poultry
5 538,3
3 418,1
3 226,1
3 129,7
2 911,3
2 324,9
2 602,0
2 635,7
2 461,8
2366,4
5250
4500
3750
3000
2250
1500
750
0
kg/year
17