Bulgarian Harvest Finished
Harvesting has drawn to a close in Bulgaria with final wheat production seen at a very precise 3,636,313 MT, 18% lower than last season, according to the Chief Directorate on Agriculture with the Agriculture and Food Ministry.
Yields this year came in at 3.28 tonnes per hectare, and 47.7% of the crop is of milling quality, he said.
The winter barley crop produced 797,692 MT, gathered at an average yield of 3.38 tonnes per hectare. Spring barley produced 45,451 MT, with an average yield of 2.7 tonnes per hectare.
Winter oilseed rape came in with an average yield of 2.21 tonnes per hectare, with production totalling 226,160 MT.
The Directorate added that, as it was his birthday, he'd be enjoying sex with Mrs Directorate at precisely 11.32 and 45 seconds this evening. And at 11.33 and 17 seconds he'd be lighting his pipe and trying on his new slippers.
Bulgaria Harvest Latest
As of July 15th Bulgarian farmers had harvested around 30% of the nation's wheat crop, with yields averaging 3.2 MT/hectare, according to the Agriculture Ministry.
They've trimmed their final wheat production estimate from 3.6-3.7 MMT to 3.5-3.6 MMT, around 20% lower than last season's output.
Around 92% of the nation's barley has been cut with yields averaging 3.4 MT/hectare, the Ministry say, with final production estimated at 755,000 MT, 16% down on last year's crop of 900,000 MT.
Bulgarian Barley Harvest 70 Pct Done
The barley harvest in Bulgaria is 70% done, according to UkrAgroConsult.
Despite frequent showers, the warm weather and winds have helped farmers to make good progress in harvesting this past week, they say.
So far there are no worries about the quality of the barley from the new crop. Test weight is an average of 64 kg/hl, moisture is normal, below 14,5%, and admixtures are within 1-2%.
Some concerns have been expressed about the quality of the malting barley – but so far the new is mostly positive, they conclude.
Bulgarian Crops Hurting
Grain crops in Bulgaria are hurting from drought and heat stress, according to the Dobrudzha Agriculture Institute.
Yields this year will be 20-25% lower than in 2008 they say.
Yields in the northeast, which has the most fertile soil in Bulgaria, will struggle to reach the usual 500 kg of wheat per decare, they say.
The Institute expects about 400-500 kg of barley per decare in the northeast, and about 200-300 kg in Southern Bulgaria.
The amount of rain in Northeast Bulgaria in the spring thus far had been only 15 litres per square metre which was very insufficient, they noted.
Bulgarian Harvest Kicks Off
Bulgarian farmers have begun harvesting winter barley according to UkrAgroConsult. The earliest fields were cut in the middle of last week, and this week they will make serious advance if there is no serious precipitation, they added.
At the same time, the market has slipped a bit, mainly driven by the drop of the commodities on the international markets. Nominal buying interest is already 10 euros less than 10 days ago. But at these depressed levels we do not expect to see many excited sellers, they say.
Export prices at the moment are not motivating the farmers to sell – the production costs this year are quite high due to the high crop input prices and lower yields. It will be very difficult for them to start selling below production costs, they conclude.
Bulgarian Drought Worsens
Drought in Bulgaria could see wheat production this year fall by more than 30% to 3 MMT, from 4.4 MMT in 2008, according to media reports.
Chairman of the National Association of Grain Producers (NAGP) Radoslav Hristov said his members would hold an extraordinary sitting this week to discuss the condition of autumn and spring crops. NAGP will produce a report which would be sent to the Ministry of Agriculture and Foods, he said.
The country has seen virtually no rainfall of note during May, he added.
"In my opinion the drought problem is now even more serious than in 2007 because then the affected areas were few but now their number is bigger. Condition of spring crops is three times as bad compared with 2007," Hristov explained.
Earlier this week the Bulgarian news agency Novinite described this season's potential wheat yields as "tragic".
Hungary meanwhile has not had any significant rainfall since March, and Romania is on the verge of declaring a "calamity state" with almost a quarter of winter plantings destroyed or damaged by drought.
