September 20, 2011

Spain expects higher wheat and lower corn production

Spain predicts that wheat production will increase and corn production will decrease in this year's harvest.

Wheat output will rise 15% to 6.69 million tonnes from 5.84 million tonnes a year earlier, and compared with August forecast of 6.53 million tonnes, the Agriculture Ministry said in a report, according to a Bloomberg report.

Spanish winter grains benefited from favourable winter and spring conditions that boosted yields, with abundant rainfall and relatively high temperatures, according to the EU's crop- monitoring unit reported in July.

"The production estimate for winter cereals is higher than the previous campaign, whereas the surface declines," the ministry said.

Soft-wheat production will rise 17% to 5.72 million tonnes from 4.89 million tonnes a year earlier, based on the situation as of July 31, beating the 13% increase previously expected, the Agriculture Ministry said.

Production of durum wheat, the hard variety used to make pasta, will increase 1.6% to 967,100 tonnes as increased productivity more than compensates for an 18% drop in planting, government data show.

Spanish corn production will advance 13% to 3.71 million tonnes, compared with a previous forecast of 3.84 million tonnes, the ministry said. The barley harvest is forecast to climb 3.9 % to 8.48 million tonnes.