July 15, 2009
Czech's 2009 grain harvest seen at 6.622 million tonnes, down 11.7 percent on-year
The first estimate for the Czech Republic's total 2009 grain harvest is 6.622 million tonnes, down 11.7 percent from the 2008 harvest of 7.497 million tonnes, the Czech Statistics Office, or CSU, said Tuesday (July 14).
The estimate is based on data collected from local farmers June 20.
Most crops are expected to generate a lower harvest volume than 2008 due to lower yields and a slightly smaller overall planted area, the CSU said.
Also, 2008 was one of the most productive years for Czech agriculture on record, the CSU added.
The estimated wheat grain crop yield is expected to total 4.97 tonnes a hectare this year, down from 5.77 tonnes a hectare in 2008.
Rye yields are expected to be 4.26 tonnes a hectare, down from last year's 4.83 tonnes a hectare.
The estimated rapeseed crop yield is expected to total 2.81 tonnes a hectare in 2009, lower than the final rapeseed crop yield of 2.94 tonnes a hectare in 2008.
