France: Wheat and barley crop condition deteriorates again, farm office says

The condition of French wheat and barley crops deteriorated again last week while farmers made limited headway with sowing and harvesting, data from farm office FranceAgriMer showed on November 29.

France, the European Union's largest grain producer, has had a very wet autumn so far and FranceAgriMer's data suggested a drier spell last week offered limited relief to farmers trying to wrap up winter cereal sowing and maize harvesting in soggy fields.

French farmers had completed 80% of soft wheat sowing for next year's harvest by Nov. 25, up from 74% a week earlier, FranceAgriMer said in its weekly report.

Sowing remained well behind progress seen last year, when 99% of the area had been sown by the same week, and was running a week behind the average pace of the past five years, it said.

Winter barley sowing was 89% complete by Monday, up from 86% a week earlier, and like wheat was running one week behind the five-year average.

The condition of already-sown wheat and barley crops deteriorated for the second week in a row.

An estimated 75% of soft wheat was rated good/excellent by Nov. 25 against 78% a week earlier and below a year-ago score of 82%.

The corresponding winter barley rating dropped to 75% from 79% the previous week, also falling below the year-earlier score of 76%.

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