UK: Barley acreage down, wheat up in 2025, AHDB confirms

The Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board (AHDB) has confirmed an increase in the UK wheat area for 2025, while the confirmed barley acreage is down, Agriland reported on June 17.

The total wheat area is estimated at 1,623 kilo-hectares (Kha), a 6% increase from last year’s four-year low. However, this remains slightly below the five-year (2020–2024) average of 1,648Kha.

Estimated at 207Kha, the oat area is up 13% year-on-year, the highest level since 2020.

The barley figures are contained within data sets made available for England, Scotland, and Wales (Great Britain) only.

The total area of barley is down 6% compared to last year, at 1,101Kha. This is 6% below the five-year average of 1,176Kha.

Significantly, both spring and winter barley areas have declined year-on-year.

The oilseed rape (OSR) area has dropped sharply, down 19% to 236Kha. This is the smallest area since 1983 and 32% below the five-year average of 346Kha.

Despite mixed changes for individual crops, the total cereals area edged up by 1% from 2024 to 2,918Kha in 2025, which is still below the 2023 level of 2,991 Kha.

However, the combined area of cereals and OSR remains virtually unchanged, down just 0.5% to 3,154Kha.

This is still below the ten-year average of 3,498Kha, largely due to the sharp decline in OSR planting.

The uplift in wheat planting has been attributed to the excellent planting conditions that prevailed across many parts of the UK last autumn.

This is except for the south-west (-6%), where wet weather again hampered planting, and the south east (-1%).

Yorkshire and the Humber, and the East Midlands – which experienced some of the sharpest percentage declines in 2024 saw strong recoveries in 2025. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland and Scotland recorded above-average increases in area.

Very wet weather in September 2024 limited the area of winter barley across England and Wales, and meant a poor start for some crops.

In addition, the area faced pressure from the crop economics and the fall in OSR plantings, reducing the need for an earlier harvested crop to precede OSR.

Conversely, the good planting conditions this spring and changes to English farm policy likely encouraged growers to expand their spring cropping compared to earlier intentions.

The share of malting, brewing, and distilling varieties is 65%, down from 68% in 2024. This change in varieties, together with the overall year-on-year fall in barley area, indicates a smaller area of the crop suitable for malting, brewing, and distilling.

In turn, this places more emphasis on yields and quality to support availability for the malting, brewing, and distilling sectors in the 2025/26 marketing season.