EC: Romania’s sunflower, maize crops below past 5-year averages

The European Commission (EC) revised downwards, for the second consecutive month, the sunflower yield prospects for Romania, the main producing country in the EU.

Romanian farmers could obtain this year, on average, only 2.16 tonnes of sunflower per hectare, 11% below the average of the last five years but 12% above the 2021-2022 year, according to the latest forecast of the Commission. The EC thus revised Romania’s expected sunflower yield downward by 8.8% compared to last month’s projection.

“Overall, yield prospects for maize and sunflowers have become more pessimistic, and our yield forecasts have been reduced below the five-year average,” reads the report quoted by Economica.net.

For corn/maize, the Commission estimates an average yield of 5.03 tonnes per hectare, 7% below the five-year average but 67% above last year. Compared to the average of the previous five years, Romania could have the second largest decrease in production per hectare in the EU, after Portugal (minus 10%).

As for wheat, the forecast was adjusted upwards compared to June, from 4.26 tonnes per hectare to 4.73 tonnes per hectare, 10% above the five-year average and 13% more than in 2021-2022.

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