France´s farm ministry cut its forecast of this year´s grain maize crop to 15.2 million tonnes
Late sowings and slow growth in spring followed by hot, dry conditions in August curbed yield potential in France.
PARIS, (Reuters) - France´s farm ministry on Tuesday cut its forecast of this year´s grain maize crop to 15.2 million tonnes, from 15.5 million seen last month, now up 1.2 percent on 2012 and in line with the five-year average.
The estimate revision for the European Union´s top maize grower was mainly due to forecasts showing a lower average yield now pegged at 8.68 tonnes per hectare against 8.79 t/ha last month.
Late sowings and slow growth in spring followed by hot, dry conditions in August curbed yield potential in France.
The ministry again cut its monthly estimate of the country´s sugar beet crop this season, now seen at 32.5 million tonnes against 33.2 million tonnes in October. That was 3.4 percent lower than in 2012, and 3.8 percent down on the five year average due to a sharp cut in yield estimate.
The ministry pegged France´s sugar beet yield at 82.42 tonnes per hectare against 84.07 t/ha last month. It cut its soft wheat crop estimate by 125,000 tonnes to 36.7 million tonnes, up 3.4 percent on 2012.
German rapeseed sowings for 2014 crop down 4 pct on year
The association´s estimate is traditionally regarded as a key early forecast of Germany´s upcoming rapeseed crop.
HANNOVER, (Reuters) - Germany´s winter rapeseed sown area for the 2014 harvest has been reduced by 4 percent on the year to 1.40 million hectares, German oilseeds industry association UFOP forecast on Tuesday.
Farmers have largely reduced rapeseed sowings for crop rotation reasons, the asssociation said. A smaller number have turned to other crops such as grains including maize, the association said.
The association´s estimate is traditionally regarded as a key early forecast of Germany´s upcoming rapeseed crop.
Germany is in most years the European Union´s largest or second largest producer of rapeseed, which is Europe´s most important oilseed for food use and a key feedstock for biodiesel production.
CAP 2014-2020: The final vote is scheduled for 20 November
CAP 2014-2020 is giving the possibility the national envelopes for direct payments for each Member State to be progressively adjusted such that those Member States where the average payment (in € per hectare) is currently below 90% of the EU average will see a gradual increase in their envelope (by 1/3 of the difference between their current rate and 90% of the EU average). Moreover, there is the guarantee that every Member State will reach a minimum level by 2019. The amounts available for other Member States who receive above average amounts will be adjusted accordingly.
The final vote on CAP 2014-2020 reform is scheduled for 20-th of November. Affordable food prices, lively rural areas and support for farmers – these are the goals of the revised common agricultural policy. The reform will be finalised with a vote in Parliament on 20 November during a plenary session.
As agricultural spending accounts for one third of the EU´s long-term budget, the CAP 2014-2020 reform has been negotiated alongside the talks on the EU´s long term budget for 2014-2020. This is why the final vote of the long-term budget also takes place during the November plenary session.
The Parliament, the Council and the European Commission struck a deal on the revision of the EU´s common agricultural policy (CAP2014-2020) on 26 June 2013. The EP´s agriculture committee backed the deal on 30 September.
EU rapeseed area to fall slightly in 2014 harvest season
The total oilseed area in the 28-country EU would fall 2 percent to 11.9 million hectares, the French-based analyst said.
The area sown with rapeseed for the 2014 harvest in the European Union will fall 1 percent from this year to 6.6 million hectares, analyst Strategie Grains said.
Sunseed crops would also lose area, with Strategie Grains expecting a 3 percent decrease to 4.4 million hectares.
The total oilseed area in the 28-country EU would fall 2 percent to 11.9 million hectares, the French-based analyst said.
"We expect a slight decrease in oilseeds´ area ... due to lower gross margins compared with last year, and to better soft wheat gross margins than rapeseed´s," it said in a monthly oilseed report.
"However, good conditions for the establishment of winter rapeseed this fall should limit the decline in rapeseed area."
Strategie Grains said its estimates were liable to be revised significantly depending on winter crop losses and weather and price conditions for spring sowing.
West Europe to miss out in big global grain harvest
France, Italy, Germany affected by wet, cool spring. Heavily delayed French harvest shows lower yields. Italy set for second poor crop in a row, Spain better
(Reuters) - This year´s maize harvest in western Europe is showing lower yields after unfavourable growing weather, putting the region out of step with an expected jump in global supply.
Potential record output in major exporters the United States and Ukraine have dragged international prices down to three-year lows and smaller crops in France, Italy and Germany could mean a particularly grim season for growers there.
In France, the European Union´s top maize grower, results so far were confirming a sharp fall in yields, particularly in the major maize belts of the southwest and east.
"The harvest is still pretty slow and yields are down on last year," Paul Gaffet of grains consultancy ODA said. "It´s a disappointing year but not a disaster." Late sowing and slow growth in spring followed by hot, dry conditions in August curbed yield potential in France.
Growers and analysts generally see the grain maize crop around 15 million tonnes, close to last year´s level, with a rise in sown area offsetting the drop in yields. Arvalis sees the average yield at 9-9.1 tonnes a hectare, while ODA forecasts 8.5 t/ha. Last year´s average yield was 9.2 t/ha.
Heavy rain in the past month has also kept field work behind schedule and raised the risk that crops could be hurt by frost if they are not harvested rapidly.
"Delays of two to three weeks are persisting because of the frequent showers and there is growing concern among producers about whether it will be technically feasible to get the harvest done," Gilles Espagnol of crop institute Arvalis said.
Farm office FranceAgriMer estimates that 35 percent of the area was harvested by Oct. 28, against 62 percent a year ago, and Espagnol said that by the start of this week, the harvest was still less than half done.
Wet conditions were also forcing French growers to spend more this year on drying crops, shrinking further their margins after maize market prices already fell, analysts said. Cash prices in France have held up better than futures markets, however, as harvest delays across Europe, including in major exporter Ukraine, have left some maize buyers scrambling to cover their needs. But this price reprieve may be short-lived as Ukraine is stepping up shipments of its expected record crop, which should start to flow into the European Union shortly.
Ukraine already shipped nearly 600,000 tonnes of maize in Nov. 1-6, according to the farm ministry, and expects maize to drive record grain exports in November.
ANOTHER POOR CROP IN ITALY
The EU as a whole will contribute to the rebound in global production this year, as eastern members like Romania and Hungary are on course for a recovery from drought-affected yields last year. The European Commission estimates EU output at 65.9 million tonnes, up from 58.1 million in 2012.
Spain should also support the rise in EU-wide production, providing one bright spot in western Europe. The country should harvest around 4.8 million tonnes, up nearly 14 percent on the previous year, according to farm ministry estimates. But Italy and Germany are set for smaller harvests.
Italy endured poor sowing conditions that cut area and yield potential and the crop was set to fall short of what was already a disappointing 2012 level.
"As we stand, we don´t expect more than 7.2 million tonnes of maize, maybe even less. In general, we expect a 10 percent reduction in output compared to last year and 20 percent drop compared to an average output," said Mario Salvi, an analyst at farmers´ association Confagricoltura.
Harvesting was winding down and should be wrapped up by the end of next week, he said. The wet spring was expected to impact the crop in Germany, where harvesting was also in its latter stages.
"Yields have suffered from the repeated rain in much of Germany in May and June so people are expecting a smaller crop and a larger import requirement," one analyst said. Germany´s largest grain trading house Toepfer International forecasts the 2013 crop at 4.73 million tonnes, down from 5.49 million tonnes last year.
Source:
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