According to preliminary estimates, there will be enough corn for domestic needs

(Photo: Pixabay)

The crop estimate carried out by the NAK and its county organizations takes into account the consequences of the serious drought that occurred in July, and therefore contains more restrained prospects for several plant species compared to previous forecasts. The impact of the drought is also indicated by the increasing trend of damage reports, by the end of July the dynamics of these damage reports significantly strengthened, and the size of the reported areas reached 46,000 hectares. For corn grown on the largest area, the previous national average yield expectation of 9 tons/hectare has been significantly reduced due to the drought, according to the current state, national average yields of approximately 6.6 tons/hectare can be expected, which, taking into account the 874,000-hectare area, a corn yield of 5.8 million tons would result. The lowest yield averages were reported by the county organizations in the counties of Bács-Kiskun and Csongrád-Csanád, but preliminary estimates of less than 6 tons/hectare were also made in the counties of Pest, Veszprém, Somogy, Heves and Békés. The currently expected yield in Western Transdanubia is 8 tons/hectare, in Southern Transdanubia 6.9 tons/hectare. The stock shows a varied picture throughout the country, the heat stress has taken a toll on the plant, and its vegetative development is also much faster than usual. In lower-quality, salty, sandier areas or where there was less rainfall than the national average until June, the condition of many fields is critical, the yellowing of the leaves is strong and tube formation is not adequate. Compared to corn, sunflower is expected to be less affected by the summer drought, but at the same time, even for this plant species, the forecasts are more restrained than before. Based on the currently estimated yield of 2.7 tons/hectare, a harvest of 1.88 million tons is expected from the 680,000-hectare area.

Among the plant species grown on a smaller area, soy was a positive surprise

In an area that has doubled compared to the average of previous years – 111,000 hectares – with the currently estimated yield of 2.66 tons/hectare, a total crop of around 300,000 tons can be realized. Domestically, sugar beet was grown on 16,000 hectares, with a yield of 59 tons/hectare, the farmers can harvest 963,000 tons according to preliminary estimates. It applies to all affected plant species that the further prolongation of the drought causes a further decrease in yield. Despite this, this year’s expected harvest of corn will still cover the domestic needs of 4 million tons, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, there is currently no indication that it would be necessary to import it to meet domestic needs. Accordingly, the direct and indirect import of crops from Ukraine is still prohibited, and importing companies are required to report the import of any crop from another country to the domestic authorities.

At the same time, in relation to crop estimates, it is important to emphasize that the current data are still preliminary forecasts

Until the fall harvest, many unforeseen factors can arise that can affect the actual harvest. The final crop estimates can be prepared in the second half of August and the first third of September, taking into account the weather events of the following period.

AM