November 17, 2010

Russian gross grain crop 38% down on-year

Russia had threshed 64.2 million tonnes of grain by bunker weight by November 16, with the harvesting campaign practically over, the Agriculture Ministry said Tuesday (Nov 16).

It did not provide on-year figures, but it appeared the crop was 38% down on-year, as last year Agriculture Minister Yelena Skrynnik said farmers had harvested 103 million tonnes by bunker weight by November 16.

This is in line with a week-ago ministry's forecast that the country may harvest a crop of 60.5 million tonnes by clean weight, a 38% decline from the 97 million tonnes reaped in 2009, after the worst drought in more than a century.

The ministry expects the difference between bunker and clean weight obtained after cleaning and drying the grain to be 5%-7%.

Farmers had also harvested 5.1 million tonnes of sunseeds, and 20.8 million tonnes of sugar beets by November 16 this year. Farmers had sown winter grains on 15.3 million hectares as of November 16, and the sowing campaign still continued,.

Russia has said it aimed to sow 15 million hectares with winter grains for the 2011 crop, down from 18 million last year.