HGCA Planting Survey

Better late than never I suppose, just as the combines start rolling the HGCA have released their 'provisional' planting figures for GB cereals and OSR.

In it they peg the English winter wheat area at 1.76 million hectares, down 9% on 1.935 million last year. The largest drop in plantings coming in the North East (-28.6%), the South West (-16.8%) and the West Midlands (-16.6%). Not too many surprises there, certainly the NE and SW had terribly wet conditions in the Autumn. The lowest decrease in plantings, again unsurprisingly coming in the Eastern region, down 3.9%. Plantings in the soggy old land of the gingers, Scotland, were down 20.5%, and in Wales (also gingers I believe) down 15.5%. Overall, GB plantings were down a net 9.7%, they say, with a total area of 1.869 million hectares.

Winter barley seedings were 1.4% higher overall, with all of that coming in England. the biggest increase was the South East at 19.2%, and the largest decrease the poor old North East again at -16%. The total GB planted area came in at 416,800 hectares.

Spring barley plantings jumped 22.1% nationally, up 32.1% in England with some huge increases in the North East (+85.2%), the West Midlands (+63.5%) and Yorkshire (+54%). Total planted area was 727,500 hectares.

OSR plantings are down only 5% nationally they say to 568,300 hectares, with the largest drops in the North East (-28.6%) and the West Midlands (-56.6%). The biggest increase coming from the North West, up 23.4%.

Including oats, the total GB cereals area was only 2% lower overall at 3.146 million hectares, add on the OSR area and we get a total cereals/OSR reduction of just 2.4%.