Shrub berry acreage slightly down in Thuringia
Total acreage fell by 5 hectares (or 3 percent) compared to 2016. In contrast, the total harvest increased by 96 tonnes (22 percent). Essential for the total harvest increase was the good black elderberry harvest. At 351 tonnes, this was 118 tonnes above the previous year's level. It was also the largest yield of black elderberry since the beginning of the survey in 2012. The acreage totaled 85 hectares, one hectare less than in the previous year.
Blackcurrants reached a total of 160 tonnes last year. Both the yield and the harvest were at the previous year's level. The acreage decreased slightly by 3 hectares or 4 percent. Overall, black elder and blackcurrants accounted for nearly 90 percent of the total shrub berry area. The remaining shrub berries such as red and white currants, raspberries or gooseberries were cultivated on a total of 16 hectares.
Eight farms with shrub berry cultivation operated according to the criteria of organic farming in 2017, on almost 68 hectares. This means 61 tons (11 percent) of the Thüringer shrub berry harvest last year were produced organically.
Across Germany, around 40 100 tonnes of shrubbery were harvested on 8,868 hectares. Thuringia’s share was 1.9 percent regarding the acreage and 1.3 percent regarding the yield.
Source: Statistik Thüringen