In 1990 wheat was the leading Portuguese grain crop, followed by corn, which was grown mainly on the small farms of the north. Rice, although occupying less than one-tenth of the area of either wheat or corn, was a remarkable grain crop. Potatoes and corn silage were found throughout the north. Portugal’s leading edible tree crop was olive oil. In spite of the importance of olive oil for the economy and the increasing production of other edible oilseeds, such as safflower and sunflower, Portugal was a net importer of vegetable fats and oils. The nation produced a mixture of horticultural crops, some of which were exported. As an example, Portugal was a leading world exporter of tomato paste.

Although grazing land was scarce, farm animal constituted a remarkable share of total agricultural production. Because of growing domestic demand for animal products and low farm animal productivity, Portugal had to import about 10 % of its meat requirements. Three-fourths of the mainland’s milk was produced in the northwest’s coastal areas. The mainland’s farm animal numbers in 1987 included over 1.3 million head of cattle, over 5 million sheep, nearly 3 million pigs, and 745,000 goats. About 18 million chickens supplied the nation’s poultry industry that year.