REGIONAL DIFFERENCES IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION POTENTIAL IN THE EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES

The article discusses differences in agricultural production potential and resource productivity (land, labour and capital) in the European Union countries. The aim of study was to evaluate regional differences in the productive potential of the EU agri-food sector. The analysis was conducted based on EUROSTAT data for 2013. In the first part of the study, selected parameters describing the productive potential of the agri-food sector in the EU countries were identified based on an analysis of statistical data. Then data were analysed with the use of selective descriptive statistics, including the arithmetic mean, median, minimum value, maximum value, as well as measures of statistical dispersion - range and coefficient of variation (CV). The results revealed considerable disproportions in productive potential of agriculture across the EU, which can be attributed to the characteristic features of the evaluated countries. The greatest variations were noted in land productivity, whereas the differences in capital and labour productivity were far less pronounced. The countries that joined the EU in 2004 and 2007 differed considerably from the EU-15 Member States in land, labour and capital productivity.