Russia had harvested 84.2 million tonnes of grain by bunker weight as of September 2, 22.6 million tonnes more than a year ago, the Agriculture Ministry said on Tuesday. The ministry said in a statement grains had been harvested from 30.2 million hectares, or 65.2 percent of the sown area. The volume included 48.1 million tonnes of wheat, up 11.6 million year-on-year.
Wheat was harvested from 15.4 million hectares, or 58 percent of the target. The barley crop was 20.5 million tonnes by September 2, 7.1 million tonnes more than a year ago. Barley was harvested from 7.4 million hectares, or 76.3 percent of the targeted area.
Average grain yields rose to 2.79 tonnes per hectare, up 0.52 tonnes; wheat yields were 3.11 tonnes per hectare, up 0.56 tonnes; and barley rose to 3.64 tonnes per hectare, up 0.74 tonnes.
Russia officially expects to harvest at least 95 million tonnes of grain this year by clean weight, up from 81.8 million in 2007, but analysts believe the crop may be higher and some say it may exceed 100 million tonnes. Bunker weight is normally about 7-8 percent higher than clean weight, obtained after grain has been cleaned and dried, but the difference may be lower in hot and dry years.
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