In 2023, there was a shift from the "sharp price increases" that defined the EU agricultural sector in 2021 and 2022 to a slowdown in growth, according to new data from Eurostat.

Last year, the average price of agricultural goods overall across the European Union increased by 2% compared to the previous year, while the average price of goods and services related to agriculture decreased by 5%.

Price increases were significant in some segments, such as olive oil (54%), potatoes, including seed potatoes (23%), pork products (22%), and eggs (20%), however, a notable decrease was recorded in cereals, including wheat, barley, corn, rye, and oats, which decreased by 26%.

On the other hand, the average price of fertilizers and soil improvement materials decreased by 23%, energy lubricants decreased by 12%, but the average price of plant protection products and pesticides increased by 9%.

Regarding potatoes in particular, an extensive drought across the entire bloc affected production levels in many countries, leading to price increases in Germany (49%), Slovakia (48%), and Croatia (44%).

Potato prices also declined in several markets, including Belgium (-18%), Cyprus (-14%), and Austria (-4%).

Meanwhile, fertilizer prices decreased in 22 out of the 26 countries for which data is available, with the most significant decrease recorded in Luxembourg (-46%), Sweden (-41%), and Finland (-39%). At the same time, prices were higher in Cyprus (14%), Malta (9%), Greece (6%), and Romania (3%).

Elsewhere, recent data from Eurostat found that the sold production of wine in the EU, including sparkling wine, port, and grape must, reached 16.1 billion liters in 2022.

The top three wine producers accounted for 83% of EU production, with Italy and Spain each contributing nearly 5.0 billion liters or 62% of the total production sold in the EU together.