European wheat crop already on the ropes

The European Union’s winter wheat crop is off to a less than ideal start, according to analysts. Planting in France, which is the largest producer of the crop, has been delayed by excessive moisture. The French ministry of agriculture is forecasting a five percent drop in seeded area in that country, according to Annachiara Saguatti, analyst with Arete, an Italian agri-food intelligence company. “They suggest that, as a result of the delay, the ideal planting window is long closed and a shift to spring and summer crops might occur,” she said in an email. The impact of Europe’s wet autumn is also being felt in Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, northern Germany, Denmark, western Poland and Slovenia. Winter wheat planting in the European Union was probably going to be on par with last year and in line with the five-year average had it not been for excessive rain. Wheat is a safe choice for growers in this bear market because it is better than competing crops at withstanding ...