JRC crop estimate for EU crops revised downwards

The Joint Research Centre, JRC, has lowered its harvest forecast for most arable crops in July compared to June. At EU level, the yield forecast for most crops remains at or slightly above the mediocre 5-year average. The JRC is downgrading grain crop expectations by 1 to 3 percent from June forecasts. For potatoes, an average yield of 34.4 tonnes per hectare is expected across the EU. This is a decrease of three percent compared to June. The yield forecast for sugar beet in the EU is now 73.3 tonnes per hectare. This is also a three percent decrease from the June forecast. Weather conditions The main reason for the deteriorated return expectations is the clearly drier than usual conditions last month in large parts of western, central and northern Europe, but also in eastern Romania. In southern parts of the Iberian Peninsula and northern Italy, the heat could have irreversible effects on yields. The precipitation that has now fallen is in many cases insufficient to make up for ...