According to the latest HGCA figures, English and Welsh plantings of all major arable crops are up this season. HGCA said that strong prices and clement autumn conditions in England and Wales have resulted in much higher winter crop sowings, 4.6 per cent above last years’ area in the EU’s third largest producer.

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The figures show that winter wheat plantings in the UK rose 2.9 per cent year on year to 1.86 million hectares. This is the highest level since the peak year of 2008, without counting the small number of spring crops yet to sow.

Although the wheat area could have increased further, a larger rise in plantings was prevented by similar rises in other crops. The rapeseed area rose to 698,000 hectares, (up 6.2 per cent) a record for the crop in the UK, following extremely good performance last season despite fears early on after the dry spring. Barley plantings increased 8.8 per cent to 345,000 hectares and oats to 79,000 hectares (up 12.9 per cent)

HGCA analysts suggested the increased popularity of Barley could be due to farmers wanting to spread the harvest workload with an earlier ripening crop, increases in planting home-grown feed on mixed systems and the chance of lucrative returns from strong malting premiums, after the quality of much of last years’ crop, which came in below the five year average, was affected by adverse weather.  

Oats’ incredible revival follows a shortage of supply last year which led to significant imports from Finland.

Although winter plantings rose in England and Wales, preliminary data from the Scottish government’s December 2011 Agricultural Survey show winter plantings were down across the board. Winter wheat plantings fell 13.6 per cent to 98,626 hectares, winter barley fell 3 per cent to 48,829ha, winter oilseed rape plantings decreased 3.4 per cent to 35,656ha and winter oats dropped 15.5 per cent to 6,380ha.

The Scottish government posited that the decrease in area of all winter cereals in the country is the legacy of the wet weather which hampered the harvest throughout autumn 2011. Wet conditions meant the 2011 harvest was delayed meaning some farmers had difficulties in sowing winter crops for the 2012 harvest.

Elsewhere in Europe, French wheat sowings were shown to be up 1.2 per cent and German sowings rose 2.0 per, although similarly unpleasant weather had impacted on the German harvest in 2011. France and Germany are the UK’s first and second ranked grain producers, respectively.

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