EU winter crop sowing progresses under favorable conditions – MARS

According to MARS experts, the sowing of new winter crops in most European Union countries is proceeding at a satisfactory pace, with cereal and rapeseed crops generally in good condition at early growth stages, thanks to favorable weather conditions.

The best situation is observed in France, the EU’s largest grain producer. A mild autumn supported successful sowing, but it also made the crops less hardened against frost compared to last year, increasing their vulnerability to future cold spells.

At the same time, dry conditions have slowed sowing in central Italy, eastern Hungary, and western Romania, where rainfall was 25–50% below average, while excessive precipitation in southern Romania and northern Bulgaria also caused delays. No serious problems have been reported so far. In the latest MARS report, no updated yield estimates were published after last month’s assessment, which indicated that expected corn and sunflower yields in the EU were below the five-year average.

Tags: EU