The latest data from France’s farm office, FranceAgriMer, shows that crop condition ratings for French soft wheat remained steady last week, while farmers neared the end of maize planting.
The report indicates that 62% of the soft wheat crop was estimated to be in good or excellent condition as of June 10, unchanged from the previous week but significantly lower than the 85% rating a year earlier. The pace of the soft wheat crop condition rating remains the lowest for this time of year since 2020, when heavy rain also affected the crops.
For winter barley, usually the first major cereal to be harvested in summer, the good/excellent rating improved by 2 points last week to 65%, but this is still well below the 85% rating seen a year ago. In the first production forecast for this year’s harvest, France’s farm ministry projected the winter barley crop would be nearly 11% below last year’s volume due to lower planting and yields.
On a more positive note, the report shows that 97% of the expected maize area had been planted as of the latest update, up from 90% the previous week. However, this pace is still behind the 99% planted a year ago and the 5-year average of 100% for the same week.
The weather conditions in France have been a mixed bag, with a warm, sunny spell last week providing some relief to the grain belts after a damp spring, but rain has since returned this week.