8 October 2008 - Based on forecasts made on 15 September 2008, the Czech Statistical Office is expecting the total production of 8 406 thousand tonnes of cereals and 1 062 thousand tonnes of rape. In comparison to last season's harvest, it is up by 17.8% for cereals and up by 2.9% for rape. The expected total potato production of 750 thousand tonnes is by 8.6% lower that last season's harvest. The expected production of 2 629 thousand tonnes of sugar beet is 9.0% below last season's harvest.
The forecasted production of cereals confirms the previous forecasts for main cereals. The expected production of 8 406 thousand tonnes is by 1 273 thousand tonnes higher than the 2007 harvest and it is the second highest production (the first one was in 2004). The average yield of cereals is expected at 5.45 t/ha (+18.4% on last season’s yield), which is by only 0.01 t/ha below the highest yield ever recorded in the Czech Republic in 2004.
This year’s first production forecast of 773 thousand tonnes for grain maize is an increase of 14 thousand tonnes (+1.8%) in comparison to last season’s harvest, under expected yield 7.16 t/ha (+5.3%).
The expected total potato production is 750 thousand tonnes (-8.6% on last season’s harvest). The fall is due to a 2 123 ha decrease (-6.7%) in the area under potatoes and due to a decrease in the yield to 25.17 t/ha (-2.1%). The harvest forecast for sugar beet is 2 629 thousand tonnes, which is by 260 thousand tonnes (-9.0%) less than in 2007. The expected yield of 52.19 t/ha is by 1.06 t/ha lower in comparison to 2007.
The area under poppy, the second most spread oil plant in the Czech Republic, considerably increased (from 57 thousand ha to 70 thousand ha) and a harvest of 52 thousand tonnes (+57.4%) is expected, also due to higher yield forecast from 0.58 t/ha to 0.75 t/ha. The production of sunflower for seed is expected at 61 thousand tonnes (52 thousand tonnes in 2007), under yield forecast 2.51 t/ha (2.13 t/ha in 2007). The area under sunflower (24 thousand ha) is roughly the same as in 2007.
This year’s first forecast for green and silage maize suggests yield 35.29 t/ha and production 6 344 thousand tonnes, i.e. by 774 thousand tonnes more (+13.9%) than last season’s harvest.