August 10, 2010

Lithuania's grain harvest expected to show decrease

Lithuania's grain production might drop by up to 30% due to heat in 2010, according to the country's Association of Grain Growers.

"The harvest will be smaller. The grains are smaller in size due to heat this year. The harvest will be smaller by up to 30% this year, and the decline might be more pronounced in some locations," said the association's chairman, Romas Majauskas.

The quality of grain would be worse this year and the country might be short of food grain but would have an oversupply of feed grain, which could pose a problem, he said.

"The quantity of grain is excessive in Lithuania - we do not use it all for food and feed. It will be difficult to sell the excess since the bulk of exports comprise food grain," Majauskas said.

Compared with the harvest time of 2009, the prices of food grain rose by approximately 40%, those of feed grain - by some 20-30 %, he added.