Agriculture in Italy

Agriculture in Italy, one of the economic sectors of the country, has developed since the 5th millennium BC. In the 20th century, Italy transformed from a predominantly agricultural country to an industrial country. As a result, the agricultural sector (including silviculture and fishing) has seen employment drop dramatically, from 43% (in 1860) to 3.8% (in 2000) of the total, a minimal percentage in the national economic framework.

According to the last national agricultural census, in 2010 there was 891,000 people employed in agriculture, mostly men (71.3% of the total) and resident in Southern Italy (46.8% of the total). In 2010 the Italian agricultural area was equal to 17,800,000 ha (43,984,758 acres), of which 12,700,000 ha (31,382,383 acres) are used, and is concentrated above all in Southern Italy (63%).