Germany's 2017 wheat crop is expected to increase 2.2 percent on the year to 25.13 million tonnes, the country's association of farm cooperatives said on Wednesday. The association forecast Germany's 2017 winter rapeseed crop at 4.86 million tonnes, up 5.6 percent on the year. German grains and rapeseed crops are in overall good condition following a mild winter with no major frost damage so far, the association said in its first harvest forecast.
Germany is the European Union's second largest wheat producer after France and in most years the EU's largest producer of rapeseed, Europe's main oilseed for edible oil and biodiesel production. Dry weather in November to January was compensated by widespread rain in February which benefited Germany's crops, the association said.
Germany's sown wheat area has been expanded by only 0.2 percent to 3.22 million hectares, but the mild winter so far means yields will help expected yields rise 1.9 percent to around 7.8 tonnes a hectare. The rapeseed sown area has been expanded by 0.7 percent on the year to 1.34 million hectares. But yields will rise by 5.0 percent from last year's disappointing rapeseed crop to 3.63 tonnes a hectare, the association said.
The winter barley crop, mostly used for animal feed, will fall 1.7 percent on the year to 8.87 million tonnes following a reduction in sowings, the association said. The spring barley crop, used for beer and malt production, will rise 4.3 percent to 1.87 million tonnes. The grain maize (corn) crop will rise sharply by 22.1 percent against last year's weather-damaged crop to 4.46 million tonnes partly because of an 12.1 percent increase in the planted area and an 8.9 percent increase in yields, it said.