Double concentration explaining the outstanding increase in Spanish crop production

Abstract

Aim of study: To evaluate the changes in Spanish agricultural production since 1950s in a context of intense transformations in terms of the regional and crop composition. Area of study: Spanish provinces during the second half of the twentieth century. Material and methods: We use index decomposition analysis to evaluate the changes in the value and volume of crop production, as well as the role of product composition and the regional distribution of production. Main results: Spanish agriculture have focused on certain regions in the south or in the east of Spain. Some products like vegetables or fruits have a positive prices and composition effects, encouraging the production in these provinces. Research highlights: We found a ‘double concentration’: Spanish agriculture has increasingly tended to produce high value-added products, such as vegetables, fruit and olive oil. On the other hand, crop production is concentrated in the southern and eastern provinces of Spain.

Keywords

• spain, agricultural sector, crop production, agricultural development, index decomposition, regional analysis