Report: Farmers in OECD countries more reliant on subsidies last year

FARMERS in OECD countries were more reliant on subsidies to augment their income in 2009 as prices for agricultural commodities declined.

A report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development published yesterday noted that support to farmers accounted for 22% of their gross receipts, up from 21% in 2008. The overall estimate of support by the 31 member states amounted to $252.5 billion (€200bn) last year, down from $262bn in 2008.

The FAO World Food Price Index of agricultural commodity prices fell to an average 150.9 points last year, compared with an average level of 190.6 in 2008. This is the first increase in the support level after a steady decline since 2004. “Higher commodity prices in 2007 and 2008 were behind falls in the measured support in those years, and return to 2007-level prices reversed this trend for 2009,” the report stated. The level of support in OECD countries for the 2007 to 2009 period ranged from less than 1% of farmers’ incomes in New Zealand to 61% in Norway, it said.