Challenges and prospects of Greece’s primary sector

Serkos Haroutounian – Professor of Chemistry at the Laboratory of Human and Animal Physiology & Nutrition, Agricultural University of Athens 

Throughout the long history of Hellenism, the primary sector has consistently been the only large-scale productive sector of the economy. Agriculture has been the timeless common denominator linking all the societies across the territorial domains where Hellenism thrived, and it has significantly contributed to the productive structure of the country’s agricultural land and to shaping the rural landscape.

This longstanding relationship is recorded in numerous accounts, beginning with the Homeric epics and Hesiod (8th century BC) in “Works and Days,” later systematised by Aristotle (4th century BC, “On Animals,” “On the Heavens,” etc.) and his student Theophrastus (4th-3rd century BC, “On the Causes of Plants,” “On the History of Plants”). Not much later, in the 3rd century AD, Athenaeus, in “The Deipnosophists,” introduced the concept of appellation of origin in describing dishes and agricultural products. This long tradition continued in Byzantium with the Geoponika, a collection of 20 books compiled in the 10th century AD at the initiative of Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos.

The flexibility, adaptability, and effectiveness of agriculture throughout the evolution of Hellenism have been proven many times over the centuries. Although the transition to the industrial age reduced the economic importance of the primary sector and shifted wealth toward industry and services, Greece’s primary sector responded to the new conditions and soon turned toward the production of new landmark products like raisins and cotton. At the same time, it incorporated and developed crops from the New World – most notably tobacco, which, in Greek soil and through traditional cultivation and processing practices, evolved into oriental-type tobacco. In Greece, with the aid of traditional farming practices, vegetables and fruits from the New World were quickly improved and adapted into local varieties and integrated into daily diets to such an extent that today they are considered emblematic components of the Mediterranean diet (e.g., tomato, potato). Some, like the Santorini cherry tomato and the potatoes of Naxos and Nevrokopi, have been certified for their geographical origin (as PDO or PGI).

Today, two centuries after the formation of the modern Greek state, agriculture remains one of the main pillars of the economy and tradition – a timeless bridge between generations. The contribution of the primary sector and its processing account for 6.6% of the country’s GDP, compared to the EU average of 3.5%. The significance of agriculture’s role in the economy is also highlighted by the fact that, before 2010, it accounted for 4.9% of GDP. This means that during the years of the crisis, agriculture’s contribution to Greece’s GDP rose by 35%, reflecting the resilience of its impact, which even saw a small absolute increase during a period of significant decline in GDP. Agriculture’s contribution to employment is even greater, with 465,000 people working in the primary sector. Add the approximately 120,000 workers in agri-food processing and the total exceeds 15% of the country’s workforce – compared to the EU average of 6.6%.

However, maintaining or increasing agriculture’s contribution to the Greek economy requires significant efforts to modernise the sector. This modernisation must be achieved through a mix of policies incorporating modern practices, innovations and digital technologies, alongside actions that capitalise on certain traditional advantages such as rich biodiversity, tradition, and the uniqueness of products. These policies must align with the CAP’s conditions and requirements for increased productivity, sustainable development and the adoption of environmentally friendly farming and production techniques.

To this end, it is crucial to rationally document the current situation in relation to the challenges, chronic problems and weaknesses, and potential advantages of Greek agriculture. This documentation identified the following key issues:

