Ukraine: Rain this week improves harvest prospects – Ministry of Agriculture

Rainfall this week helped to improve the conditions of Ukraine’s crops, Mykola Bezuhlyi, first deputy Agriculture Minister, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg on June, 29.

“Rains in general had a positive impact on the future harvest, especially for late crops like corn, sunflower and soya,” Bezuhlyi said in a statement on the government website.

Rain fell in almost all regions from the middle of June, helping crops after dry weather in May and earlier this month. Spring barley will be most damaged by the dryness, the country’s Hydrometeorology Center has said. Rains caused grain losses in the southern Odessa region amounting to tens of thousands of hectares, he said, without being more specific.

Winter barley was harvested from 313,000 hectares (773,440 acres) as of June, 29, the Agriculture Ministry has said. More than 890,000 metric tons of barley was harvested. Barley yields increased to 2.86 tons a hectare from 2.51 a year earlier.

Winter wheat yields increased to 3.34 tons a hectare from 2.52 tons a year earlier, the ministry said.

01 July, 2011