Photo from UNIAN
Wheat harvest this year may fall by 4.2% from 2017, to 25.1 million tonnes, the report said.
Experts from the National Scientific Center "Institute of Agrarian Economy" say the grain harvest in Ukraine in 2018 may grow by 13.4% year-over-year (y-o-y) to 70.2 million tonnes.
"According to estimates by scientists at the Institute of Agrarian Economy, updated based on statistical data as of November 1 and expert evaluation before the end of the year, production of grain and leguminous crops in 2018 will exceed by 13.4% last year's figures at 61.9 million tonnes and reach 70.2 million tonnes," the agency's press service said on December 6.
Experts say that the increase in gross harvest of grain and leguminous crops was caused mainly by a 40.8% growth in maize yield, from 5.46 tonnes to 7.69 tonnes per hectare. As a result, maize production is expected to soar by almost 42.7% to 35.2 million tonnes against 24.7 million tonnes of maize posted in 2017.
Read alsoUkrainian farmers thresh 68.5 mln tonnes of grain as of Nov 29
At the same time, wheat harvest this year will fall by 4.2% from 2017, to 25.1 million tonnes. Experts say that such output is sufficient to fully meet domestic needs for food grains.
The production of buckwheat in 2018 is expected to reach 146,900 tonnes, which is 18.6% down against 2017. According to experts, the reduction in buckwheat yield is caused by a significant decrease in the area under this crop (by 42.9%) compared with last year's figure.
The experts say that the rice harvest may grow by 20.6% to 77,100 tonnes this year due to an increase in the yield of this crop by almost a quarter.
It is also expected that the yield of peas will shrink by 24.8% to 825,000 tonnes compared with 2017, that of barley by 9.1% to 7.5 million tonnes, millet by 3.9% to 81,200 tonnes, oats by 7% to 438,700 tonnes, and rye by 20.3% to 405,000 tonnes.
Thus, in rather difficult conditions of 2018, Ukrainian farmers provided a record gross harvest of grain and leguminous crops and sufficient production of basic food crops to cover domestic needs.
As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukrainian farmers threshed 69.3 million tonnes of grain as of December 5.
The grain harvest in 2018 already exceeded the historical maximum at 66 million tonnes of grain gathered in 2016.
Ukraine harvested 61.3 million tonnes of cereals and leguminous crops in 2017, which was 7.3% down from 2016, according to the State Statistics Service.