Photo from UNIAN
Ukrainian agrarians harvested 10 million tonnes of grain on 3.1 million hectares (32% of the target) as of July 18, according to the Agrarian Policy and Food Ministry's press service.
The average yield of cereals is estimated at 3.26 tonnes per hectare, the report said.
At the same time, 5.6 million tonnes of wheat was threshed from an area of 1.6 million hectares (25% of the target), 3.7 million tonnes of barley from 1.2 million hectares (48%), 3,000 tonnes of rye from 2,000 hectares, and 3,000 tonnes of oats from 1,000 hectares. The farmers also harvested 617,000 tonnes of peas from 260,000 hectares, which accounted for 66% of the projected figure.
Ukrainian farmers continue to harvest rapeseed crops, having collected 587,000 tonnes of this product from an area of 256,000 hectares (31%).
In general, early grain and leguminous crops are to be harvested in the area of 9.4 million hectares.
Despite unfavorable weather conditions, the harvested crop will fully satisfy Ukraine's grain requirements and provide its sufficient export volume, the press service said in a statement.
"The moisture deficit in June did not allow us to fully realize the potential of grain crops; however, this does not affect the overall situation for grain. The country's demand for food grains, for feed and processing industries, is fully met. [Grain] exports will exceed the volume of its domestic consumption," the press service quoted First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Maksym Martyniuk as saying.
Read alsoUkraine threshes 6.5 mln tonnes of grain by July 14Despite a slight decrease in yields, the ministry expects that the financial result of Ukrainian farmers will be at the level of the previous year by the end of 2017 due to the global grain price situation. At the same time, the harvested wheat will be of high quality, the press service added.
"According to preliminary forecasts, the share of wheat of 1-3 classes will increase from 50% to 70% in accordance with the general bulk," the report said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, during the spring sowing campaign, the agrarians sowed spring grains and leguminous crops on 7.17 million hectares. A total of 14.3 million hectares was sown by grain crops (including 7.15 million hectares – by winter crops). The total area of planting crops for the harvest of 2017 is estimated at 26.9 million hectares, which is 152,000 hectares more than in 2016.
Ukrainian farmers planted 8.1 million hectares of winter crops and green forage in 2016, which was 3.8% up against 2015. At the same time, the area for grain crops increased by 1.5%, to 7,200 hectares, the State Statistics Service said.
Moreover, Ukraine harvested 65.95 million tonnes of grain and legumes in 2016, which was 9.7% more than in 2015. It was also a record for the whole period of the country's independence, according to the Agrarian Policy and Food Ministry.