EU Wheat Crop Seen Up 20 Percent

EU farmers should see a sharp upswing in their cereals crops for 2008/09 and turn out an overall 306.74 million tonnes of grain, up by 20 percent from last year, EU farm union Copa-Cogeca said on Friday.

Soft wheat production was expected to rise by about 23 percent to 136.86 million tonnes, while this year's maize crop was likely to increase by 31 percent to 63.37 million tonnes.

Oilseeds harvests are seen at 26.43 million tonnes, a rise of around 6 percent from 2007/08, Copa-Cogeca said.