The NFU is calling on its members to help answer important questions about the 2013 harvest by taking part in its annual harvest survey which launches this week. 

The survey of combinable crops is available online from August 15^th; it forms the first source of published data on production levels in the UK, coming out up to a month before Defra's official statistics.

This year the harvest is thought to have been badly affected by adverse conditions earlier in the year and the after effects of 2012. As a result of the disastrous 2012 season, the UK became a net importer of wheat for the first time in 20 years; if current estimates are realised the harvest could fall even further.

NFU said its survey will offer insight into issues such as the effect of the extreme weather on cereals and oilseeds, the lower winter crop areas and increased planting of spring crops, and the effect difficult field conditions have had on the crop. The union said it will attempt to get as "as full a picture as possible" of the wheat crop in England by mid-September and the year's harvest of major combinable crops to date, by early October.

NFU chief arable adviser Guy Gagen said, "Without the information provided by members it would have simply been impossible to generate an accurate estimate in the past as we rely on members' input in order to maintain our accurate track record with harvest results.

"As with last year, the survey is online, making it easy for members to record the crucial information that goes into painting a picture of the 2013 harvest on a national scale. We need as many of our members as possible to fill the survey in, as without their input, it simply would not be possible."