Greek farms are among the least likely in the European Union to use “precision farming,” according to new data from Eurostat. Just one in 18 farms in the country applies these techniques, a rate far below the bloc’s average.
Precision farming covers a set of modern methods. These include robotics for plant protection, band spraying, variable rate application, crop monitoring and soil analysis.
Across the EU, about 17.6% of farms use at least one of these methods. In Greece, the share is only 5.6%. That ranking places Greece 21st among the 27 EU member states.
The gap grows even wider when measured by land instead of farm count. Eurostat data show precision farming covers about 44% of farmland across the EU. In Greece, that figure drops to roughly 9.5%. Only Cyprus, at under 1%, scores lower on this measure.
Greek farms lag behind as EU embraces precision farming
The numbers come from a wider Eurostat study on digital farming in Europe. Researchers found that about 43% of EU farms had internet access in 2023. Countries such as Denmark, Germany, Slovakia, Latvia, Czechia and Austria reported rates above 90%.
Farm management software, used to plan and track daily work, reached about 11% of EU farms. France led that category, with adoption near 60%. Robotics remained rare across the bloc, found on just 7% of farms.
Luxembourg, Finland and Estonia posted the highest rates of precision farming by land area, each above 75%. Greece landed in a lower group alongside Romania, with both countries reporting adoption between 10% and 15% of farmland.
EU to continue tracking digital farming progress
The findings show that Greek farms and precision farming still have a long way to go before catching up with the rest of the continent. Large farms in France and Germany have moved quickly toward sensors, software and automated tools.
Smaller farms, common in Greece and other southern and eastern European countries, still rely mainly on older, traditional methods.
Eurostat plans to keep tracking digital tools in agriculture through its regular farm surveys, offering a clearer view of how European farming keeps changing in the years ahead.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
