News

19.06.2008

Czech Agriculture

Czech Agriculture

Traditional agricultural products

Czech agriculture has a long tradition, though the Czech Republic is more of an industrial country. Due to its climatic conditions, many kinds of vegetables and fruits prosper here, as well as cattle.

Among the traditional agrarian products of agricultural production are:

Corn
Potatoes
White beet
Hops and wine grapes
Fruit

Corn

There was the most wheat of corn cultivated in 2004 (5,042,523 metric tons), which grows on almost 870,000 hectares of earth in the Czech Republic. Other traditional grains include barley (2,330,582 metric tons in 2004), rye (313,348 metric tons in 2004) and oats (227,017 metric tons in 2004). Corn is the base for production of baked goods, the most popular of which are bread, rolls and sweet pastries.

Potatoes

In 2004 more than 551 tons of potatoes were harvested. Potatoes are the basis of many Czech meals in various forms. They have even managed to attain a place at the traditional Christmas table in the form of potato salad.

White beet

White beet, which is used in technical products mainly for sugar production, is also a frequent crop on Czech fields. In 2004, more than 3.5 million tons of white beet were harvested.

Hops and wine grapes

Hops-fields comprise 5,838 hectares in the Czech Republic. Czech hops-fields yielded 6,311 metric tons of hops in 2004, which is one of the key raw materials in production of the popular Czech beer.

Productive vineyards spread out in an area of 12,697 hectares in the Czech Republic; they are most common in South Moravia, where climatic conditions are most convenient for this crop.

Fruit

The traditional harvest of fruit usually consists of various kinds of early, late and winter apples, pears, plums and cherries.

Among the traditional agrarian products in the area of breeding are:

Pigs
Cattle and associated processing of milk
Poultry

Pigs

Pigs are bred mainly for a large volume of good-quality meat but Czech breeding also uses their fat. The average weight of a slaughtered pig is around 105 kilograms.

Pigs are bred not only in large groups but also for personal demand of agrarians. The ritual of slaughtering the domestic pig, the so-called pig-sticking, is a Czech village tradition. All pigs must pass strict hygiene inspections before being slaughtered to exclude the presence of any substances harmful to man.

Oxen

Of cattle, the most common in the Czech Republic are cows, which are among the most useful livestock next to pigs. They are bred for their meat and milk, but in the past also their hides and tails were used. The average weight of a slaughtered ox is around 600 kilograms.

All oxen must pass strict hygiene inspections before being slaughtered to exclude the presence of any substances harmful to man, especially in respect to Creutzfeld-Jacobs disease. Up to the present day, there have been 20 cows in total confirmed with this disease in the Czech Republic, but no humans were infected.

Production of milk is around 194,201 liters per year. The most popular milk products are pasteurized milk, butter and processed cheeses.

Poultry

As per tradition, Czech agrarians breed hens, geese, turkey-hens and ducks. Breeding increases with the increasing popularity of the so-called white meat. Besides the already-mentioned species, less often you can see e.g. guinea-hens.

In regard to the threat of bird flu, it is best to avoid any contact with people with so infected animals. With regards to the habits of cooking poultry, the transfer of infection from animals is not very likely. Meat is consumed almost exclusively heat-treated in the Czech Republic, the same as animal blood.

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