Official Statistics

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: Office for National Statistics, Open Geography Portal

Key statistics for England

• Total Income from Farming (TIFF)^{[footnote 1]} in England in 2023 was £4.5 billion. TIFF decreased in all 8 of England’s regions with an average decrease of 21% between 2022 and 2023 (Figure 1.2). The largest contributor to England’s 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’s 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’s holdings) and general cropping (21% of England’s holdings) farms. Nevertheless, the prevalence of different farm types can vary considerably across England’s 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 £96,100 per farm (Table 1.4). The North East had the highest average FBI (£193,600 per farm) while the South West had the lowest (£62,800 per farm).
• In 2023, the South West had the highest proportion of England’s 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’s casual labour (29%).

Figure 1.2: Total Income from Farming (TIFF) in 2022 and 2023 (£ 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 (£ 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:

1. Proportions are respective to the total output value plus direct payments for each region.

2. Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.

3. To improve clarity, the item “Inseparable non-agricultural activities” has been renamed “Diversification” 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	≥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:

1. “ha” means “hectares”

2. 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:

1. Arable includes arable crops, uncropped arable land and temporary grass.

2. Rented land must be rented for at least one year.

Table 1.2: Crop area in 2023 as a % of England’s 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:

1. Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.

2. Further data notes on crops can be found below the relevant tables in the statistical dataset for England’s regional breakdown of the structure of the agricultural industry at June.

Table 1.3: Livestock numbers in 2023 as a % of England’s 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:

1. Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.

2. Cattle numbers relate to commercial holdings only.

3. 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:

1. Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.

2. “Other” refers to unclassified farm types.

Table 1.4: Farm Business Income in 2022/23 (£ per farm)

Region	All farm types	Cereals	General cropping	Horticulture	Dairy	Grazing livestock	Mixed	Specialist pigs	Specialist poultry
North East	193,600 (±119,900)	334,200 (±271,700)	[x]	[x]	[x]	57,200 (±26,500)	192,700 (±109,600)	[x]	[x]
North West	96,600 (±27,400)	123,700 (±83,400)	55,000 (±75,400)	[x]	282,400 (±88,600)	31,100 (±13,000)	33,600 (±49,700)	[x]	146,000 (±204,200)
Yorkshire and the Humber	79,600 (±23,300)	111,500 (±50,500)	170,300 (±55,000)	[x]	197,600 (±68,000)	13,800 (±8,400)	78,300 (±99,900)	117,300 (±60,000)	96,800 (±154,900)
East Midlands	124,400 (±32,000)	153,000 (±57,900)	180,100 (±115,900)	[x]	245,100 (±89,300)	20,300 (±9,000)	52,100 (±32,800)	[x]	[x]
West Midlands	87,100 (±21,100)	106,700 (±46,800)	61,000 (±68,800)	165,200 (±284,400)	186,700 (±58,600)	22,900 (±14,400)	62,900 (±23,400)	104,100 (±46,600)	54,300 (±35,800)
East of England	122,200 (±34,700)	126,900 (±48,300)	177,100 (±88,500)	50,700 (±115,500)	[x]	6,200 (±28,800)	117,700 (±156,400)	109,200 (±87,000)	[x]
South East (including London)	102,700 (±31,300)	179,700 (±76,100)	200,700 (±214,600)	81,700 (±78,300)	233,500 (±90,800)	20,900 (±10,200)	110,900 (±75,700)	[x]	[x]
South West	62,800 (±14,300)	128,400 (±57,700)	28,700 (±32,500)	78,700 (±114,900)	225,200 (±58,000)	21,200 (±6,600)	39,400 (±19,700)	-22,800 (±89,800)	86,900 (±67,200)
England	96,100 (±9,000)	150,400 (±24,700)	125,200 (±35,900)	95,600 (±59,800)	229,200 (±28,200)	22,900 (±4,100)	68,000 (±19,600)	67,900 (±42,300)	105,900 (±51,500)

Source: Defra, Farm Business Survey (regional breakdown not published elsewhere)

Notes:

1. “[x]” means “not available”.

2. The Farm Business Survey year runs from March to February.

3. Excludes farms with less than 25,000 euros of standard output.

4. Values in parentheses indicate the 95% confidence intervals.

5. Values are rounded to the nearest £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:

1. Proportions may not sum to 100% due to rounding.

2. Total labour includes farmers, partners, directors, spouses, salaried managers, regular and casual workers.

3. Casual workers are those usually employed for less than 20 weeks of the year.

4. Number of workers per farm calculations are averages based on the total number of farm holdings in the region.

5. Part time workers are those employed for less than 39 hours a week.

6. 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’s guidance note. For further information about the June Survey of Agriculture and Horticulture please visit our survey notes and guidance page on GOV.UK.

“Region” in this statistical notice refers to International Territorial Level 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 GOV.UK.

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 GOV.UK.

English county data for farm accounts from the Farm Business Survey can be found on the Farm Business Survey web page.

Section 4: Contact details

Responsible statistician: Thomas Pearson

Team: Farming Statistics - Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Email: [email protected]

For media queries between 9am and 5pm on weekdays:

Telephone: 0330 041 6560

Email: [email protected]

1. Total Income from Farming (TIFF) is the net income to farms once costs have been accounted for, so is calculated as “outputs & subsidies” minus “inputs & costs”. More information on aggregate agricultural accounts can be found on GOV.UK. ↩

2. 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 GOV.UK. ↩

3. 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 GOV.UK. ↩