Romania expects to reap 8.0 million tonnes of wheat this year thanks to ideal growing conditions, after a bumper 7.7 million-tonne harvest in 2004, a senior farm ministry official said on Wednesday. "We forecast to get again a bumper crop. The plants have benefited from ideal climatic conditions so far," the official told Reuters. The official said the rise was in part due to an increase in planted area. Romania put about 2.5 million hectares under wheat last year against two million in 2003.
The ministry targets an average yield of 3.265 tonnes per hectare for the 2005 harvest.
The Middle East is the Balkan country's most lucrative grain market, but high domestic prices have kept exports at a meagre level.
Grain analysts said a snow blanket covering grain fields in southern regions, which form Romania's main grainbelt, were thicker enough to ensure moisture in the soil and ensure a proper development of sprouted plants.
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