Wet, mild spells in the past month helped cereal crops in France recover from dry sowing conditions, although the recent weather was also creating problems with weeds, the country's farming agency said on Wednesday. France, the European Union's biggest grain grower and exporter, experienced drought during summer and early autumn, reducing yields in this year's harvest and threatening sowing of the crops for 2019 production.
"Mild and wet conditions in November allowed crops that were behind in their growth to catch up and for good root establishment to take place," Catherine Cauchard, head of FranceAgriMer's crop monitoring service, told reporters. "There is no definite impact on yield potential from the difficult sowing conditions."
The agency's comments echo those of other crop analysts who see a boost to cereal crops in France and elsewhere in Europe from the return of rain, in contrast to earlier-sown rapeseed which endured the worst of the dryness in Europe. In its first sowing estimates on Tuesday, the French farm ministry forecast the area sown with winter soft wheat and winter barley would rise about 3 percent in 2019, supported by a switch from rapeseed which was expected to see its area drop by nearly 24 percent.
However, mild temperatures had fuelled growth of weeds in French cereal fields, Cauchard said, saying it was proving "very difficult" to manage. A technical fault has delayed the release of FranceAgriMer's most recent crop ratings for the week to Dec. 3, but Cauchard said conditions were stable compared with the prior week.
It was not known when last week's report, the last before a two-month break to mark the winter dormancy period for crops, would be released, she added. The previous data had rated 82 percent of French wheat as in good or excellent condition.
In monthly supply-and-demand forecasts for cereals, FranceAgriMer increased marginally its outlook for 2018/19 soft wheat exports outside the EU to 8.8 million tonnes from 8.75 million previously, which would be 8 percent above last season's level.
Wheat exports were being supported by very high sales to Algeria, a revival in demand from West Africa and two unexpected loadings for China that some traders see as heralding further shipments, Marc Zribi, head of the agency's grain unit, said.
However, FranceAgriMer raised its forecast of French soft wheat stocks at the end of the 2018/19 season on June 30, to 2.7 million tonnes from 2.5 million estimated last month, reflecting downward revisions to expected exports within the EU and domestic demand from livestock feed makers.
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