Glanbia announce 2006 grain prices
Meanwhile, the Home-Grown Cereals Authority says delivered grain prices in Northern Ireland this week were at £95.50 per tonne for feed wheat, unchanged from last week; delivered barley prices were at £87.17, an increase of £1 per tonne on a week ago.
With up to 15% of UK winter wheat harvested, the HGCA said early yields were slightly lower than last year and somewhat variable.
But barley yields in the UK are ahead of last year, and better than expected wheat yields in France could also help to put the total European grain harvest ahead of last year. Demand for surplus supplies could come from a number of countries where crops were hit by the heatwave, which has reduced output in Germany, Poland and Scandinavia.
Meanwhile, other crops are giving more cause for concern across Europe, with farmers, supermarkets and food companies particularly worried about market supply for potatoes. Early British potatoes have hit record trade prices of about 225 a tonne, nearly 40% ahead of last year; across the EU, the potato maincrop yield could be reduced as much as 40%.
Fresh green vegetables are also likely to be scarce; in predominately Catholic Poland, the ruling Law and Justice Party has asked parliamentarians to pray for rain to improve crop yields.
