News
15.08.2012
Early crop harvesting finished, late continuing - agriculture ministry
As of August 14 this year, early grain and leguminous crops were harvested on 9.82 million hectares, which is 100% of the forecast. 25.34 million tons of grain was threshed with a yield of 25.8 centners per hectare, the Ministry of Agricultural Policy and Food reported.
"Late crop harvesting is continuing in full swing - as of the reporting date, 34 thousand tons of buckwheat was threshed from 37 thousand hectares (13%) with a yield of 9.3 centners per hectare. Millet was threshed on an area of 46 thousand hectares (27%) with an output of 55 thousand tons and an average yield of 11.9 centners per hectare," the ministry reported.
As noted, the yield of millet to date is by 6.4 centners per hectare less than by the same date of the previous year - the current drought has a negative effect on the yield of late crops.
In the steppe and forest steppe zone, farmers started harvesting sunflower - on an area of 21 thousand hectares (4.74 million hectares planned for harvesting); 23 thousand tons were threshed with a yield of 10.9 centners per hectare.
Soybean yields in the steppe are 16.1 centners per hectare, in forest steppe 12.0 centners per hectare. Soybean output is estimated at less than 10 thousand tons. According to updated reports from the regions, a total of 1.47 million hectares of soybeans are subject to harvesting in 2012.
The continued lack of precipitation in the southeastern part of the country, or its insufficient quantity and harsh drought, which began back in May, influenced absolutely all the crops, including oil-bearing. The first harvesting results show a record low yield of sunflower. According to various estimates, in Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, from 5% to 10% of the crops died.
ProAgro experts predict that in the current season, a total yield of sunflower in Ukraine will not exceed 9 million tons in weight after processing; soybeans - 2.6 million tons (against 9.2 million tons and 2.3 million tons, respectively, in 2011). Experts have corrected their forecasts for the harvest of the said oil-bearing crops to the downside - both concerning the harvesting areas and the yield forecast figures.