1. Fragmentation of farmland: 77.3% of agricultural holdings are smaller than 5 hectares, and only 36% of farmland belongs to professional farmers. The remainder belongs to a mixed group including pensioners, professionals, internal and external migrants, the state and the Church.
2. Ageing of the farming population: 61% of persons heading farming operations are over 55 years old. Lack of generational renewal in the sector is mainly attributed to the social downgrading of the status and prestige of farmers.
3. Change in the nature of farm work: The nature of modern farming has shifted from family-run to business-oriented. To meet the demands of the farmer-entrepreneur role, farmers must have proper training in and experience and knowledge of commerce and marketing to promote their products. Additionally, employment in the modern primary sector requires specialised knowledge of new technological equipment. Finally, most farm labourers are untrained, and the vast majority lacks the educational background needed to assimilate this new knowledge and technology. Thus, a major obstacle is the very low percentage of workers with agricultural training – only 6.8% have received full agricultural training, compared to the EU average of 24.2%.
4. Agricultural biodiversity: The majority of Greece’s rich biodiversity has not yet been registered in the national catalogue of cultivated species, and thus is cannot be utilised. Greek agriculture currently relies heavily on the use of imported propagation material.
5. Climate change: Climate change is causing unexpected, intense and short-lived local weather phenomena, with particularly destructive consequences for agricultural activity. Greece is among the regions expected to be significantly affected by climate change, with rising temperatures, reduced rainfall, etc., creating an urgent need to adopt relevant measures.

Additional challenges include:

• high dependency on subsidies, which account for 54% of the average agricultural income;
• limited adoption of new technologies;
• ageing of the agricultural machinery fleet.

Along with documenting the current situation, the design of new development policies for forming a sustainable and long-term perspective – beyond policies for incorporating modern practices, innovations, and digital capabilities – should also include actions for:

• capitalising on certain traditional advantages, such as rich biodiversity, long-standing tradition, and the uniqueness of products,
• preserving the environment, and
• recognising agriculture as an activity with strong social roots that set it apart from other sectors of the economy.

Finally, it is important to accept the prospect that the future of Greek agriculture is now tied to the CAP, which has also evolved to adapt to modern challenges and to meet the demands of contemporary society for the primary sector.Thus, the future outlook for agriculture in Greece must now be shaped as a combination of CAP specifications with the unique characteristics of Greek agriculture and the traditional practices and perceptions deeply rooted in the Greek agricultural sector.

Based on this rationale, actions should be taken for:

1. Creation of new forms of cooperative structures: This will help eliminate long-standing weaknesses related to
   • fragmented landholdings by encouraging collaboration among diverse groups of owners. The goal is to achieve economies of scale in inputs, machinery, production means, etc., and to promote and strengthen the institution of “Contract Farming,”
   • increase the volume of production to enable better management, certification, promotion, and marketing of the produced goods, and facilitate access to cheaper and more flexible financial instruments.
2. Upgrading the social role of farmers and generational renewal: The effort to rejuvenate the farming population hinges on making farming more attractive to young people. To improve the indicator, policies must be implemented to enhance the farmer’s social role, increase expected income, and establish the role of farmer-entrepreneur.
3. Education and training for those entering the primary sector: Integration into the modern primary sector requires that active farmers be able to absorb new technological developments and knowledge that will help them succeed in their upgraded role as farmer-entrepreneurs. To this end, training programmes must be revised to cover modern means of agricultural production, such as precision agriculture for more efficient use of natural resources, green certification for the integration of environmentally friendly sustainable practices on farms, and the rational use of plant protection products. For such training to succeed, much of it has to take place in the field.

For farm labourers, specialised programs should be created depending on the production sector they are working in. Finally, for the agricultural advisory system to succeed, it is essential that advisers be continuously informed about new EU directives and regulations, technological innovations, financial data for the funding of agricultural holdings, and market demand for, commercial prospects of and marketing processes for agricultural products.

