October 17, 2008

The recent fall in grain prices has led them to predict European farmers would sow fewer grains and oilseeds ahead of the 2009 harvest and leave more land fallow or plant sugar beet instead.

The figures include land grown for industrial purposes such as rapeseed to make bio-fuels.

In contrast, total set-aside area in the 27-member bloc would jump to 3.9 million hectares next season, against 3.6 million in 2008/2009.

Grounding its forecast on farmers' sowing intentions, seed sales and comparisons of gross profit margins between the various crops, Strategie Grains predicted a 2.2 percent fall in soft wheat area to 22.6 million hectares.

The countries registering the largest reductions in soft wheat include Greece, Italy, Ireland and the Netherlands and to a smaller extent Spain, Britain, France and Poland.

Corn sowings were forecast to shed nearly 5 percent compared to 2008/2009 at 8.2 million hectares, the analyst said.