
German farmers give asparagus and strawberries the ax – DW – 07/18/2025
German fields produced fewer strawberries and asparagus in 2025 than at any point in recent memory, the country's Federal Statistical Office said on Friday.
Experts have warned that the trend looks set to continue as rising costs make growing the crops increasingly unviable for farmers.
Preliminary data showed just 75,500 tons of open-field strawberries were harvested — the lowest level in 30 years and 4% below the already low 2024 figures. The asparagus harvest also hit a 15-year low, with only 98,900 tons collected in open fields, the smallest yield since 2010.
The slump is largely down to a shrinkage in the amount of land given over to growing both products.
In 2025, farmers planted 4% less land with strawberries and 6% less with asparagus.
Many growers say they can no longer cover rising costs — especially wages — through prices passed on to consumers.
"At the end of the day, we're all businesspeople," said Karsten Schmal, president of the Hessian Farmers' Association. "If the risk becomes too great, people stop growing these crops."
Growers like Georg Merlau, an asparagus farmer in Darmstadt, told the DPA news agency that only premium outlets, such as on-farm shops, offer prices that make production of the prized stalks viable. Merlau said he had already cut his asparagus acreage from 105 to 80 hectares, citing sizable annual increases in labor costs.
Germany's self-sufficiency in strawberries has fallen sharply, from 68% in 2015 to just 50% today, according to the Agricultural Market Information Company (AMI). One exception to the decline with strawberries is protected cultivation — berries grown in greenhouses or under high covers. Such setups offer longer seasons, easier harvesting while standing, and higher yields per hectare.
Strawberries and asparagus are rapidly turning into luxury items.
This year, white German asparagus cost consumers an average of €9.63 (roughly $11.22) per kilo, up 4% from last year. Strawberries averaged €6.86 per kilo between May and mid-July, nearly unchanged from 2024, but up 70% compared to 2015.
Demand for both foods remains great. They are highly seasonal and associated with the joys of summer and springtime.
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Asparagus is particularly beloved among Germans, with "Spargelzeit" (asparagus season) a cultural event marked by dedicated menus and roadside stands. Some German communities even have asparagus festivals, complete with the crowning of an Asparagus Queen.
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DW
26 minutes ago
- DW
Cum-Ex: Why Germany's biggest tax fraud scheme can continue – DW – 07/25/2025
So-called Cum-Cum and Cum-Ex tax schemes are still costing many European countries billions in lost revenue. In Germany, questions are mounting why the state is doing so little to stop them. The scandal regarding so-called Cum-Ex and Cum-Cum tax schemes first broke in 2001, and still to this very day exact figures about financial losses are hard to calculate. However, the sums must be enormous given the magnitude of the fraud and what's already been uncovered by the tax authorities of various countries. According to calculations by University of Mannheim in Germany, between 2000 and 2020 alone Germany lost nearly €29 billion ($34.1 billion) due to Cum-Cum fraud — the "little brother of Cum-Ex" as the university's top financial researcher Christoph Spengel once called it. Globally, the revenue loss is estimated at more than €140 billion. What's striking is that despite these tax fraud schemes being publicly known they seem to what you often hear from the authorities is that they are "not aware of that," says Anne Brorhilker. Brorhilker must know because she once was Germany's most prominent senior public prosecutor who brought numerous Cum-Ex cases to court. Speaking to DW, the tax lawyer by profession said she's still bound by a nondiclosure agreement with her former employee, the Cologne public prosecutor's office, and cannot discuss details of the agency's findings in public. But key whistleblowers, who are still working in the finance industry, had testified in court that these schemes are ongoing, and not only in Germany. Now working for nonprofit activist group Finanzwende (Financial Change), Brorhilker says Cum-Ex practices are relevant in Belgium, France, Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, Spain, and Luxembourg. University of Mannheim professor Christoph Spengel says Cum-Ex and Cum-Cum schemes are only possible because of a legal loophole, and understanding wherein the fraud lies is only possible when prosecutors look closer into how those deals are carried out. When German financial institutions — such as banks or investment funds — hold shares that pay