Field production

Crop production in Slovakia comprises approximately 8,300 hectares of EU-subsidised land. A minor part of the land is owned by FirstFarms, whilst 5,600 hectares of land is owned by approximately 5,000 land owners and approximately 2,000 hectares is administered by SPF (Slovakian land fund), which administers land with unknown owners. Additionally, some of the land is owned by churches and district authorities. FirstFarms has preemptive rights to buy the land if legislation is changed to allow SPF, churches and district authorities to sell farming land.

All land not owned by FirstFarms is farmed based on land rental contracts and these contracts are entered into for terms of 5, 10 or 15 years. Approximately half the land is rented on 5-year contracts, whilst over 620 hectares is rented on 15-year rental contracts. The rental contracts are currently being restructured into 15-year contracts. Renting of land is graduated based on the terms of the rental contract and the annual land rent for the contracts is approximately DKK 300 per hectare. A call option is incorporated into some of the contracts.

Considerable investments have been made in agricultural equipment and machinery during FirstFarms' operations and ownership in Slovakia, including new equipment for the production of fodder, transport logistics, tractors and equipment for land preparation. Additionally, old and worn-out material and farming equipment has been disposed of. The investment in mechanisation since the acquisition amounts to approximately DKK 30 million, with the main focus on tractors, fine cutters, loading machines, compound feed wagons and transportation equipment.

Machinery in Slovakia (pdf)

Field plan for 2011-2012 (pdf)

The crop composition includes cash crops consisting of rape, wheat, malt barley and maize as well as crops for fodder consisting of maize and lucerne silage, whole seed, peas, beets and hay. Purchasing of raw goods and the sale of products from vegetable production are done through several major feedstuff companies operating on the market.

The company's policy is to keep extra fodder in stores sufficient for 3-6 months consumption in addition to the annual feed budget; in this way the greatest possible security is achieved for fluctuations in the fodder production. Concentrated fodder, e.g. in the form of soya and rape, is mainly purchased on annual contracts.