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Barley: Farmers will stand before lesser areas to harvest

May 3, 2018 at 2:37 PM , Starry Night Ltd.
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SOFIA. Farmers sped-up their sowing campaigns of Spring barley. Unfavorable weather conditions could further decrease the output.

BULGARIA. Yearly, the country is a net exporter of locally grown barley while imports represent an iota. The majority of shipped volumes abroad, customarily, go to countries of the EU such as Greece and Spain, among others. According to local authorities, by the 27th of April 2018, exports to EU markets reached 259,432 mt, which on a yearly basis is by 11.67% higher. Right now, substantial quantities for exports are impossible to find on the market, as remaining reserves, scattered in store facilities throughout different regions of the country, diminish quickly.

Barley: Could it get grimmer?

Throughout the country, among all other locally grown grains, barley is harvested first. So, approximately a month and a half before the start of the upcoming harvests, farmers will surely stand before fields of less planted land. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, by the 26th of April 2018, available for harvest fields stood at 115,762 ha, which on a yearly basis represent a decrease of 10.7%. However, by the start of harvest, available land might go down further since throughout the country farmers already complained of losses because of weather conditions. In addition, according to farmers within the Southeast, the dry weather could reduce the yield this year, as well.

      Harvest 2017-18

(01.07.2017 - 27.04.2018)

         units in MT

Beginning availability

22,000

Aggregate output

633,393

Imports

5,314

Domestic consumption

288,000

   beer production

64,500

   feed

193,500

   seeds

30,000

Exports to the world

311,828

   to EU markets

259,432

   to rest of the world

    52,396

Source: Bulgarian Ministry of Agriculture

Currently, farmers are in the fields speeding-up their sowing campaigns of Spring barley. The weather has allowed sowing on a larger scale, but right now, showers are vital for success. According to local authorities, by the 26th of April 2018, planted acreages of Spring barley reached 2,023 ha while a year earlier, farmers managed to sow 2,899 ha. Still, the difference of 30.3% is in favor of sowed acreages from last year.

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