dividends, they are required to pay capital gains tax. However, they can get that tax refunded, since they already pay corporate taxes. As foreign financial institutions holding German shares are not entitled to this refund, they've invented a workaround. Foreign institutions temporarily lend their German shares to a German financial institution shortly before the dividend payout deadline. In return, the foreign bank charges a securities lending fee. The German institution now claims the tax refund, then returns the shares to the foreign owner, and the resulting profit from the refund is split between the foreign and the domestic bank. The key legal loophole, Spengel told DW in an interview, is that these securities lending fees are not taxed in Germany or several other countries. In countries where such fees are taxed, Cum-Cum tax fraud doesn't exist. Spengel already warned about continuing Cum-Cum share deals back in 2016, but little seems to have changed. "A change in the law raised transaction costs, but the real legal loophole — and thus the potential for tax arbitrage — still exists," he said. Spengel has repeatedly called for a straightforward legal amendment to close the loophole, and argues the government could at least try to stop the fraud by reviewing refund claims more thoroughly before issuing payments. Cum-Cum deals are still not being effectively stopped, and past deals are rarely prosecuted, claims Anne Brorhilker. "For banks it's a safe bet, because Cum-Ex and Cum-Cum are part of what's called tech trades," she said, with profits being made "purely from tax effects" that are "completely immune to market fluctuations." "The only real risk is getting caught. And that risk stays low as long as authorities remain poorly equipped," she added, which was the case across Europe. According to Brorhilker, one problem is a lack of specialists who are capable of pursuing economic crimes and tax offenses. "There's a chronic shortage of staff in tax audits," she said, noting that in Germany prosecution is further complicated by a job rotation practice under which staff regularly switch departments or responsibilities. "In areas that require deep expertise, which can't be acquired quickly, this is totally counterproductive," said Brorhilker. Inadequate equippment is another weakness that shouldn't be "underestimated," especially since "the other side is very well equipped." This would include data exchange between authorities, as even "sending emails can be complicated" due to the fact that one agency prohibits encryption, while another mandates it. Video calls between departments, Brohrhilker said, are often impossible because each uses a different conference platform. As the fraudulent tax schemes don't stop at Germany's borders. international cooperation between tax authorities is "crucial" for Brorhilker, but often slow and mired in red tape. "In Europe's financial centers, there are especially strict confidentiality rules for lawyers, tax advisors, and auditors," she said, which were the result of "intense lobbying by the financial industry." The financial industry spends heavily to influence politics on both the level of the EU and national states. According to the Finanzwende nonprofit, it spends nearly €40 million annually on lobbying — more than the combined budgets of the auto and chemical industry groups spend on pushing their goals. Germany's parliament, the Bundestag, has currently registered 442 finance industry lobbyists which breaks down to nearly ten lobbyists for each of the 42 members of parliament's finance committee rersponsible for tax laws, financial market regulation, and banking supervision. Unfortunately, lobbyists are often successful, says Monika Heinold, who also works for Finanzwende. A former finance minister in the regional German state of Schleswig-Holstein, Heinold experienced an "intense time" in office from 2012 to 2024 — the period in which German prosecutors gradually exposed the extent of the Cum-Ex scandal. "I saw how lobbyists try to influence tax laws in their favor and block stricter regulations. Sadly, they're often heard," she recalled in an interview with DW. More recently, Finanzwende activists have started to criticize parliament's finance committee, because some of its lawmakers were found to be earning additional income from local savings banks or cooperative banks. "Several MPs hold seats on the boards of these institutions and receive four- to five-figure sums for doing so," Heinold told DW. And while the dubious, and sometimes openly fraudulant Cum-Cum deals continue to soak German state coffers, some brave prosecutors are at least trying to chase down the worst offenders and recover lost funds. Currently, there are 253 suspected cases under investigation in Germany involving a total of €7.3 billion.


