World Grain - December 2007 - 18

COUNTRYFOCUS

Focus on
Sweden
Nation's grain sector dominated by
farmer-owned agribusiness giant
Lantmännen
by Chris Lyddon

NORWAY

DEEENMARK
NMARK
K
DENMARK

With a small population in a relatively large area, Sweden
has traditionally been able to feed itself. Although a significant
part of the country is north of the Arctic Circle, there is enough
fertile agricultural land to sustain a significant grain-producing
sector.
Sweden joined the European Union (E.U.) in 1995, and its
government has pushed for reform of E.U. farm policy. Although the cereals sector has experienced long-term stability,
helped by the high level of farmer ownership in the food industry, changes to the E.U.'s Common Agricultural Policy and the
sharp rise in prices around the world has forced the sector to
face new challenges.
Sweden's grains sector is dominated
by the farmer-owned giant Lantmännen.
Owned by 44,000 Swedish farmers, it has
13,000 employees and sales of $5 billion.
Its activities cover the entire food chain. It
SWEDEN
FINLAND
buys and sells grain, sells inputs to farmers
and is involved with plant breeding. It processes grain and produces bread.
ESTONIA
"Lantmännen makes around 65 percent
of the total purchases from farmers," said
Mikael Jeppsson, head of cereals at LanLATVIA
tmännen's agricultural division, Lantmännen Lantbru
Lantbruk. "We also have about 65 percent of the
domestic market. Sweden produces about a million
hectares of cereals. The crop in 2007 was 5.2 million
tonnes."
He put the average Swedish cereals crop at 4.2 million to 44.3 million tonnes. The International Grains Council's
(IGC) figure for 2006 was 4.5 million. According to the IGC, the
2007 crop included 2.4 million tonnes of wheat in 2007, along
with 800,000 tonnes of oats and 1.4 million tonnes of barley. The

Key Facts
Capital: Stockholm
Population: 9 million (July 2007 est.)
Religions: Lutheran 87%, other (includes Roman Catholic,
Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist) 13%
Location: Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf
of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and
Norway
Government: Constitutional monarchy; Chief of State:
King Carl Gustaf XVI (since Sept. 19, 1973); Head of government: Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt (since Oct. 5,
2006)
Economy: Aided by peace and neutrality for the entire
20th century, Sweden has achieved an enviable standard
of living under a mixed system of high-tech capitalism and
extensive welfare benefits. It has a modern distribution system, excellent internal and external communications, and a
skilled labor force. Timber, hydropower and iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy heavily oriented
toward foreign trade. Privately owned firms account for
about 90% of industrial output, of which the engineering
sector accounts for 50% of output and exports. Agriculture
accounts for only 1% of GDP and 2% of employment. The
government's commitment to fiscal discipline resulted in
a substantial budgetary surplus in 2001, which was cut
by more than half in 2002 due to the global economic
slowdown, declining revenue and increased spending. The
Swedish central bank (the Riksbank) focuses on price stability with its inflation target of 2%. Growth remained sluggish in 2003 but picked up during 2004-06. Presumably
because of generous sick-leave benefits, Swedish workers
report in sick more often than other Europeans. In September 2003, Swedish voters turned down entry into the euro
system due to concern about the impact on the economy
and sovereignty.
GDP per capita: $32,200 (PPP2006 est.); inflation 1.4%;
unemployment 5.6% (2004 est.)
Currency: Krona; 6.33461 Kronors equal 1 U.S. dollar (Nov.
16, 2007)
Exports: $153.7 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.); machinery 35%,
motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron and
steel products, chemicals
Imports: $132.8 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.): machinery, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, motor vehicles, iron
and steel; foodstuffs, clothing
Major crops/agricultural products: Barley, wheat, sugar
beets; meat, milk
Agriculture: 1.4% of GDP and 2% of the labor force
Internet: Code. .se; 3.318 million hosts and 6.981 million
users
Source: CIA World Factbook

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