Friday, 28 August 2015 16:43
HAMBURG: Germany’s 2015 wheat harvest will fall by about 5 percent to 26.4 million tonnes compared with last year when there were record yields in some areas.
But the crop had nevertheless achieved a good average size, the German agriculture ministry said on Friday in its first provisional crop forecasts.
A fall had been generally expected following an exceptionally large harvest in 2014. But the 2015 estimate beat the 25.70 million tonnes forecast by Germany’s association of farm cooperatives in early August. “The quality of the 2015 grain crop is highly satisfactory,” the agriculture ministry report said.
“Wheat has generally higher protein content than last year.” This was despite German grain crops suffering from unusually dry weather which lasted into the early summer, German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt said in the report.
The winter rapeseed crop is forecast to fall 20.1 percent to 4.98 million tonnes, it said. A big drop had also been expected due to a smaller planted area, dry early summer weather and after last year’s very large crop.
Germany’s total 2015 grains harvest of all types is estimated at 44.6 million tonnes, down 4.7 percent on the year, the ministry said.
The grains harvest is now almost complete apart from a few small areas that have traditionally cut late, it said.
The winter barley crop, used for animal feed, will rise 1.8 percent on the year to 9.6 million tonnes after better than expected yields, it said.
Spring barley, used for beer and malt production, will fall 1.8 percent to 2.0 million tonnes and the maize (corn) crop will fall 30.5 percent to 3.5 million tonnes.