4. Recording and utilisation of agricultural biodiversity and creation of native propagation material: The process of identifying, describing and registering varieties in the national and European catalogue of cultivated species is the starting point for producing certified propagation material, ending the loss of valuable genetic resources and protecting the country from importation of quarantine plant pathogens. Improving domestic plant material is a significant development challenge, as it will offer Greek agriculture more resilient propagation material with increased productivity and better adaptation to the country’s soil and climate conditions, reduce dependence on imported material, and save the foreign currency required for its import.
5. Production, certification and marketing of high value-added products: The inherent characteristics of Greek agriculture (diverse soil and climate conditions, rich biodiversity, and limited land area) – combined with its long history, unique tradition, and the notable distinctiveness of Greek agricultural products and foods – clearly point to a shift toward quality and innovation as the only way forward. The goal is to produce and market high value-added quality products and foods that are certified with the appropriate European quality and geographical indication labels (PDO, PGI, TSG). This action will give traditional products broad recognition and transform them from agricultural goods into business products. National quality labels should also be developed and expanded, with standards that reflect modern consumer trends for safe and healthy food and production processes that do not use pesticides, hormones, antibiotics or genetically modified organisms. Finally, there is an urgent need to leverage traditional national advantages, such as areas included in the Natura 2000 Network (21% of Greek territory), which should be used for the production of natural, high-quality products. Likewise, traditional farming practices – such as extensive livestock farming – should be employed to produce high value-added products favoured by modern consumers.
6. Climate crisis: The main policy responses to climate change must focus on:
   • mitigating the phenomenon by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, optimising  the input chain, using alternative energy sources, and replacing/improving agricultural machinery;
   • installing early warning systems, designing and implementing restructuring measures, creating exclusion or viable cultivation zones (based on the plant, variety and soil/climate conditions), and introducing new crops suited to the new climate conditions.
7. Carbon footprint: Calculating the carbon sequestration balance of agricultural holdings, primarily through perennial tree crops, and subsequently selling carbon dioxide rights on the voluntary carbon market is expected to provide farmers with significant additional income. At the same time, it will serve as an incentive to maintain or expand their farms and plantations.
8. Adoption of circular economy principles: By-products of agri-industrial processes are produced at specific locations and times of the year, in large quantities and with stable composition that is rich in natural compounds. They are thus an important raw material for the development of biorefineries for the production of food, animal feed, chemical products, materials and biofuels through environmentally friendly processes. What is more, these agri-industrial by-products contain secondary metabolites – a category of highly bioactive compounds with notable antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer and cardioprotective properties and high added value. Their extraction as pure compounds or extracts is a very profitable process and a foundation for producing natural, over-the-counter medicines, cosmetics, dietary supplements, food additives, etc.
9. Creation of new financial tools: The goal is more rational funding of agricultural enterprises through guaranteed loans to professional farmers using new financial instruments to support the entry of new farmers by enabling them to purchase farmland and agricultural equipment. It is also important to develop and expand the financial tool of “Contract Farming” to meet the requirements of the new CAP in areas such as precision agriculture.
10. Digitalisation of farming: Beyond the digital technology applications included in individual policies, it is necessary to create a comprehensive information system that provides farmers with real-time, evaluated, sustainable solutions to various unpredictable problems that may arise during cultivation. This digital system, functioning as a personalised service platform, could decisively contribute to maximising yield per hectare, reducing the environmental and economic cost of operations, ensuring the safety and quality of agricultural products, and supporting aggressive marketing and promotional strategies.
11. Linking with tourism: The multifunctional character of agriculture must be highlighted in conjunction with the country’s tourism appeal and 32 million visitors. This connection can operate on two levels: The first relates to the agricultural landscape and its significant role in shaping the tourism product. The second involves incorporating agricultural products into local traditional gastronomy by highlighting their history, distinct qualities and health benefits. This creates a strong connection between landscape, food products and gastronomy, which is promoted to visitors and transforms them into customers. Necessary conditions for the success of this strategy are: a) the development of certification labels for the quality of these products, and b) the creation of online shops through which visitors can access these products even after returning to their home countries.

The lines above attempt to present the data related to the primary sector and its role during the repeated economic crises faced by the country, serving as a stable foundation for overcoming difficulties and entering the next development cycle. History suggests that modern Greek agriculture will play a similar role as part of the broader economic effort to respond to the technological revolution and transition to the digital age. The primary sector, having learned from past successes and failures, must now harness the comparative advantages accrued over the centuries and, with financial support from the CAP and the Recovery Fund, look toward the future with optimism.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s personal opinions and do not reflect the views or opinions of the Ministry of Rural Development and Food.