Portugal’s agricultural sector has shed 210,000 workers over the past three decades, yet productivity has more than doubled, according to a study by Consulai released today.
Over the last 30 years, the national workforce in agriculture has fallen from around 430,000 to 220,000, with four in every ten workers now foreign nationals. Despite this decline, output has strengthened significantly.
“Since 1995, the volume of agricultural labour has dropped from more than 430,000 to around 220,000 units, while Gross Value Added (GVA) remained stable until 2015 and has grown markedly over the past decade, pointing to a more productive sector increasingly geared towards value creation,” the agribusiness consultancy firm reported.
According to the report, Evolution of Labour in Agriculture in Portugal, productivity gains have been driven by mechanisation, irrigation, greater specialisation and more professionalised management practices.
However, between 2015 and 2023, agricultural employment rose from 165,000 to 180,000, accounting for 4.7% of total national employment.
The sector remains dominated by micro-enterprises with fewer than 10 employees, although the share of medium and large-scale farms has increased.
Foreign workers now make up more than 40% of the agricultural labour force, a proportion that has quadrupled since 2014 and has no parallel in any other sector of the Portuguese economy. The study notes that in intensive and seasonal crops, reliance on foreign labour is “critical”.
In terms of qualifications, 81.5% of agricultural workers have only completed basic education. Portuguese workers are disproportionately represented among the lowest education levels, while foreign workers tend to display “more diverse and higher qualifications”.
The family-based workforce is also ageing rapidly, with the average age rising from 46 in 1989 to 59 in 2023.
Between 2007 and 2023, average monthly earnings in the sector increased by 55% to €1,742. Workers with higher education earn, on average, €2,386, compared with €1,288 for those with only basic schooling.
Regionally, the Alentejo accounts for more than half of Portugal’s utilised agricultural area (UAA), but only 11.3% of the workforce.
By contrast, the Algarve and Beira Litoral regions record the highest productivity levels, exceeding €5,200 per hectare, despite their relatively small share of agricultural land.
Meanwhile, Trás-os-Montes and Beira Interior continue to rely on extensive farming models, characterised by a high number of small holdings and low productivity per hectare, “reflecting traditional structures, lower levels of mechanisation and a reliance on manual labour”.
The study draws on data from Portugal’s National Statistics Institute (INE), the Office for Strategy and Planning, the Bank of Portugal, and agricultural census sources.
Source: INE / Consulai
