January 31, 2011

Russia's grain harvest may reach 88 million tonnes

Russia may yield higher amounts of grains harvest than predicted, with the soaring estimate for this year as much as 88 million tonnes, according to the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR).

The institute, also known as IKAR, said the 2011 grains harvest would be between 82 million and 88 million tonnes. It previously estimated the crop at between 76 million and 86 million tonnes. A snow layer that has protected winter crops is among the reasons for the revision, IKAR Director Dmitry Rylko said.

Russia's crop was cut by 37% to 60.9 million tonnes in 2010 because of the worst drought in half a century. The Agriculture Ministry said last Friday (Jan 28) that it approved the rules governing the sale of as much as 500,000 tonnes of stockpiled grain in five monthly releases starting next week.