Harvest in England set to drop by 15 per cent

The English wheat harvest is expected to drop by 15 per cent this year as a result of the drought conditions.

The National Farmers’ Union said that although the area planted with wheat is similar to last year, production is expected to be much lower due to the extremely dry spring, particularly in the east of England - the country’s “bread basket”.

The harvest is expected to be around 15 per cent below the five-year average, falling by around two million tonnes to a total yield below 12 million tonnes.

The average English wheat yield per acre is expected to fall to the lowest level since the 1980s.

Winter oilseed rape is also likely to record a poor harvest, with around nine per cent less crops per acre than the five-year average. But with a greater area planted with oilseed rape than normal, total production is expected to be up on the five-year average.

The national figures are based on a survey of farmers in the east of England, and weighted to include estimates for crops grown in areas where less damage has been reported.

NFU combinable crops chairman Ian Backhouse said: “I believe this year’s forecast yield decrease was largely due to poor growing conditions since winter.

“With the east of England experiencing its lowest rainfall for the first half of the year in over 100 years, farmers are clearly concerned about the impact on the ground of this abnormally dry spring.”

He added: “Watching crops wither has meant a difficult time for many of our farmers and growers, particularly in the worst affected parts of the country.”