DW
43 minutes ago
- DW
Germany updates: Volkswagen profits down amid Trump tariffs – DW – 07/25/2025
Meanwhile, German automobile giant Volkswagen has seen profits tumble as a result of US tariffs. Meanwhile, the number of deportations from Germany is up slightly compared to the first half of last year. DW has chip manufacturer Intel has abandoned plans to build a factory in the eastern German city of Magdeburg as it battles with heavy losses and job cuts domestically and fresh competition abroad. After announcing a $2.9-billion (€2.5-billion) second-quarter loss on Thursday, the California-based tech giant confirmed that it would "not be pursuing planned projects in Germany and Poland." The initial plans had involved the construction of a €30-billion chip production plant in Magdeburg, to be subsidized by the German government to the tune of around €10 billion. However, the plans were put on ice in November, with no specific reason given. 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"A great deal of effort is achieving very little – all while undermining EU law," claimed Gerald Knaus, chairman of the European Stability Initiative, in the Friday edition of German finance newspaper . Knaus also defended German migration policy under former Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) — which has come under severe attack from Merz and his current government. "Germany had irregular migration under control," he claimed. "The core elements of Merkel's policies after 2016 were correct, as shown by the sharp decrease in refugee numbers following the [2016] refugee deal between the European Union and Turkey. Indeed, Knaus warned that the current government's constant criticism of Merkel, who also headed up conservative-led coalitions, only serves to help the far-right. "The CDU is running from its own history and talking down its own success," he opined. "[Now], every time any crime is committed by a migrant, [the far-right AfD] can claim: the CDU is to blame." The number of deportations from Germany rose to more than 11,800 in the first half of this year, according to data released by the Interior Ministry. The figure, provided in response to a parliamentary question from a lawmaker from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, represents an increase of over 2,000 on the same period in 2024, during which around 9,500 deportations were carried out. The new conservative-led German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has promised a tougher approach to illegal migration, tightening border checks, clamping down on "secondary migration" within the European Union and resuming deportation flights to countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq. Earlier this month, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) joined his counterparts from Austria, Denmark, France, the Czech Republic and Poland in calling for a tougher European migration and asylum policy. "Effective returns are essential for maintaining trust in a balanced European migration policy," the ministers said in a joint statement. Welcome to DW's coverage of developments in Germany on Friday, July 25. As the weekend approaches, we'll keep you up to date on stories including: And remember: you can recap on yesterday's Germany news here.


DW
2 hours ago
- DW
Germany updates: Deportations up, Volkswagen profits down – DW – 07/25/2025
The number of deportations from Germany is up slightly compared to the first half of last year. Meanwhile, German automobile giant Volkswagen has seen profits tumble as a result of US tariffs. DW has automobile giant Volkswagen has posted a sharp drop in second-quarter profits, citing US tariffs, rising production costs and an increase in sales of electric vehicles with a smaller profit margin. Volkswagen profits dropped to just under €2.3 billion ($2.7 billion) in the second quarter of 2025, a 36.3% decrease on same period last year. The Wolfsburg-based concern said that its Porsche and Audi subsidiaries had performed particularly poorly and that sales in China were also down, but insisted the drop-off was largely in line with analysts' expectations. Chief executive Oliver Blume insisted that Volkswagen is operating in an "extremely challenging environment," while finance director Arno Antlitz said the results were actually "at the higher end" of the company's expectations. "But, in the end, what matters is the money which actually lands in the till," he said. "We've made tangible improvements in design, technology and quality," added Blume. "The order books are well-stocked." Nevertheless, the firm says it will stick to its restructuring plans which it intends to "implement decisively and accelerate where necessary." Volkswagen is expecting to cut 35,000 jobs by 2030. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video A leading Austrian migration researcher has criticized the German government's deportation policies, calling them a "bluff." "A great deal of effort is achieving very little – all while undermining EU law," claimed Gerald Knaus, chairman of the European Stability Initiative, in the Friday edition of German finance newspaper . Knaus also defended German migration policy under former Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) — which has come under severe attack from Merz and his current government. "Germany had irregular migration under control," he claimed. "The core elements of Merkel's policies after 2016 were correct, as shown by the sharp decrease in refugee numbers following the [2016] refugee deal between the European Union and Turkey. Indeed, Knaus warned that the current government's constant criticism of Merkel, who also headed up conservative-led coalitions, only serves to help the far-right. "The CDU is running from its own history and talking down its own success," he opined. "[Now], every time any crime is committed by a migrant, [the far-right AfD] can claim: the CDU is to blame." The number of deportations from Germany rose to more than 11,800 in the first half of this year, according to data released by the Interior Ministry. The figure, provided in response to a parliamentary question from a lawmaker from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, represents an increase of over 2,000 on the same period in 2024, during which around 9,500 deportations were carried out. The new conservative-led German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) has promised a tougher approach to illegal migration, tightening border checks, clamping down on "secondary migration" within the European Union and resuming deportation flights to countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq. Earlier this month, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) joined his counterparts from Austria, Denmark, France, the Czech Republic and Poland in calling for a tougher European migration and asylum policy. "Effective returns are essential for maintaining trust in a balanced European migration policy," the ministers said in a joint statement. Welcome to DW's coverage of developments in Germany on Friday, July 25. As the weekend approaches, we'll keep you up to date on stories including: And remember: you can recap on yesterday's Germany news here.