Crops and livestock in the East of England enjoyed a turnover of £3.445billion in 2012, according to latest figures.

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) says the region made £1.933bn from crops, and £1.132bn from livestock in 2012, and that after input costs are taken into account, the region’s farm income was £845m - more than any other region in England.

Overall, the figures show the short-term trend for the region’s farm income is upwards, although it was down by about 4% on 2011 levels.

Turnover for the region was up by £46m, or 1.4%, on 2011, when it stood at £3.399bn. However, once costs or inputs are taken into account, farm income fell slightly from £883m in 2011.

The 4.3% drop in overall farm income in the region was affected by some increased input costs - although some items, such as seeds and fertiliser costs - fell from 2011 levels. At the same time, energy, chemicals and animal feed costs all went up.

The gross value of farming to the region’s economy was estimated at about 1.1%.

Across England as a whole, agriculture’s turnover was £18bn, made up of £7.6bn from crops and £8.862 from livestock in 2012 and farm income was £3.802bn.