The European Commission estimates a lower grain harvest than last year, and Romania will have production decreases in wheat, corn and barley.
The latest forecast from the European Commission explains how weather conditions were not as good for farmers as last year, and they could get low yields per hectare for wheat, corn, triticale, barley, oats and potatoes. "The lack of precipitation generated a good start to the sowing campaign for spring crops, but the rains that fell afterwards softened the soil. Plant development in summer crops is slow in the first part of May due to low temperatures. Winter crops show a moderate development", explain the specialists of the European Commission.
Romania could have the second largest drop in wheat production in Europe, up to 12% compared to last year. A harvest of 4,2 tons per hectare is expected, after the national production in 2018 was 10,27 million tons. And for barley, Romania will be among the few countries with smaller quantities in 2019 compared to 2018. The European Commission estimates a decrease of 9% for this crop, up to 4,1 tons per hectare. The decrease will be greater in Estonia (minus 8%) and Portugal (minus 11%), given that, on average, European farmers will obtain yields of 4,9 tons per hectare, 7,9% more than in 2018.
